Fresh out of college in 1998, Kevin Hylander was considering a career as a financial planner. When he finished breakfast one morning, the waitress removed his plate revealing an ad for Edward Jones on the paper place mat. He took the mat, applied for a job, and now is a regional advisor overseeing more than 70 offices throughout Connecticut and Rhode Island.
“The best thing about this firm is the culture,” said Hylander, who also runs his own office in Mansfield, Mass. “They give you the freedom to run your business, but you’re backed up by a billion-dollar firm with the greatest training I’ve ever seen.”
For evidence, look at Jenny Pace who joined the firm’s Old Saybrook office more than seven years ago as a branch office administrator. With a degree in theater and work experience that included giving cooking lessons and working for the parks service, her background didn’t suggest a future as a financial advisor, but the company is known for hiring people with unconventional backgrounds, Pace said.
Last year, she accepted her supervisor’s offer to join the Goodknight Program that enables administrative staff to train as financial advisors. For several weeks, Pace was paid her full salary while she studied full time for her licensing exam. After becoming licensed, she took over the Edward Jones office in Colchester, which she has run since June.
“The flexibility the firm offers is phenomenal,” Pace said. “I’m the mother of a three-year-old daughter, and this job lets me be there for her when it’s important. There aren’t many places where I could do that.”
Both Pace and Hylander cite the company’s support for its employees as important factors in their success.
“The support I get from the home office and my fellow financial advisors is out of this world,” Pace said. “We really want each other to succeed, so there’s no sense of competition at all.”
Hylander notes similar experiences, particularly when he was just getting started.
“Every time I raised my hand and said I needed help, someone reached back to me immediately,” he said. “There’s a real culture of paying it forward here. Someone reaches out to help you when you need it with the understanding that you’ll do the same thing for someone else. It’s a very cool thing to be part of.”
Edward Jones also offers performance-based perks that are popular with employees. For example, financial advisors who help clients achieve their goals receive trips to locations in the United States and around the world. In his 13 years with the company, Hylander has gone on a Disney cruise and taken trips to Mexico, Marco Island and many other places, providing opportunities to network with colleagues from Edward Jones offices around the country.
“Sometimes I’ll get all my financial advisors on a conference call and we’ll invite someone from Texas, for example, to talk with us for an hour and offer ideas. This place is really great about helping you build a sense of teamwork and camaraderie, and have some fun doing it,” he said.
