Visionary Advisor
Welcome to Visionary Advisor, the podcast for forward-thinking wealth advisors who recognize that wealth management is evolving rapidly. Join us as we invite some of the most influential minds in the industry to share the ideas they believe HNW & UHNW advisors should be exploring and putting into practice.
I'm your host, Alex Kirby, founder of Total Family, a software company doing legacy better for wealth advisors and their clients.
Welcome to Visionary Advisor, more at totalfamily.io
Visionary Advisor
Advisors and the Great Wealth Transfer: Beyond Money with The Harris Poll
Most wealth advisors think they understand how different generations view legacy and the great wealth transfer. New research from The Harris Poll shows how wrong some of those assumptions can be.
In this episode of Visionary Advisor, Alex Kirby, founder of Total Family, sits down with Jennifer Musil, Global President of Custom Research, and Melissa Schweizer, SVP of Financial and Professional Services at The Harris Poll, to unpack findings from America’s Great Wealth Transfer report and a custom legacy study conducted through the lens of the five forms of family capital.
The conversation reveals a powerful shift: while money still matters, the rising generation defines legacy in far more human terms. Well-being, personal development, values alignment, and emotional trust now sit at the center of how heirs think about wealth — and whether they stay with their parents’ advisors or leave.
This episode challenges advisors to rethink how they approach legacy, communication, and relationship-building ahead of the largest intergenerational wealth transfer in history.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode
• Why legacy goes beyond financial, with human capital ranking highest in perceived importance
• How younger generations define the purpose of wealth differently than prior generations
• Why values misalignment and weak personal relationships drive advisor switching risk
• What heirs actually want from advisors during and after the wealth transfer
• How communication and collaboration shape trust before money ever changes hands
Notable Quotes
“Legacy goes beyond financial. Human capital rose to the top with 83% saying well-being and development of each family member is a significant contributor to their legacy.”
“This is a story about humans wanting to work with other humans and have a relationship.”
“Even when people have to pick just one, three quarters say something else other than money matters most.”
“Technology can explain the mechanics, but it can’t carry the emotional weight of inheritance.”
Resources
America’s Great Wealth Transfer Report — The Harris Poll
https://theharrispoll.com/insights-news/reports/americas-great-wealth-transfer/
Full Report PDF https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VV152oN7hStk0YItdZ6f6QCjAJdKlM72/view?usp=sharing
Custom Legacy Study: Perceptions of Legacy Go Beyond Financial — The Harris Poll
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TGhbwsUg-eiHfeU574BeO7f8uCqsKocg/view?usp=sharing
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