Moneta CEO Eric Kittner was only 39 years old when he stepped up as the firm’s top executive. It marked a seminal moment in Moneta’s history as the founders passed the firm off to the next generation.
“There are very few firms of our size that would be willing to take that giant leap of faith to turn leadership over to a 39-year-old,” Eric said.
Eric was charged with continuing Moneta’s growth by expanding its national footprint beyond St. Louis for the first time in the firm’s 150-year history – all while making sure it doesn’t lose the culture that he credits for its success. Three expansions and two acquisitions later, Eric’s tenure as Moneta’s top executive is off to an incredibly successful start.
Now at age 42, Eric is being recognized as a top executive in the industry by Barron’s, which featured him in a lengthy story title, “Finding and Cultivating Wealth Management’s Next-Gen CEOs.”
According to the article, Philip Palaveev, a veteran industry practice management consultant who runs the G2 Leadership Institute, a management “boot camp” for young executives, estimates that less than 10% of RIAs have CEOs in their 30s or early 40s. The lack of succession planning that is causing so many RIA owners to sell their businesses is a major cause of the dearth of younger industry leaders.
Eric is quoted several times throughout the story:
“Don’t show me how to drive on a simulator—get me out on the road!”
“As younger executives we have a longer runway ahead of us and as a result are willing to do things that someone with only five or seven years to go may not.”
“We’re a firm with $30 billion in AUM and want to keep growing. And it’s clear you can’t do that without achieving the right balance of solid organic growth and a smart M&A strategy. That hasn’t changed.”
© 2022 Moneta Group Investment Advisors, LLC. All rights reserved. Moneta Group Investment Advisors, LLC is an SEC registered investment advisor and wholly owned subsidiary of Moneta Group, LLC. Registration as an investment advisor does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Moneta is a service mark owned by Moneta Group, LLC. These articles do not individually or collectively constitute an offer to sell or buy securities, nor does any statement contained herein represent any specific recommendation.
