Back Office Hero Alison Miller

Alison is a Client Service Associate at Per Stirling Capital Management and currently works under one main advisor, Mary Voll Miller, alongside an Operations Specialist, Hannah Simpson. Alison is a second generation financial professional, and has the privilege of working directly with her mother. What she loves most about financial planning is that she has the ability to help others by solving their financial puzzles. 

Your operational super power: Time management and/ or time blocking my schedule 
Game changing Hubly workflow: Surge Meeting Process workflows
Total active clients you are supporting: 70 clients.
Time saved per week since using Hubly: 2-5 hours a week  

Where do you see yourself in your career in 5 years?

In five years I would love to be a Certified Financial Planner™ with my own clients. I first knew I wanted to be a Certified Financial Planner in my Second Year of undergrad. I had just finished my 4th semester as a Pre Dental Student and realized that wasn’t the right path for me. My mother was a CFP at the time, so I decided to intern at her office and discovered a new passion for personal finance. I then changed my major to finance and enrolled in the University of Texas certificate program to begin my journey towards becoming a Certified financial planner. ‍

In my current role of Client Service Associate, I am learning more about what is involved in the planning process and how to connect with clients. I sit in on meetings, take diligent notes, and record them into Hubly. Through this process I am learning what key details are most important to the planning process and how to actively listen throughout the client meeting process. I am also learning how to put together client information to create a financial plan. I am not the primary financial planner, but I am learning how to piece together important details to be a coherent map to their financial future. 

What is your favorite part of your job?

I love how every client comes in with a unique set of circumstances with which we get to use our tools to figure out a solution to their financial puzzles. My favorite part of my current job is getting to be a trusted contact for our clients to reach out to for any personal finance worries.

With the time Hubly has saved me, I am able to focus on new projects that bring the client experience to new highs. At our firm we constantly strive for the best, so Hubly has helped allow us to systematize our processes and focus on what else we can approve upon. ‍

If you could wave a magic wand and eliminate one part of your job what would it be?

‍If I could wave a magic wand and eliminate one part of my job it would be data entry, which Hubly and Zapier have helped reduce through automation. For example, they automate the next client meeting Date and start the client meeting prep workflow when the client schedules a meeting through Calendly.  

Are you more productive working remotely or in office?

‍I am more productive working in the office than working at home because I thrive off the energy and communication with my coworkers. Having the separation between work and home makes me more productive at tasks designed for each environment. 

What's one piece of advice that you have received from a colleague, mentor, etc. that helped you do better at your job?‍

The best piece of advice that I have received from a mentor was from my mother, she said to never stop learning. She instilled in me a passion for knowledge and a work ethic to follow where it leads me.

The desire to constantly learn helps me greatly in my current position, whether it's continuing to learn what more our current software programs are capable of or learning more about a client. Being curious helps me to ask better questions – and receive better answers. Striving for more knowledge through learning about a topic or learning about your clients, leads to a successful career, no matter what your field but especially financial planning.

What's your favorite resource (book, article podcast, networks etc.) that you find useful for your job?‍

My favorite resources that I find useful for my job are the Kitces Nerd’s Eye View newsletter, the FPA forum, and Atomic Habits. 

 About Per Stirling Capital

‍Per Stirling is perhaps best known for its award-winning ethics, and it is this ethical and fiduciary culture that has allowed the financial advisory firm to assemble a team of financial advisors, financial planners and financial consultants that is one of the most expert and credentialed in the industry.  Per Stirling  fosters a collaborative culture to better serve their clients needs and won a Best Places to Work 2022 for Financial Advisors award from InvestmentNews.