Your obligation to clients: Succession planning

Walton Rogers

Walton Rogers, CLU, ChFC

By Walton W. Rogers, CLU, ChFC

Not one of us know the date of our death. That’s what makes life insurance so important to families. It’s also the same reason business succession plans are important.

Honoring obligations

I have an obligation to my clients to put flexible plans in place so they can upgrade, sidegrade, downgrade or whatever it is they need to accommodate the changes in their lives. Clients who put these plans in place are taking care of their obligations to their families, even after they die. I owe my clients this assistance. They’ve paid me to be there for them so they can be there for the ones they care about. And just as they feel their obligations don’t end after their death, I don’t think when I die my obligations end to my clients either.  

Matthew Clarke

Matthew Clarke, LUTCF, CLTC

Succession plans

It’s important that I, as a financial advisor, have somebody to step in behind me to take over if I’m not here for whatever reason. The succession plan could be an informal or formal agreement, but we need to have some kind of succession plan in place for it to be of use to clients as well as to those we work with.

I’m pleased to introduce my clients to Matthew Clarke, LUTCF, CLTC, an eight-year MDRT member who I’ve worked with for 10 years. I can tell my clients that, if I don’t come back tomorrow, Matt, who is 34 years old, will be there for them. I think that’s a vital part of running an ethically responsible business.


Walton Rogers is a 43-year MDRT member from Annapolis, Maryland. He served as MDRT President in 2009. See more from Rogers in the videos “The economy and common sense brilliance” and 10 minutes of favorite sales ideas from two industry greats.”


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