Case Study: A Matter of Time: Principles, Myths & Methods for the Hourly Financial Advisor

A Matter of Time: Principles, Myths & Methods for the Hourly Financial Advisor

Deliverable:

Book

Sector:

Wealth Management

The Objective

Timothy Financial Counsel, LLC has developed a unique approach to delivering financial planning advice, based on the professional hourly-billing approach. The aim was to encapsulate this approach in a concise yet comprehensive guide, enabling other firms to benefits from two decades of experimentation.

The Approach

Over a series of detailed conversations, I worked with Mark to understand his insights into both delivering advice and running a business of other advisors. Together, we uncovered the main stumbling blocks that hold hourly advisors back, and some of the systematic approaches (e.g. tiered resources and rates) to overcome them.

The Result

The final output was a 9 chapter how-to guide that aimed to take the reader from basic principles to detailed implementation. The book was published in 2021, and has been praised by hourly practitioners as an invaluable contribution to the field.

Amazon Reviews

"Berg & Jackson have penned an important and informative book for hourly financial planners. The discussion ranges from myths, benefits, struggles, communication, pricing, and management, to measurement. It was a quick read and very helpful to inspire me to go all in on hourly as my fee model. I especially appreciate their discussion of how hourly as a fee model doesn’t preclude folks from having an ongoing financial planning relationship and that hourly is not solely for the middle class or those not able to be served under an AUM model." - May 8, 2023

"I couldn't put this book down once I received it. If you are on the fence about whether or not hourly planning is the way to go, it will become much clearer after reading this. The book does a great job at laying out the why and the how." - August 23, 2022

"This book is timely and well written. It explores all the areas of running an hourly practice from the pros and cons to tracking and hiring. I found the metrics discussed to be very illuminating. If you are thinking of delivering hourly advice or already do - then pick up this book to learn some tips from someone who has been doing it for decades. Highly recommend." - April 6, 2022

"The depth of both his understanding of the fundamentals of the space and his ability to intelligently research was very clear in how well he was able to incorporate the cutting edge concepts we are implementing - and without need of significant revisions from his first draft!"

- Head of Strategy

"Matthew is an incisive writer with the intelligence to delve deep into understanding the essence of complex topics, and the flexibility in his writing style to be able to engage any audience. Matthew is a pleasure to work with."

- Futurist & Commentator

"Unlike many of our writers, we don’t need to spend any time editing his work. He also gets the work in quickly and offers a high level of insight instead of just regurgitating news. We look forward to working with Matthew more in the future."

- Journal Editor

"I had the privilege of collaborating with Matthew on a book - a long project that took many different twists and turns. Matthew was the epitome of patience but also provided good guidance and direction as we worked together. The result was better than I could have hoped for. The reviews for readers were very encouraging, and confirmed that it was worth all the effort! I'm very appreciative of Matthew for his wisdom, insight and tenacity."

- Advice Firm Owner

"Matthew is not only an exceptional writer but is also a fantastic collaborator. Matthew understands the assignment but then goes deeper to ensure he understands the context most important for the audience to receive."

- Consultant

"His meticulous research ensures that every piece he produces is not only factual, but also credible. Working with Matthew has been an absolute pleasure thanks to his unwavering professionalism and commitment to excellence."

- Wealth Content Manager