From the Editor: Planning for the Future

We would be remiss if we did not acknowledge that the future success of Nexus is dependent on a succession plan that will result in a smooth transition of management, leadership and ownership to the next generation. It will not be a surprise to hear that we are taking a long-term approach with our planning. Succession of a business does not happen overnight. It takes time to assemble and prepare the next generation of professionals to lead the firm into the future and it requires capital to transition ownership.

You may have noticed that over the past several years we have hired a number of younger professionals. The firm today looks different than it did seven years ago, with six professionals hired over that time who are all younger than we are. You can expect this trend to continue. By now, you will also be aware that we have announced a partnership with Focus Financial Partners. Focus is making a significant, but passive, investment in Nexus. You may be thinking, why Focus, why now, and how does this affect me?

As we considered our plan, we realized there are three things most important to us as business owners. We are confident that the Focus partnership fulfills all of them. We want to maintain the firm’s independence and ensure that any ownership change will ultimately be good for our clients and good for our employees. In our estimation, the best part of this transaction is that the Nexus team retains full control to manage the business as we always have. The timing made sense because we still have plenty of runway ahead of us before we retire to develop the next group of Nexus leaders. Finally, since Focus is an arm’s-length investor, the Nexus client experience, our investment philosophy and the financial planning service we provide will remain unchanged.

For those that want to know more about Focus Financial Partners, I have included a link to their website: focusfinancialpartners.com. They are a New-York based firm that has investments in more than 60 investment management firms much like Nexus. Most are in the U.S., but Nexus will be the third Focus firm in Canada. If you have any questions, we encourage you to call us.

In this issue of Nexus Notes, we have a recap of our 2019 Annual Client Presentation, which was held in November. As is the norm at our events, clients had the opportunity to ask questions at the conclusion of the presentation, so we have shared a few of those questions along with our answers. In addition, we also have an article about the concept of time in the investment process and how important it is for investment success.

As the year draws to a close, we are grateful for your continued support and we are excited about what lies ahead. We wish you and yours the best of the holiday season.