WFA--There seems to be 2 voices

Its time to move on. After many years. me and my team are out on the 15th. I still think WFC is in a world of hurt. I just dont believe a bank that concentrated its loans to people in CA and Vegas can be doing well. Geting off this sinking ship. Glad i havent done 4front so my clients are "hooked" to their envision and stupid graph.

Good luck WFAt.  Like so many other things in life, the move itself won’t be fun but afterwards, you will be very glad you did it…and you will wonder what took you so long to make the decision!

[quote=AGEMAN]Communication seems to be a real problem with this company.  I called national sales a couple of weeks ago to find out a timeline for the 9/30 snapshot and they tell me one timeline and then in a meeting we had at my local office they said don’t expect to be paid until Jan. 15??  Can we get out act together??  There seems to be two lines of communication!![/quote]

You probably should prepare for the likelihood that it will be quite a bit beyond Jan 15th. Still waiting to get paid from June 30th snap.

A WFA branch manager, formerly with AGE, told me that  the firm isn’t about to pay everyone. He said that the Envision awards program ends on 6/30/10. The way he explained it to me was that they will string you out to that date. When it passes (the date) they will turn it around and blame you for not getting it right! When you think about it, they (WFA) pretty much trash clients with under 250m. Doing the same to their sales force is not a stretch. Further, when one leaves the upfront money comes back and that rids them of lower producers. And, when accounts transfer they charge $95 per. By doing the math: $95 times
say, 300 accounts equals $28500. It is like throwing the horses overboard when your in the doldrums! WFC’s attitude is that WFA pays the FA’s too much anyway. This is a 180 degree change for the AGE guys. They (Wachovia and now Wells)  didn’t buy AGE because they were after the AGE sales force, they were after money market deposits! To them most of the AGE brokers were marginal at best. Better for them to rid themselves of these guys.  Ben Edwards, bless his soul, doesn’t run this company anymore.     

The bank is doing everything in their power to hold down the payments. They never imagined they would have a response like they got so they changed the rules after the fact and they are not going to pay anything they can find an excuse not to. I finally flew the coop and would never have signed up for 10 more years of their BS. No more conference calls about nothing. No more loan brokers nagging the hell out of me to refer my clients to them. No more answering machines at the home office with 72 hour callback promises. No more bank fees to journal funds from one client account to another to cover checks. No more annual account fees for regular accounts. Etc Etc. I’m free and I never felt better.  There is no more A G Edwards but there are firms that still put the clients’ interests first. I am no longer a number. I am FREE! My client response has been overwhelming and they were just as sick of the WFA BS as I was. WFA doesn’t call the shots. WFC does. Don’t ever forget it. It is a lot of work but I never felt better in my life. Anyone who tells you the Universal bank model is the future is full of BS. Put down that koolaid and get on with life as it should be. You deserve better. Your clients deserve better.

18 months



1. UBS usa will be independent



2. WFA/WS will be independent



stumpf and his henchmen never wanted WS.   



It was the garbage (in his eyes) that came with WB southeastern US deposits



They just waiting (like swiss) for markets to get better to dump.

[quote=Tropic Lightning69]A WFA branch manager, formerly with AGE, told me that  the firm isn’t about to pay everyone. He said that the Envision awards program ends on 6/30/10. The way he explained it to me was that they will string you out to that date. When it passes (the date) they will turn it around and blame you for not getting it right! When you think about it, they (WFA) pretty much trash clients with under 250m. Doing the same to their sales force is not a stretch. Further, when one leaves the upfront money comes back and that rids them of lower producers. And, when accounts transfer they charge $95 per. By doing the math: $95 times
say, 300 accounts equals $28500. It is like throwing the horses overboard when your in the doldrums! WFC’s attitude is that WFA pays the FA’s too much anyway. This is a 180 degree change for the AGE guys. They (Wachovia and now Wells)  didn’t buy AGE because they were after the AGE sales force, they were after money market deposits! To them most of the AGE brokers were marginal at best. Better for them to rid themselves of these guys.  Ben Edwards, bless his soul, doesn’t run this company anymore.     
[/quote]

Second Gunman on the grassy knoll!

