Ed. initiative backs wholesale push by models-based managed acct platform. Third-party separately managed account provider Curian Capital has debuted Peak Performance, a series of workshops intended to help advisors make the leap from commission- to fee-based business.

"Peak Performance is an interactive workshop that provides practical, effective tactics to help advisors increase the breadth of services they offer to their clients and minimize the challenges inherent in a transition to a fee-based business," says Dan Maurer, head of marketing for Denver-based Curian.

Wholesale push

The point of the workshop is to help advisors "understand the nuances of a fee-based model and improve the efficiency of their practices," according to a Curian press release.

Peak Performance offers three tracks tailored to different experience levels and uses case studies and sales models to guide advisors through a process of enhancing their value to clients by increasing their value as investment consultants.

A subsidiary of Lansing, Mich.-based Jackson National Life Insurance, Curian managed about $1.7 billion across roughly 16,000 models-based accounts.

A few months ago Curian said it planned to hire nine new wholesalers in an effort "to help our advisors build their businesses," in the words of a company executive. -FWR

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