Carson Revamps with Dedicated W-2 and Independent RIA Teams
The Carson Group, a registered investment advisor with a platform like 1099 Affiliate, has grown enough of it. Integrated W-2 employee channeCEO Burt White said to create two separate business lines.
In practice, this means Carson has split sales and teams into two divisions to serve different channels. As a strategy, Carson’s home office staff “will wake up every day” focused on growth and sustainability in just one channel instead of two, White said.
“Our vision is to be two-thirds integrated and one-third independent, which is where we are now,” he said. “We want to make sure we have a strong foundation in both because they are very helpful in achieving balance and maintaining entrepreneurial freedom.”
Over the past several years, Carson has been one. The most active providers in the RIA sectorHe often brings in organizations as 1099 affiliates, allowing them to access Carson’s platform while running their own operations.
But four years ago, Omaha, Neb. based RIA was supported in bringing firms into its fully integrated channel. That division has grown to 48 offices nationwide following last week’s transfer by another partner firm, FFR Wealth Team in Covington, Ky.
“No matter what advisors want to do, we have a platform to support them,” White said. “We want to make sure they never have to leave Carson for the next chapter of their lives.”
A little over a month ago, White told Carson employees that the company would take a new direction for each channel, rather than having the same team oversee both. In that transition, Carson appointed former business consultant Scott Conroy to lead the independent channel. Meanwhile, White and his team are actively recruiting an experienced RIA leader to lead the integrated W-2 channel.
“Because it’s newer to us, we need someone with some experience and an outsider’s mindset to help us lead the team,” he said.
Scott Conroy has been tapped to lead Carson Group’s independent channel.
Popular channel
Mariner, one of the nation’s largest RIAs, has a similar dual track with independent and W-2 channels. Last June, the Overland Park, Kan.-based RIA hired Rob Sandrew to oversee the independent channel. It has over $40 billion in client assets..
Like other big RIAs Signature property and investment advisors And NewEdge Consultantspreviously discussed Wealth management 1099 to give affiliates the opportunity to navigate through their W-2 channels about their work.
According to White, interest from existing Carson 1099 advisors has grown, with a “backlog” of advisors looking to make the RIA move.
It indicates one reason. Increasing corporate reviews And high interest rates, it does Hard for second-generation consultants To buy out founders in a series of schemes. Another requirement for consultants is to step away from the day-to-day work and focus more on working with clients.
“We see a trend among independent consultants who believe that the W-2 will only accelerate in the coming years,” White said. “It’s accelerating in the industry, it’s accelerating here, and we think it’s going to go even further.”
John Orsini, director of M&A banking and consulting at Marshberry, noted a continued shift in 1099 companies doing at least some W-2 business.
“As RIAs grow, strategic objectives shift to building an integrated/institutional business by adding assets and advisors,” Orsini said. “The W-2 model gives organizations more control over the customer relationship, provides a more consistent customer experience, and delivers operational efficiencies that are drivers of long-term enterprise value across the board.”
Orsini added, however, that the 1099 model remains a large part of the RIA sector, whose strategy, like Carson’s and other RIAs, is more “evolutionary” than that of larger firms.
“The independent channel is still an effective way to attract entrepreneurial advisors, expand distribution and build scale,” said Orsini. “It’s a low-cost entry point that allows consultants to use the firm’s resources while remaining independent. It gives consultants the inside track if they want to eventually transition to a W-2 model if they want to acquire a partner firm for the practice.”
A good mix
According to Carson White, one advantage of the hybrid model is that companies in the 1099 channel and Carson can “meet” for a number of years before making a full commitment.
“When you buy a company, you don’t know them very well at first,” says White.
Another advantage, in White’s view, is that the 1099 channel can provide capital to finance MA&A work, along with technology and infrastructure investments. The arrangement, he said, would keep Carson from constantly borrowing money for purchases—a fate he says would face clean W-2 filers over time to keep growing.
“That growth will allow us to not hold a lot of capital,” White said. “We don’t have to go out and borrow.”
According to Marshberry, 2026 could set another record year. RIA M&A, over 400 offers. The 10 most active entrants accounted for 32.1% of all transactions in the first half.
The leaders are tied at four-way in number of deals, including Carson and Hightower Advisors, both multi-channel aggregators. The other two are wholly owned by Savant Wealth Management and Wealth Enhancement Group.
White said he expects other 1099 affiliate RIA collectors to begin crowding the W-2 channels in a similar fashion to Carson. On the integrated side, he doesn’t envy organizations that have grown solely on the W-2 model.
“That doesn’t sound good to me,” he said. “With balance comes a lack of freedom, and that’s not where we want to be – freedom is very important to us.”
