
Can You Hold My Attention? The Derek Bruton Podcast
By Derek J. Bruton

Can You Hold My Attention? The Derek Bruton PodcastApr 13, 2021

Episode #10 - Rachel Robasciotti, CEO at Adasina Social Capital
I’ve met many people in my financial services career who, quite simply, have changed the face of the industry and changed lives along the way. Charles Schwab revolutionized the brokerage industry and pioneered RIA custody in the late 80’s. Tom Bradley, while at TD Ameritrade in 2005, took a radical stand in emphasizing the importance of being a fiduciary to your clients, well before talk of the DOL rule or Reg BI. And I witnessed Valerie Brown not only become one of the most successful female CEOs ever in the broker/dealer industry, but also make an indelible impact on the rights of financial advisors and their businesses through the lobbying she did with government regulators. Now, I’ve had the opportunity to meet one of the most dynamic leaders and advocates for social change that you’ll ever see in our industry. She’s someone that I’m confident we’ll be talking about for many years to come.
Rachel Robasciotti, the CEO of Adasina Social Capital, is truly changing the way investing can lead to material changes in the most problematic issues in our society. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t read about ESG - Environmental, Social and Governance – investing. But Rachel and Adasina take ESG investing to a whole new level of passion and conviction. She’s found a way to make true changes in society through the exchange traded fund that she manages, while remaining committed to generating performance for her shareholders.
And on this episode of Can You Hold My Attention, in the wake of a historical step forward in justice after Derek Chauvin was found guilty of 2nd degree murder, we’ll dive deep into how a black female from a small town in California rode her childhood experiences and passions straight into an industry that suffers from gender and racial diversity problems.
Rachel Robasciotti actually chose wealth management as the platform to amplify her voice for change.

Episode #8 – Dr. William F. Sharpe, American Economist and Nobel Price Winner
It’s not every day you get to interview a Nobel Laureate. I am honored that Dr. William F. Sharpe sat down to talk with me about the Sharpe Ratio, retirement planning, and why his focus has evolved from accumulation of wealth for retirement and how firms can better manage those assets, to helping individuals plan to use those assets to finance their retirement. We also discussed his free eBook, Retirement Income Planning with Scenario Matrices, at length. You can access the eBook & software he references with the link below
- Why the Sharpe Ratio continues to be important in planning today
- The evolution of Dr. Sharpe’s career, and how his focus evolved
- How scenario matrices can help people understand what it means to have enough to retire
- Dr. Sharpe’s perspective on annuities
- Why Dr. Sharpe is nervous about the U.S. economic outlook over the next five years
Download Retirement Income Analysis with Scenario Matrices (eBook and Software)

Episode #7 – Chris Dudley & Detlef Schrempf, NBA Veterans & Wealth Managers
Basketball is one of my passions, so recording this episode was a blast! Chris Dudley & Detlef Schrempf played a combined 32 years in the NBA, and have chosen financial services as their second career. The lessons they share from their experiences are timeless, and apply to each of us and the role we play on our own personal teams – both in the office and at home. Of course, I couldn’t resist sneaking in a little fun and asking them to pick their ultimate basketball teams. Be sure to listen to the end to hear their selections!
- How they found their way to the NBA
- Why they were asked to play different roles in the NBA, and how they found success in them
- Why they transitioned into financial services
- How they leverage their vast networks of relationships for business without abusing them
- Chris & Det’s advice for those considering working with professional athletes

Episode #6 – Samantha Russell, Chief Evangelist at FMG Suite
Samantha Russell has been named to Investment News’s “40 Under 40” and to wealthmanagement.com’s “10 to Watch” list for her work in creating dynamic websites and digital marketing strategies for Advisors. Our conversation about why digital marketing matters and how to measure return on investment moved me from being slightly skeptical to being excited to try some new things in Kingswood’s marketing strategy.
- How to leverage both business and personal messages most effectively across the different social media outlets
- Why it is important to engage on social media rather than simply post & wait for followers
- How you can gauge what the most effective digital medium is for your message
- How you should be measuring success in your digital marketing efforts

