Hartford Funds’ Cisowski On Helping RIAs Understand The Client Mind

Ed Cisowski, Head of RIA Distribution, Hartford Funds sat down with Julie Cooling, Founder & CEO, RIA Channel to discuss Hartford Funds’ partnership with MIT’s Age Lab and how it benefits the RIA community. Hartford Funds seeks to differentiate itself from other asset managers by focusing on things, outside of investments, that add value to the RIA community.  “Investment expertise has become increasingly commoditized, so the question is really how do you separate yourself in the mind of advisors” said Cisowski. One example of value-add for RIAs, is Hartford’s partnership with MIT’s Age Lab, an ongoing study of demographics and the aging client base. The lab provides insight on how client decisions change and evolve as they age. Harford then takes that information and thoughtfully packages the research in a way that’s relative to the RIA community. Cisowski emphasized that the biggest concern for today’s advisors is finding out how to get to know their clients and service them better. “Twenty years ago it was much more transactional” said Cisowski, but now advisors must get better at connecting with their clients on a holistic level. Hartford Funds is an investment banking and asset management firm with over $115 billion assets under management. The learn more on this topic, head to HartfordFunds.com.