Innovation

Liberty Point Advisors make it a point to be active in their community. They are committed to serving the surrounding community pro-bono through investments that are impactful in the future. “Within the local community we donate both time to certain charitable organizations, sit on various non-profit boards, and provide capital for fundraising efforts.” This is the company culture that they’ve created and stewarded at Liberty Point Advisors. They have a community-focused business model that supports and builds the economic vitality of local communities. A majority of the company’s ownership is located locally to at least two-thirds of the company’s workforce which means they are part of the same community and are connected to the area culturally and economically on a small scale. It is through these measures that Liberty Point Advisors is advancing itself towards SDG 8, providing to those it employs, provides its services to in advancing economic growth and a decent work environment.

Engaging in practices such as those undertaken by Liberty Point Advisors, the industry is able to provide better service towards those it serves not just in communities but those the industry, as a whole, serves worldwide. Providing better working conditions and living wage for the employees of the organization exemplifies the appreciation that takes place within the organization, showcasing that other companies in this industry can also follow suit. Addressing the second part of SDG 8 (economic growth) is indicative of the practices that many in the financial sector can accomplish, such as providing pro-bono investments, as well as charitable donations. The future is bright for the sector and Liberty Point Advisors are at the forefront of leading the change towards this ever growing movement.

Inspiration

Liberty Point Advisors were inspired to make a difference through their experiences and time at Saint Joseph’s University. Financial advisor Ian Klinger stated, “We as individuals of the company are very much committed to creating a better world…we view pursuing a B-Corp as aligning our values outside of work to what we do in our job.” Ian went on to say that they “...also view it as a strategic opportunity and as a differentiator to younger, progressive clients that are focused on similar things.” This is in part by acknowledging that there are different values that are held by different age groups coming into the practice as clients. Those actively contributing towards their retirement plans are usually more focused on what will provide the greatest amount of return, usually meaning investing in S&P 500 funds that are heavily dominated by traditional blue chip companies that may not be as environmentally focused as smaller companies. Ian stated that there is a rising concern for greenwashing as ESG- and SDG-focused investing is taking off rapidly and many companies are adopting “measures,” allowing them to be capable of being added to ESG-focused funds. With no controls or measures readily available, fact checking this information is hard to do for not just Liberty Point, but the entire financial industry. The younger generation however, is much more focused on the future and the “Triple Bottom Line” of organizations where their money is placed. Building generational wealth is important for financial planning, thus requiring looking into future opportunities where “There's [possibly] so many new industries that are coming about and it's hard to focus on investments. There is rapid change taking place, it's hard to answer.” Klinger continued with the analogy that there is a “Long term belief: would you rather own a company that is focused on an old industry or the future looking company? For example, when the car was introduced, would you invest in Ford or a horse and buggy company?”

Overall impact

Liberty Point Advisors builds a person-centered workplace and ensures there is economic growth by paying above the legal minimum wage for its hourly employees, paying its full-time workers a living wage, and offering financial management tools or coaching along with tax preparation services. To ensure fair working hours and rest periods, employees do not work more than 48 hours a week, including overtime. There is ongoing training on core job responsibilities, providing cross-skills training for career advancements or transitions, facilitating or allocating a budget for external professional development opportunities, and providing reimbursements for programs for intensive continuing education credentials. In terms of being active with the community, Liberty Point Advisors have services that offer increased economic access for underserved groups. To improve performance on social or environmental issues, they participate in panel presentations or other public forums on social/environmental topics.

Business benefit

The group hired two additional full-time employees in the last year, showing evidence of the growth of their model and the desirability of their workplace. Being a small business, this is important as independent financial advising offices are usually on the smaller side in regards to employees. Something that is important to note is that this group of advisors all work together to create a holistic plan for each individual client they serve. Pushing towards a greater number of like-minded and socially conscious individuals to serve as managers and advisors to build generational wealth is an important part of the overall structure of the business. Many of the employees of the group are well compensated and stay with the company for extended periods of time with the business experiencing low employee turnover.

Revenues for the past year were healthy and this is due to their commitment to the surrounding community and the relationship they have built and continue to build with clients. Something that the group is emphasizing with their clients and bringing awareness to is more ESG-focused investment models and products for their clients. Emphasizing that there are many growth opportunities within sustainability-focused industries, Liberty Point Advisors are beginning to emphasize that an important part of any financial plan is looking towards the future and what it may bring, including new industries that may bloom out of ESG-focused areas. This then creates a plethora of opportunities and possible new investments that may prove to give healthy returns to clients in future generations.

Social and environmental benefit

As a financial advisory company, Liberty Point Advisors is always making a positive impact on their clients and the community they serve. Their services play a key factor in their positive impact by helping clients create long-term strategies to help build wealth. Other than their services as a company, Liberty Point Advisors also strives to make an impact in society and in the environment.

As a company that takes pride in helping in their society, Liberty Point Advisors tries to make an impact in their society as much as possible. Liberty Point Advisors shows examples of their actions through helping charitable organizations, sitting in on various nonprofit boards, and they provided capital for fundraising efforts. These are only a few of the ways Liberty Point Advisors is making a difference in their society and their efforts do not stop there.

Liberty Point Advisors is also making an impact on the environment while they are working. Within their office space, Liberty Point Advisors has methods of trying to conserve energy usage. These methods include automatic sleep modes and after-hour timers so unnecessary energy usage is not prevalent. On top of that Liberty Point Advisors also mentioned how they are working with their landlord to improve energy efficiency across the whole building. Another way Liberty Point Advisors is helping the environment is by trying to reduce their carbon footprint. When it comes to meetings employees are encouraged to use virtual meetings rather than in-person meetings to avoid increasing the carbon footprint via travel. Liberty Point Advisors also tries to monitor water usage and waste disposal, however with leasing an office space there is only so much they are able to do.

Interview

Ian Klinger, Financial Advisor