Episode #5 – Jeffrey Kleintop, Chief Global Investment Strategist at Charles Schwab
I’ve known and respected Jeff Kleintop, Chief Global Investment Strategist at Charles Schwab & Co, Inc, for a long time. This conversation about what he’s watching in the worldwide financial markets feels extraordinarily relevant in these early days of both the new administration and the vaccine-led recovery.
- Why Jeff thinks we are at the beginning of a new economic cycle in the worldwide markets
- Why Jeff is concerned about the potential of a surprise uptick in interest rates
- How the performance of global markets will coincide with the performance of global economies this year
- How Jeff thinks advisors should be allocating the global portions of their portfolios
- What should advisors be discussing with clients who are close to retirement

Episode #4 – Eric Clarke, CEO at Orion Advisor Services
Orion Advisor Services CEO, Eric Clarke, and I covered a lot of ground in this conversation. As one of the most innovative leaders in both FinTech and financial services, Eric has tremendous insight into how technology drove our industry in 2020 – “A year of Darwinian evolution…” – and how our landscape has been permanently changed as a result.
- The importance of leading by listening
- What Eric sees as the next phase in the evolution of our industry
- How Orion’s merger with Brinker Capital led to a new mission: “Power The Advisor/Client Journey”
- How the American investor benefitted from the evolution of the financial services industry
- How close are we to “Alexa…” for financial services?

Episode #3 – Fran Tarkenton, NFL Hall of Fame Quarterback and Founder & CEO of Tarkenton Financial
I am proud to share this inspiring conversation with my friend and NFL Hall of Fame quarterback, Fran Tarkenton. His perspective on leadership and the importance of taking your ego out of the equation to become a great leader is something I think everyone will find incredibly valuable.
- How the most important lessons he learned in football helped Fran transition into a wildly successful business career
- The importance of being authentic with both your clients and your team
- How surrounding yourself with the right people lifts the burden of having to be the smartest person in the room
- How the COVID-19 pandemic has led to growth and opportunity
- Fran’s picks for the best player he’s ever played with, as well as the meanest player he’s played against

Episode #2 - Elizabeth Nesvold, Head of Asset & Wealth Management at Raymond James Investment Banking
I really enjoyed this conversation with Elizabeth Nesvold, Managing Director and Head of Asset & Wealth Management Investment Banking at Raymond James, about the raging party that is consolidation / Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) across our industry. Liz provided some astute insight into this booming landscape, as well as to how financial advisors are turning to M&A as a way to bring the resources they need to continue to grow their business.
- How & why M&A has accelerated this year after an initial slowdown
- How advisors are leveraging M&A to move beyond the “Valley of Death”
- Behind-the-scenes intelligence on valuation pricing and how it works
- What qualities command a premium valuation for an advisory firm, and what can drive down a valuation
- Areas within our industry in which Liz sees potential value at lower multiples

Episode #1 - Brooke Southall, Founder & Principal at RIABiz.com
Welcome to the inaugural episode of “Can You Hold My Attention?” – The Derek Bruton Podcast.
We are proud to have a renowned industry expert (some might say “the man behind the curtain”) and principal of RIABiz, Brooke Southall, as our guest. Listen as Derek & Brooke discuss and debate:
- Who is benefitting the most from key industry trends such as consolidation, the move to independence, and fee compression?
- The positive changes they see across the industry as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic
- How the digital revolution and the evolution of “fake news” has changed journalism
- Who they feel are the most influential people in the financial services industry today
- Brooke’s insights around the Schwab/TD Ameritrade merger

Episode #9: Marc Butler, President & COO of Skience
Marc Butler is the President & COO of the blazing hot fintech company called Skience. Like many in our industry, Marc's illustrious career traveled through the RIA custodian vertical. It's with this perspective that he shares why the wealth management industry is at the next true stage of digital transformation. Why are advisors not adopting technology solutions at a faster pace? What role will the custodians play in reshaping the RIA technology stack? And can financial advisors reinvent how they manage client relationships? All this and more on this episode of "Can You Hold My Attention?"