“Every decision requires some type of trade off, so our job is to really talk to clients and educate them about how this one decision could impact them and their financial situation 10, 15, 20 years down the road,” said Shane O’Hara, Principal, Executive Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer of ProVise Management Group.
A financial planning and wealth management firm, ProVise works with more than 1,100 clients in over 30 states, managing approximately $1.9 billion for clients. With offices in Tampa and Clearwater, ProVise specializes in all aspects of financial planning. They partner with clients to define life goals and develop a financial plan to help achieve them while trying to take the least financial risk.
In 1986, a time when many financial representatives were predominantly commission-based and focused on selling products like insurance and annuities, Ray Ferrara founded ProVise with the goal of always working in client’s best interests. Ferrara pioneered providing clients with fiduciary advice and managing their life savings for a transparent, set fee. ProVise has grown exponentially since then, fueled by the referrals of satisfied clients.
“85 to 95% of our new growth each year comes from clients being satisfied with the work that we’re doing and referring their friends and family to us,” O’Hara said.
O’Hara credits the firm’s success to the hard work of its Certified Financial Planner™ professionals, who take the time to deeply listen to clients and figure out the root causes of problems that they may be faced with, as well as offer customized solutions. Rather than outsourcing investment management to another firm, the way others do, ProVise is dedicated to managing their clients’ money in house.
“Our belief at ProVise is that everyone’s money is entirely personal to them, and their portfolio should be structured based on what their financial plan needs,” O’Hara said. “Something like 90-95% of the money that we manage, which is about 1.9 billion dollars right now, is managed internally because we think that makes it more advantageous for the client.”
In addition to offering wealth management and financial planning services, ProVise also manages about a quarter of a billion dollars in corporate retirement plan assets such as 401k plans. 401k plans are one of the strategies that companies use to attract and retain talented employees. The employer offering these plans is liable for monitoring and maintaining them.
“Business owners are so busy running their own businesses that a lot of the time they don’t have the amount of time they should be putting towards monitoring and keeping up with that plan,” O’Hara said. “They look to us to take over.”
Beyond retirement planning, ProVise is committed to client outreach and education by hosting client education webinars. The firm has several other plans in the works, such as hosting in-person events, overhauling firm technology to give clients a better experience, and starting a podcast to help people learn more about their finances and reach the broader community.
Community involvement is a top priority at ProVise. The firm is involved in several nonprofit programs such as Creative Pinellas, the Morton Plant Mease Healthcare Foundation, BayCare, Tampa General Hospital Foundation and others. The firm’s dedication to community involvement is fueled by its employees, as many team members serve “on different charity boards of directors,” O’Hara said. The firm does not require its team members to use vacation time when they are volunteering in community engagement projects. Employees are empowered to donate their time and resources to charitable community initiatives across the region.
“We’ve been involved with the community since our founding in 1986,” O’Hara said. “That’s a really big passion of ours and one we share with the Tampa Bay Chamber.” ProVise has been a member of the Chamber since 2015. Employees of the firm have participated in Chamber initiatives such as Leadership Tampa and Emerging Leaders, for young professionals ages 21-35. O’Hara is a member of the 2024 Policy Advisory Committee.
To O’Hara and his fellow team members, there’s nothing more rewarding than a happy client. “For me it’s a client taking the time to tell us how appreciative they are for the advice,” he said. “That brings a lot of personal fulfillment for me, and I know for others at the firm it does as well.”