The Cutting Edge of Advisor Technology: Ezra Group's Craig Izkowitz

The Magnificent Seven continue to capture the attention of advisors and investors, dominating U.S. equity performance over the last year. Will this trend continue throughout 2024? Will growth stocks continue to beat value? What about large versus small? And what is 2023's signal about where markets are headed this year? We're delighted to be joined by John Owens, Senior Portfolio Manager for Morningstar's Select Equity Strategies, and Paul Tait, Portfolio Specialist at Morningstar Wealth. Together, they help unpack the landscape for U.S. stocks in a digestible manner.

The topics we're discussing today align with the recent release of Morningstar Wealth's 2024 Market Outlook. A recession seemed to be the consensus view entering the year, but markets love to fool the masses, and a stock market rally followed. However, the rally was not evenly distributed. Bonds, for example, remain in a multi-year drawdown, and many investors are questioning their role in a portfolio. With this as the backdrop, what actions make sense to support clients? In today's episode, we're delighted to have Morningstar Wealth's CIO of the Americas, Marta Norton, and Chief U.S. Economist, Preston Caldwell with us to dig into the outlook, share their perspectives, and, as always, be sure to address the implications on client portfolios and any suggested actions to take

A lot has already been said about the potential of artificial intelligence, or AI, but how are people actually engaging with it? And how should investors think about their AI exposure in a portfolio? Morningstar has invested heavily in generative AI, with Morningstar Mo taking the stage at our investment conference, and in a first, we're delighted to be joined by a special guest: Mo the AI character. We’ll also be joined by Adley Bowden, Head of Individual Investor and Grady Burkett, Portfolio Manager of the Hare strategy. This marks the start of a new season of Simple But Not Easy, with Nick VanDerSchie taking the mic from Jonathan Linstra, whom we thank for his fabulous insights. Together, let's turn AI speculation into real-world application.

Financial technology is going through a new wave of change, with artificial intelligence – or AI – taking the world by storm. But the wealth tech space is already incredibly complex, with literally hundreds of tech providers battling for market share across the advisor workflow. So, what does Ezra Group, a prominent WealthTech consultant, have to say about this? How can we get ahead of this change? We're delighted to be joined by Craig Iskowitz, Founder of Ezra Group. Together, we’ll dig into his latest technology predictions, covering AI, integration opportunities, fractional outsourcing, and more. A key takeaway: "Meet once a year with your team and talk about your technology."

The need for great financial advice continues to grow, with a landscape we haven’t witnessed in 15 years. So, what does BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, have to say about this? What might we expect from here? In this episode, we’ll dig into the latest advice trends, covering the use of models, behavioral application, and evolving investors’ needs. We're delighted to be joined by Liz Koehler, Managing Director and Head of Advisor Engagement from BlackRock.

We look at innovations and megatrends that financial advisors should watch for. We start with the big problems that financial professionals are attempting to solve, then discuss prevalent trends in product and technology that support better client outcomes. This is a practical discussion with an eye on the future, where we seek to arm you with everything you might need to stay ahead. In this episode, we are joined by Evan Rapoport, Founder and CEO of SMArtX, along with Matt Apkarian, Associate Director, Product Development at Cerulli Associates.

The complexity of operating a successful financial advice practice continues to grow and significant challenges still exist in operating an effective practice. So, in this episode, we take a 30,000-foot view of financial advisor challenges and dig into the importance of data and regulations in overcoming these challenges. Whether it is growing or defending your practice, we share expert opinions on how to navigate it. In this episode, we are joined by Nick VanDerSchie, Head of Strategy and Execution at Morningstar Wealth, and Brian Costello, our Head of Data Aggregation Strategy and Governance.

Warren Buffet readily admits “I make many mistakes” when referencing his own investment portfolio. This begs the question, where does that leave the rest of us? We know that today's market uncertainty can surface the best and worst of our investing behaviors. For financial advisors, what are some of the behavioral pitfalls to avoid for clients? And what opportunities can you seize? We're joined by two experts to help us dig into these important questions - Michael Laughlin, Head of Portfolio Specialists, and Samantha Lamas, Senior Behavioral Researcher at Morningstar.

What are the positive client messages we can share leading into 2023? With inflation and a recession on everyone’s minds, what actions make sense to support clients? The topics we’re discussing today align with the recent release of Morningstar Investment Management’s 2023 outlook titled “the positives of investing in this environment”. In today’s episode, I’m delighted to have Marta Norton and Philip Straehl with us to dig into the outlook, share their perspective, and as always, be sure to address the implications on client portfolios and any suggested actions to be taken.

Direct indexing is becoming a key addition to financial advisors’ toolkits. It provides the ability to tailor an index, like removing a stock or even industry, which can bring the fun back to investing and help with after-tax outcomes. In 2022, Morningstar launched a direct indexing offering for financial advisors and joined the ‘fun’. So, what’s all the fuss about? What are the salient points you need to know? Who’s it right for? And what are the thorny issues to weigh? We're joined by Sheryl Rowling, Editorial Director, and Andy Kunzweiler, Portfolio Manager for Morningstar’s direct indexing proposition.