[quote=WFAnomo]The bank is doing everything in their power to hold down the payments. They never imagined they would have a response like they got so they changed the rules after the fact and they are not going to pay anything they can find an excuse not to. I finally flew the coop and would never have signed up for 10 more years of their BS. No more conference calls about nothing. No more loan brokers nagging the hell out of me to refer my clients to them. No more answering machines at the home office with 72 hour callback promises. No more bank fees to journal funds from one client account to another to cover checks. No more annual account fees for regular accounts. Etc Etc. I’m free and I never felt better.  There is no more A G Edwards but there are firms that still put the clients’ interests first. I am no longer a number. I am FREE! My client response has been overwhelming and they were just as sick of the WFA BS as I was. WFA doesn’t call the shots. WFC does. Don’t ever forget it. It is a lot of work but I never felt better in my life. Anyone who tells you the Universal bank model is the future is full of BS. Put down that koolaid and get on with life as it should be. You deserve better. Your clients deserve better.
[/quote]

Where did you go? What has your response been so far (hard #'s)?  Which of the reasons that you gave to your client’s has been the most effective?

Here’s an alternative to WFC, Benjamin F. Edwards.  Check out the website, benjaminfedwards.com.  It is a super place to work where the home office caters to the clients and reps.  Isn’t life too short to work someplace that doesn’t appreciate you and causes you and your family tons of stress?  Good luck, Tad!

Here’s an alternative to WFC, Benjamin F. Edwards. Check out the website, benjaminfedwards.com. It is a super place to work where the home office caters to the clients and reps. Isn’t life too short to work someplace that doesn’t appreciate you and causes you and your family tons of stress? Good luck, Tad!

Prem Adv…most of that giberish on Tad came from the loin of Bagby.



Can you start a firm from scratch bigboy? Can you hire some of the most capable people AGE had. 3mos-4offices and a 5th on the way next week. While you fall out of your chair someone else is beginning to build a good place to work whith what will likely be a great culture.

Then go there, little fish, if its so f*ing great.

Hi Danny!

Hi Bagby!

Give it a year or two and see NOT how it looks but how it works.

From what I hear today…u may not want to stay at wfa for 2 more yrs.

My predictions

1)Dave Carroll-Danny’s boss- will be done at the end of this month.

2)Danny will be out the door soon after

3)Even if Ludy stays he is totally neutered. Wells is already running the broker dealer…I mean read the signs …a thanksgiving email and a reminder to sign up for benefits is all u have. This guy has been cooked. Wells plays for keeps!

4)look at the haircut the AGE guys took on todays email announcement…it backdoors you to a 28% payout just like the bank brokers

5) You will be asked to open wfc checking accounts before the month of Jan is out-mark my words.

6) those who stay long term are quite naive. Never did care for bankers

What do you mean by # 4…they changed the grid again?

[quote=tdude] From what I hear today…u may not want to stay at wfa for 2 more yrs.

My predictions

1)Dave Carroll-Danny’s boss- will be done at the end of this month.

2)Danny will be out the door soon after

3)Even if Ludy stays he is totally neutered. Wells is already running the broker dealer…I mean read the signs …a thanksgiving email and a reminder to sign up for benefits is all u have. This guy has been cooked. Wells plays for keeps!

4)look at the haircut the AGE guys took on todays email announcement…it backdoors you to a 28% payout just like the bank brokers

5) You will be asked to open wfc checking accounts before the month of Jan is out-mark my words.

6) those who stay long term are quite naive. Never did care for bankers [/quote]



1. Good, he is an idiot.

2. Even better. He has NO credibility. An even bigger idiot.

3. Not staying.

4. CAAP accounts haircut today, nothing about the grid. No connection.

5. This is total bullsh*t. Nostradamus you are not.

6. There are changes coming, but we’ll be sold before we become bankers.

[quote=tdude] From what I hear today…u may not want to stay at wfa for 2 more yrs.
My predictions
1)Dave Carroll-Danny’s boss- will be done at the end of this month.
2)Danny will be out the door soon after
3)Even if Ludy stays he is totally neutered. Wells is already running the broker dealer…I mean read the signs …a thanksgiving email and a reminder to sign up for benefits is all u have. This guy has been cooked. Wells plays for keeps!
4)look at the haircut the AGE guys took on todays email announcement…it backdoors you to a 28% payout just like the bank brokers
5) You will be asked to open wfc checking accounts before the month of Jan is out-mark my words.
6) those who stay long term are quite naive. Never did care for bankers [/quote]

1. Good, he is an idiot.
2. Even better. He has NO credibility. An even bigger idiot.
3. Not staying.
4. CAAP accounts haircut today, nothing about the grid. No connection.
5. This is total bullsh*t. Nostradamus you are not.
6. There are changes coming, but we’ll be sold before we become bankers.

