Team Recognition

Colin White & Dan LeBlanc were honoured to be listed in the top 50 financial advisors in Canada according to Wealth Professional earlier this year, and we were also thrilled to learn that the team was nominated, and selected as a finalist, for The Franklin Templeton Award for Advisory Team of the Year.

There are many criteria for the award, and although we didn’t take home a gold this year, we are truly grateful for our team and their unwavering professionalism and commitment to our clients. We wanted to recognize their efforts and tell you a little bit about what made us a contender for the award.

White LeBlanc Wealth Planners/iA Private Wealth was founded on the shared desire to have the freedom to do the right thing for every client; in part that meant being able to incorporate any tool or product that was the right fit for a given client and being able to offer unique services, such as discretionary asset management. The partners are proud of the platform they’ve created and of the team who share their commitment to honesty, integrity, and transparency.

As Portfolio Managers we are required to go beyond the “suitable” investment requirement that Investment Advisors are held to. Portfolio Managers have a responsibility to act in the client’s best interest. To satisfy this standard we have developed a disciplined process that is enacted by our portfolio management team. The investment committee consists of six people who meet weekly to review investment selections. There are three CFA designations in the room, two CPA’s, three CFP® professionals, and three CIM’s. Five of the six people in the room each have more than 20 years’ experience in the investment industry. Following economic trends as well as keeping on top of mutual funds, ETF’s, stocks, bonds, OM products, and options strategies takes this kind of effort. We have a passionate group that leaves no stone unturned.

At White LeBlanc, all operations are secure cloud-based with video chat services. This makes for easy coordination between our various office locations. In addition to team connectivity, this structure provides our team members with the flexibility to work in any of our various locations or from home as needed/possible, optimizing their work/life balance. We also provide a degree of flexibility in office hours to help staff with coordinating family responsibilities.

The offices and team members are so interconnected that it’s common for an office in BC to be preparing files for meetings occurring on the east coast and following up on work flows, or vice versa. This level of coordination demonstrates the extraordinary skills and commitment of everyone at White LeBlanc Wealth Planners/iA Private Wealth.

All clients are served on a team basis. This means there are multiple advisors on all accounts, enabling clients to work with the individual team member or members who can best serve their specific needs at a given time. Although the team approach is preferred by most clients, any client can also choose to work directly with a specific team member. Clients are met according to their preference either quarterly, semi-annually or annually, always with the option of additional meetings on request. Clients choose the format for their meetings, in person or via video conferencing; whatever works for them.

We host quarterly educational client events for each office location in order to connect and update clients on important topics. These events typically happen in two sessions, one in the day and one in the evening, to accommodate the schedules of our clients. We serve refreshments and after the education portion, there is an opportunity to chat and interact with our team and with other clients, if they choose.

Professional development courses are encouraged and, upon completion, are paid for by White LeBlanc Wealth Planners. Staff are also encouraged to travel to national conferences in areas of their practice, and they are provided with the resources to do so.

At White LeBlanc Wealth Planners/iA Private Wealth, we strongly believe in supporting and being involved in the communities where we work. We are members of the Chamber of Commerce in each community, we take part in local Rotary clubs, Junior Achievement and make regular donations to the Canadian Mental Health Association (our charity of choice), the MS Society, & Kootenay Lake Hospital Foundation. Additionally, we have been honored to sponsor many local sports teams & organizations including kids’ soccer, baseball, basketball, curling clubs, men’s & women’s golf leagues as well as several charity golf events. Team members are all encouraged to be active in their respective communities and we support that involvement by providing flexibility in their schedule to accommodate community engagement and volunteering including two paid days to volunteer with Canadian Mental Health Association activities.

As a company, we launched two annual food & charity drives, one in Nelson, BC, and one in Powell River, BC. Colin White, one of the partners acts as Santa, another partner attends as an Elf, and our staff from the various locations serve as Santa’s support team. We were proud to provide promotion for these events and covered all expenses. All funds raised along with all food donations were distributed to the local food centers, Salvation Army, and Columbia Basin Reading Alliance. Partner, Colin White is a past member and former Chair of the Nova Scotia District Council for IIROC, and of two different appeals committees with CPA Nova Scotia. In addition, team members donated time to Junior Achievement and served on the board of a local Rotary Club.

Team members have devoted approximately 1400 hours to volunteering in 2019, and as a company, we have donated or sponsored initiatives for more than $25,000.