Chuck Mausbach, an executive at Frandsen Financial Corp. in Arden Hills, Minn. has a technique for rallying his staff around the company’s investment targets. He has used his technique to meet corporate goals for the past twelve years. Take the corporate goal, analyze the resources, communicate with staff members about what to expect and how they can meet part of the goal and stay on top of them. Mausbach asks analysts to write down what they need to do, and then tracks performance, holding encouraging meetings along the way.

Different managers use different techniques. Lou Mastropietro, the program director at Astoria Federal Savings Bank involves his analysts at the very beginning of the process. He meets with each analyst and addresses his or her record over the year, discussing how specific territorial issues might have impacted results. Then he considers the number of appointments the adviser made, the adviser’s closing ratio, and the average revenue per sale. Together, Mastropietro and his analysts decide how much the analyst wants to make for the year, and then break that figure down into weekly revenue figures needed to make that sum.

Program managers can also support their advisers through training. Many organizations support a training course which helps their analysts get their certified financial planner designation.

If a goal is set impractically high, program managers need to explain to company executives that to meet the goal they will need more advisers or additional marketing to add areas of opportunity. Most managers, however, do not set outrageous goals, but base their goals on expected growth and historical performance.