Model portfolios provide significant time savings for advisors. According to the latest Cerulli Edge—U.S. Asset and Wealth Management Edition, advisors who outsource portfolio construction spend an average of just 10.6% of their time on investment management, leaving them more time to focus on client-facing activities and other high-demand service offerings.

Cerulli finds outsourcers—those advisors who cede discretion without making adjustments to models—are typically younger advisors with less experience compared to insourcers, those who build portfolios on a client-by-client basis. They also often have leaner staff headcounts and, as a result, can benefit from outsourcing some or all of their portfolio construction responsibilities.

“In many cases, broker/dealer (B/D) training programs have done a good job educating up-and-coming junior advisors on the benefits of leveraging model portfolios,” says Kevin Lyons, senior analyst. “As a result, they are more likely to feel comfortable and confident relying on financial planning and, increasingly, tax management as the primary pillars of their competitive positioning,” he adds.

Advanced planning techniques, such as tax management, have become increasingly important as financial advisors seek to move up the wealth spectrum and serve affluent and high-net-worth (HNW) clients. According to Cerulli, four in 10 outsourcer advisors find these services very valuable, a sign that they are choosing to use model portfolios to focus on client acquisition and moving upmarket.

For model providers seeking to retain and attract more advisors, Cerulli recommends they focus on the service offerings and support that outsourcers value most. For instance, more than 87% of outsourcer advisors agree that competitive product information, best practices from other advisors, and access to portfolio managers/product specialists are at least somewhat valuable to them.

“Model providers will need to keep the advisor informed on the nuances of the products and the asset allocation framework of the model, so they are capable of passing that knowledge along to their clients during meetings,” says Lyons. “Additionally, the need for best practices speaks to this segment's desire to learn and grow, likely part of the reason they leveraged models to help them focus more time on growing their practices,” he concludes.