Morningstar Investment Conference: Sessions to Watch

Although in a new locale at the spectacular Navy Pier in Chicago, the Morningstar Investment Conference, June 26-27, promises to maintain its long-standing history of high-quality content, engaging speakers, ample time for connecting with peers, and opportunities to check out new technology.

I’m excited to be attending in person this year and have already scoped out what I believe will be great sessions among a packed lineup. Without further ado, here are my choices:

Pathways to Growth—Maximize Client Value by Growing Wallet Share (1:10 p.m., June 26): We all know that it’s better to retain a client than to try to replace a client with a new one. Keeping a current client happy results in an uninterrupted revenue stream and a good reputation—which helps bring in new clients! Even better than marketing to potential new clients is managing more assets from current clients. This session on growing wallet share has my interest. Leah Ryan, advisor practice management consultant at Capital Group, will discuss how becoming a retirement-income specialist can help persuade clients to consolidate more assets—including retirement accounts—with you.

Product Structures of the Future: Winning the Next Generation of High-Net-Worth Investors (1:10 p.m., June 26): Unfortunately, two of my top sessions are being held at the same time. If you have two people at your firm attending the conference, you might want to divide and conquer here. New high-net-worth investors want tax efficiency as well as more control over their investments. Michael Laughlin, head portfolio specialist, US Wealth Distribution, at Morningstar Wealth, will present different product structures aimed at appealing to these investors, including separately managed accounts/direct indexing and tax-optimization strategies. These tools represent exciting offerings, and I’m looking forward to hearing the details.

How to Pay Yourself in Retirement (2:10 p.m., June 26): Clients who are retired or are approaching retirement are concerned with how to handle cash flow needs. It’s not as simple as constructing a bond portfolio that throws off the required monthly dividend. After all, inflation must be considered. This esteemed panel will discuss income strategies and practical approaches to diversification, risk management, and return maximization. The panel? Christine Benz, director of personal finance and retirement planning at Morningstar; Jason Kephart, multi-asset ratings, global manager research, at Morningstar Research Services; Erin Browne, managing director, portfolio manager, at Pimco; and Andrew Jacobs Van Merlen, portfolio manager at T. Rowe Price.

Principles for Tax Planning for Financial Advisors With Jeffrey Levine (2:10 p.m., June 26): With so many great sessions, it’s difficult not have conflicting “must see” presentations. And here we are again. Jeffrey Levine, of Kitces.com, will address how advisors can manage the delicate line between providing tax-wise advice without stepping on the toes of potential referral sources, like CPAs.

Five Industry Trends Reshaping Financial Advice (8 a.m., June 27): Changes in technology as well as clients’ demands for services mean that advisors need to change with the times or be left behind. Michael Kitces, chief financial planning nerd at Kitces.com, always has his finger on the pulse of the industry. I’m not a morning person, but I will be there to hear Michael’s thoughts.

Lifecycle of Advice: Converting Prospects to Lifelong Clients (1:10 p.m., June 27): This session will discuss how to retain clients throughout their various life cycles with advice and services designed to meet their needs—even before they are aware of them. Learn from insights of Morningstar’s Samantha Lamas, senior behavioral researcher, and Danielle Labotka, behavioral scientist.

Thorny Questions You Wouldn’t Ask at a Sunday Dinner: ESG, Politics, and Performance Trade-Offs (1:10 p.m., June 27): Again, I’m sorry for recommending two sessions at the same time, but it had to be done. ESG has gone from being in demand to now being a political hot cake. Is ESG grounded in minimizing avoidable risks, or is it socially conscious investing? How can advisors determine when it’s best to consider ESG factors and when to avoid it? I’m very interested in hearing what separates fact from fiction. This panel includes Matthew Morris, head, Portfolio Advisory Group East Division, at UBS Financial Services; John Oxtoby, senior vice president, director of ESG Investing at Ariel Investments; and Alyssa Stankiewicz, associate director at Morningstar Research Services.

The Evolution of Asset and Wealth Management: The Past 40 Years and the Next 40 (3:15 p.m., June 27): The businesses of investment management and financial advice are not necessarily separate. The wealth-management industry has evolved and will continue to evolve, but in what ways? Hear the insights from top leaders including Katie Koch, president and CEO of TCW; Bob Oros, chairman and CEO of Hightower Advisors; and Kunal Kapoor, CEO of Morningstar.

Finally, artificial intelligence is poised to fundamentally change wealth-management services. I wrote about AI in the latest issue of Morningstar magazine. Gaining information on AI and how we can use it is imperative. Be sure to check out these sessions:

• MtM (Meet the Manager): Gabelli Funds—Investing in Generative AI: Identifying Winners and Separating Hype From Reality (10:45 a.m., June 26)
• Back to the Future: AI and Machine Learning (1:10 p.m., June 26)
• Conversation With Jack Kass, futurist, former head of GTM at Open AI (3:30 p.m., June 26)

I hope to see you at the Morningstar Investment Conference in Chicago. If you see me, say hi!