Anyone who has encountered Meridian Investment Advisors is likely familiar with the Little Rock wealth management firm’s oft-repeated mantra: “Investing for a rich life, realizing what you value.” For managing principal and Chartered Financial Analyst Pat Moon, it is more than a simple marketing statement or turn of phrase.
“What we do is invest money for people and companies, but the reason we do that is they have something that they want to accomplish with that money,” Moon said. “Those are really the things that they value. What we do just enables them to be able to do that, so that’s what our strategy is.”
Moon joined the company in 1997 and leads the Meridian team in helping affluent families and business clients bring their financial goals to fruition. Though Meridian’s work is accomplished in dollars, those figures are not an end in themselves for many clients. Moon and his team aim to understand the dreams behind those goals, whether clients are saving up for retirement, building a financial legacy for their children and grandchildren, or crossing long-desired items off the bucket list.
“We don’t really make anything,” Moon said. “We don’t have a product to sell. We’re just a trusted advisor, and our value is in giving advice. That’s what customer service, to us, is all about.”
The field of wealth management is a crowded one, so it takes more than keen finance skills to achieve the more than $800 million in assets entrusted to Meridian. The firm also has a strong focus on education, providing resources and working to make complex topics and strategies more approachable. Clear and open communication is especially crucial in the realm of money, where economic anxieties, the latest headlines and even life circumstances can cloud one’s better judgment. Against market uncertainties, being able to effectively express why, when and how the firm is investing can ease fears, grow confidence and make customers feel like a real partner rather than just another client.
“You know, this is their money, and they have goals,” Moon said. “They may not even be able to explain exactly what those goals are. What we need [them] to understand in a simple way is why we’re making the decisions that we’re making and why we’re investing the money the way that we are.”
Perhaps the most valuable trait for members of the Meridian team is the ability to not just listen to clients but hear them as they speak about their situations, dreams and concerns. Easier said than done, it is a core competency that applies regardless of the numbers in one’s investment account. Whether two clients have the same amount of money or vastly different amounts, one can rest assured they both put a high value on those dollars and where they end up.
“Everyone’s goal and what they want to do with their money can be different,” Moon said. “The only way that you can accomplish that and make them feel good about that is to listen and be specific about how you’re going to address the needs, goals and wishes that they’ve expressed.”
Also key for a company with longevity such as Meridian’s is keeping up with shifting industry trends and evolving client demands. The firm continues to invest in technologies aimed at improving the client experience, from new relationship management systems to learning how to effectively implement artificial intelligence. The bulk of the firm’s work, historically, has focused on institutional money management, Moon said, such as pension and profit-sharing plans, city and government groups, endowments, and foundations. With an eye toward the future, Meridian is increasingly leaning into wealth management for families.
“That’s a different way to look at the world, and that includes more financial planning, personal advice services and things like that,” he said.
Staying abreast of larger movements such as the ongoing wealth transfer from baby boomers to the younger generations also factors into the firm’s calculations. As individuals more accustomed to a world of smartphones, online communication and digital services come into money, they will increasingly expect their financial planners to be more technologically savvy, as well.
“Although what we’re doing is essentially the same, the service model is changing completely, so we’re making investments in people — in many cases, younger people,” Moon said. “We’re investing in systems and technology where we’ll be able to address the experience that the younger people are looking for, because they’ve grown up having [come] to expect that.”
A little more than 40 years in, Meridian is also in the midst of a generational shift of its own. The firm prides itself on the invaluable knowledge and depth of experience it is able to provide thanks to its long-tenured employees. Three members of the Meridian team have been there for more than 25 years.
“On the other hand, we’re a growing business,” Moon said. “We’ve been fortunate to grow with assets and new clients over the last few years, and so we’re building out the team. We’ve added three new team members in the last 12 months.”
The new arrivals are either coming from another industry or are recently out of school, which gives the firm a dynamic mix of seasoned professionals and new perspectives. A growing team also bolsters Meridian’s ability to provide the level of personalized customer service the firm has built its name on. In this business, Moon said, trust is all his team has, so every client needs to feel special.
“The culture that we have is when somebody walks through the door, everybody’s on alert about what would make that client’s experience good for that particular visit,” Moon said. “That’s something that we’re focusing a lot on is the client experience aspect of our business, with these new people and the way that we’re growing.”
One face is not quite as new as the fresh arrivals — he has been with the firm for a decade — but reflects the transition in a different sense. One of Moon’s sons, Marshall, joined Meridian in 2015 and is a Certified Financial Planner. A senior investment advisor and Meridian’s chief equity strategist, Marshall became a partner at the beginning of this year.
“That’s a really cool thing to say, not just as a business owner but as a father,” Moon said. “Marshall’s been with us for 10 years now, and he’s got a great aptitude for the business. He’s already very successful.”
Meridian’s status in the industry and among those it serves is one built over time, not through a specific job done once or twice but through the cultivation of an experience and culture where clients can feel the difference. As he contemplates the firm’s future, Moon is mindful of the fact that many of the faces that make up Meridian now will not be around for some of the decades ahead, himself included. Positioning the company to continue making an impact after he leaves, he said, is a lot of fun.
“We’re planning for the next 40 years just like we have the last 40 years of this business,” Moon said. “That takes really smart, good people, and that’s what we’re doing here. We’re building the company to be ready for the next 40 years.”
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