Adam Smith and Reflections on $1,000/hour work

I was talking to a financial advisor recently. He shared a story about building his practice that struck a chord.

He shared: “Looking back, I was spending too much time on work that was $100/hour, and I wasn’t spending enough time on $1,000/hour work. I loved doing the $100/hour work, and much of my ego was wrapped up in me doing that work. It took me longer than it should have to come to terms with the fact that I needed to delegate it.”

Like most of us, I immediately wondered, “Hmm… How well have I been prioritizing my $1,000/hour work?”

As an early-stage founder, my current $1,000/hour work is growing our business. Most of my days are spent meeting with advisors and asset managers about their practice and sharing how Quorus can save them time and improve their clients’ investment outcomes.

This means that I am spending less time on day-to-day portfolio management. We recently hired an incredibly talented portfolio manager, Kyle Birmingham, who has taken over portfolio management and is doing an outstanding job.

Here is the rub. I love portfolio management work. It’s a big reason I founded Quorus, and my perceived value is in my investment knowledge. I would be lying if I didn’t say I missed the portfolio management, but it’s not my $1,000/hour work right now.

These ideas of comparative advantage, delegation, specialization, and prioritization are universally true. Still, I wouldn’t be a founder if I didn’t apply this story to Quorus’ clients, so bear with me.

After almost five years of working with financial advisors, I have observed that time is their most valuable resource, and their most important priorities are growing their practice and ensuring the best investment outcomes for their clients. This, above everything else, is their $1,000/hour work.

Taxable account rebalancing, tax loss harvesting, and trading are more transactional. These tasks need to get done right, but they can be time-consuming and administrative. These are $100/hour tasks, and I am focusing on them because these are the areas Quorus helps advisors the most.

When it comes to taxable account management, there are three options:

1. Continue to own the process themselves and deal with the lost time on $1,000/hour work.
2. Hire someone to join the practice and assume responsibility for client account trading.
3. Seek out a trusted partner firm to assume the work.

Each path can be a viable option for firms, but for those who do not wish to hire a dedicated portfolio manager, Quorus is a clear path to spending more time on $1,000/hour work.

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