Local Students Experience ‘A Day in the Life’ at Telemus

What does the future of the wealth management industry look like?

We’d say bright, after hosting a daylong workshop for local teens who share our passion for finance.

Earlier this month, a group of students from area high schools spent at a day at our headquarters in Southfield, meeting with our team of experts to get a taste of what it’s like to do what we do.

This wasn’t your typical job-shadowing session – and these were not your average high-schoolers, either.
“We didn’t shadow any one person,” said Adin Kleinfeldt, a senior at Frankel Jewish Academy in West Bloomfield, an investor himself who already has several internships under his belt, including two in New York City. “We went more in depth about investing, how to make a career out of it and how to get started.”

“That was the goal,” explained Johannah Schiffer, Director of People and Places at Telemus. She coordinated the day in the life workshop. “We wanted to expose these students to a variety of job roles and give them a chance to learn first-hand from members of our team.”

The day’s agenda was packed with meaningful mentorship and real-world advice. After arriving at 8:30 a.m., the students were debriefed on the company and the industry as whole. Then, it was a rapid succession of sessions tackling a variety of topics that aren’t covered in textbooks.

Topics included:
• Planning for your financial future
• A day in the life of an advisor
• Preparing for a career in the industry
• An investment overview

“There are lot more careers in finance than I thought,” said Kleinfeldt, an avid basketball and soccer player whose interests in finance lean toward private equity and venture capital. “It was really interesting to learn about what each role does specifically.”

Noah Eaton, a 16-year-old junior at Bloomfield Hills High School, echoed that sentiment.

“I’m into investments, so this expanded my knowledge for sure, hearing from real people, not just reading from textbooks or online,” said Eaton. He belongs to his school’s investment club and plans to one day become a broker or pursue a career in quantitative economics.

“It was really cool to learn about the different job positions and hear about the different aspects of the office and how they all work together even though they do different things,” he added.

And while stock prices and analytics came into play throughout the day, the focus was largely on engagement and establishing those important one-on-one human connections.

“As a financial advisor, you really do use both sides of the brain,” Schiffer said. “The analytical side as well as the relationship-building side.”

And that message wasn’t lost on participants.

“Building relationships is important in any business, but especially in wealth management because you have to connect with your clients and prioritize what they want while making them feel secure,” said Kleinfeldt.

“Respecting the client is also really important,” Eaton added. “If they don’t want to buy a stock, they don’t have to. It’s their choice, not mine, in the end.”

The day ended on a high note, as the students were tasked with creating a mock stock portfolio and presenting it to members of the Telemus leadership team.

It was an exercise in collaboration that yielded expert insight and some helpful feedback.

But it was the students’ time to shine.

“In high school, I didn’t even know what a financial advisor was, let alone a career in investments,” Schiffer said to the students, with a chuckle. “You guys are very well-versed. It’s very impressive at such a young age.”