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MarketCounsel came about when the firm's founder, Brian Hamburger, could no longer ignore a large void in the services available to small to mid-size registered investment advisers. Nowhere did there exist a level of service more comprehensive and intimate than registration services yet more cost-effective than the few law firms in the country that practiced in this area could provide. Nor did either solution provide investment advisers with tools for success. In short, law firms and registration services were not providing real value or taking a proactive approach to the success of their clients.
So Brian picked up and left a sizable law firm, insistent on providing his investment adviser clients with unparalleled expertise combined with uncompromising service, all for a value which small to mid-size firms could afford. He and his wife, Kari, sold their house to finance the endeavor with their six-month old daughter in tow and and a son on his way. He formed MarketCounsel and simultaneously, the Hamburger Law Firm, in August of 2000. Starting with no more than shared office space and one assistant, the result has been well-beyond his expectations and most aggressive projections.
A year and a half later, after mounting frustrations at administrative performance and reliability, Brian was joined by his wife and longtime partner, Kari Hamburger, who now serves as the firm's Director of Business Development. After another year and a half, Brian was joined by his former law firm colleague and friend, Dan Bernstein, who now serves as the Director of Professional Services. Together, the three are responsible for varying aspects of the firm's management.
MarketCounsel Today
MarketCounsel clients are now serviced by a dedicated team of more than
forty-two men and women, a substantial number of
whom possess advanced,
post-graduate degrees or professional industry credentials. All share in
common an unwavering commitment to the success
of our clients. In October 2006, the firm moved into its current location in Englewood, New Jersey; an 11,500 square foot custom-built facility, designed to its exacting specifications and unique needs. The office is located 10 miles from midtown Manhattan, within a short drive of all three major metropolitan New York commercial airports, and less than 5 miles from the metropolitan area’s primary private executive airport.
MarketCounsel has never stopped innovating and has never wavered from its focus. Its service offerings have consistently targeted the needs of entrepreneurial, closely held investment advisers across the country. From its first day of operations, its service offerings have been focused on the needs of entrepreneurial, closely held investment advisers across the country. Both the RIA Incubator and the RIA Institute for Compliance Management (formerly known as "Your Compliance Officer") were launched simultaneously, on day one of the firm's operations. These platforms have since become the standard by which all other firms servicing investment advisers are compared. The firm has since added its Custom Consulting program to address the needs of larger financial institutions and other companies seeking to foster relationships with our core clientele. The individual services that comprise the service programs continues to expand to meet the evolving business and regulatory challenges faced by our clients.
What We Are About
You should forget about what you know about consulting firms; we have a new definition. Our spirit is young, our values traditional, and our culture is decidedly entrepreneurial. We don't watch the clock or sell you time you don't need. Registration services and law firms are aplenty, willing to furnish these unnecessary services and introduce chaos into a relationship to run another billable hour. We refuse to provide canned answers to problems facing our clients. Rather, we focus on delivering meaningful solutions.
We are proud of the resources we devote to our clients’ success:
Professional Staff: Our professional staff is comprised of experienced securities attorneys with significant experience representing independent investment advisers, often with practical experience working within the securities industry. In addition, our professional staff is required to have successfully passed the Series 65 qualifying exam before, or shortly after, joining the firm to demonstrate their commitment to the industry we serve. The firm continually presents numerous internal and external continuing education opportunities and requires that its professionals keep abreast of industry and regulatory developments and trends.
Operations Management: Our operations are managed by Hamburger & Co., a professional management firm offering backbone support to affiliated professional service companies serving the needs of the securities industry. The firm's consultants are supported by support staff that are professionals in their own right. Many of the support staff come to MarketCounsel with a significant amount securities industry experience.
Research & Technology. We pride ourselves on being at the forefront of utilizing technology to make our service offering more robust for our clients and so as to be integrated within their operations. We maintain an extensive research library comprised of both electronic and hard copy volumes and both purchased and in-house research. While our technology spend rivals that of companies many times our size, we are committed to investing in both off-the-shelf and design custom applications to meet our unique needs.
Our clientele is comprised of entrepreneurial, closely held investment advisers, typically startup to mid-sized firms, with whom we are able to clearly define our role and identify real mutual value in a relationship. We seek the role as to be the most "trusted advisor" to our clients who are, themselves, often their clients most "trusted advisor."
All of our efforts, from the client acquisition to the ongoing relationship are designed to maximize client benefit and minimize client turnover. When it comes to establishing a relationship, you set your own course here. Our services are all designed with one common goal: to create a more successful investment management firm, where the value of our relationship is clear. This goal is entwined within our service culture. In brief, it includes:
- Acquire and maintain clients solely through valuable interactions and performing valuable services. Lasting relationships are not found through advertising or employing a sales force. If the value is not apparent, perhaps we do not belong there. New engagements and client retention are a byproduct of exceeding clients' expectations through each and every communication that we have with our clients.
- Determine what services MarketCounsel can perform to add value to a
relationship. We gain credibility across the industry by working only in
engagements where we belong.
- Always look for value that we can add, not what services we can sell.
- Always be prepared to decline an engagement if the value is not apparent.
- Listen to understand the goals of the client, including to:
- protect the practice by managing our clients' compliance and reducing liability;
- find solutions to help grow our clients' assets under management and, more importantly, our their profits;
- spur innovative services offered by our clients and their creative license;
- eliminate for our clients the "paralysis by analysis" that affects highly-regulated industries;
- work with clients optimize the profile of their own clientele; and
- contain costs.
- Continually strive for a long and mutually successful relationship.
- Constantly work with the client to realize their evolving needs, goals, and
objectives.