They are going to cut the CAAP payouts. I am going to fire them because the performance has been poor.  But, I am irritated that they are doing this. I think that they view us as high paid clerks, and they are going to rectify the situation. To me the situation is bleak, I don’t relish the thought of going somewhere else, but I feel that my back is against the wall.    

[quote=Tropic Lightning69]They are going to cut the CAAP payouts. I am going to fire them because the performance has been poor.  But, I am irritated that they are doing this. I think that they view us as high paid clerks, and they are going to rectify the situation. To me the situation is bleak, I don’t relish the thought of going somewhere else, but I feel that my back is against the wall.    
[/quote]

Trust me you won’t look back…I have been out since Jan and things went better than I could have ever imagined! There are still firms that care abotu advisors and clients!

Allocation advisors ie Caaps Plus, foundation, Ibbotson, Laffer clipped the advisors 25 bp. An FA with 10mill just got cooked for 25k gross for next yr. Sadder yet the outstanding performance they had the last few yrs has been cooked lately. Dont even know the team who is running it anymore…previous guys who mgd it have all left the firm.



Premier ADv- While I agree with most of your answers…the info on the checking accts came from a group of folks yesterday who were at a meeting with the top folks in the firm this week. And no Im not nostradamus.

Seems to me the payout at WFA is as good or better than any of the bank/wires.

[quote=AGEMAN][quote=Gaddock]Seems to me the payout at WFA is as good or better than any of the bank/wires.

[quote=tdude]Allocation advisors ie Caaps Plus, foundation, Ibbotson, Laffer clipped the advisors 25 bp. An FA with 10mill just got cooked for 25k gross for next yr. Sadder yet the outstanding performance they had the last few yrs has been cooked lately. Dont even know the team who is running it anymore…previous guys who mgd it have all left the firm.



Premier ADv- While I agree with most of your answers…the info on the checking accts came from a group of folks yesterday who were at a meeting with the top folks in the firm this week. And no Im not nostradamus.[/quote]

I still have all my ETF portfolio’s with the guys that USED to run CAAP, and created it…they bailed from the Wachovia/Wells Debacle a year and a half or so ago…my new firm has them in our managed money platform…so it was a seemless transtion and the performance was much better than whoever took over those portfolio’s at wells/wach!

It sounds like you are over at Stifel!

A little here, a little there. Eventually, they will squeeeze us into a salary structure with a little incentive structure for selling checking accounts and auto loans. gotta luv the future of this place. Glad I am staying positive. This allocation advisors take away is one of many and many more to come.

[quote=Ferris Bueller] [quote=nestegg]

[quote=tdude]Allocation advisors ie Caaps Plus, foundation, Ibbotson, Laffer clipped the advisors 25 bp. An FA with 10mill just got cooked for 25k gross for next yr. Sadder yet the outstanding performance they had the last few yrs has been cooked lately. Dont even know the team who is running it anymore…previous guys who mgd it have all left the firm.



Premier ADv- While I agree with most of your answers…the info on the checking accts came from a group of folks yesterday who were at a meeting with the top folks in the firm this week. And no Im not nostradamus.[/quote]I still have all my ETF portfolio’s with the guys that USED to run CAAP, and created it…they bailed from the Wachovia/Wells Debacle a year and a half or so ago…my new firm has them in our managed money platform…so it was a seemless transtion and the performance was much better than whoever took over those portfolio’s at wells/wach![/quote]



performance sucked at BOTH places.[/quote]

Much better with Keller and O Grady than the newbs at Wach that took over…that said I moved alot into Joe B’s ETF portfolio…kicked ass last year, as he actually called the correction right!