Client Service Certified Financial Planner

Zacks Investment Management; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 130,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Zacks Investment Management in Chicago seeks a Client Service CFP® to develop, deliver, and maintain comprehensive financial plans for an established base of high-net-worth clients. You will translate portfolio strategy into retirement income, tax, estate, and legacy decisions, collaborating with internal teams and external professionals to optimize client outcomes.

The role emphasizes planning expertise over sales, requiring strong client relationships, ongoing learning, and adherence to

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree required with 1–5 years in financial planning or advisory roles.
• CFP certification required; exam scheduled or credentialed.
• Must hold Series 65 license.
• Experience building and presenting comprehensive financial plans.
• Strong understanding of tax, retirement, estate planning concepts.
• Proficiency with planning software and CRM tools; strong communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Build comprehensive financial plans for high-net-worth clients covering retirement income, cash flow, tax, and legacy planning.
• Conduct discovery conversations to surface the full financial picture of clients.
• Model retirement income and tax-aware withdrawal sequencing.
• Present plans to clients and revisit them as circumstances change.
• Coordinate with portfolio managers, tax advisors, and outside professionals to implement recommendations.

Skills

Client relations

Communication

Presentation

Time management

Financial planning

Tax planning

Education

Bachelor's Degree

CFP certification

Series 65 license

Tools

eMoney

MoneyGuidePro

RightCapital

Salesforce CRM

MS Excel

Word

Outlook

PowerPoint

MS 365

Teams

Job description

Job Description

The Zacks Client Service Certified Financial Planner role is built for a planner who wants to do planning. You will develop, deliver, and maintain comprehensive financial plans for an established base of high-net-worth clients, translating portfolio strategy into retirement income, tax, estate, and legacy decisions clients can act on. Join our team as a Client Service CFP® at Zacks Investment Management (ZIM), where we cater to a distinguished portfolio of high-net-worth clients through our distinct approach tailored specifically for private clients. At ZIM, we emphasize a structured separation between sales and client services, allowing you to focus solely on your expertise without the multitasking demands of prospecting.

In your role as a Client Service Certified Financial Planner, you will serve as the planning resource for an assigned book of relationships, collaborating closely with our internal portfolio management and research teams, tax consultants, and our external sales force. Plans you build inform how clients are positioned across our strategies, and the conversations you lead deepen the relationship well beyond performance reporting. You will benefit from support and guidance from seasoned team members, whose experience and established client relationships are instrumental in facilitating your success in this role.

This is an exceptional opportunity to apply your CFP® training in an environment where planning is the job rather than an add-on to production, aimed at optimizing client outcomes and advancing your professional growth.

Key Responsibilities:

• Build comprehensive financial plans for existing clients, covering retirement income, cash flow, tax efficiency, risk management, education funding, charitable giving, and legacy objectives.
• Conduct discovery conversations that surface a client's full financial picture, including assets held away, income sources, obligations, and family circumstances.
• Model retirement income and distribution strategies, including Social Security timing, Roth conversion analysis, required minimum distributions, and tax-aware withdrawal sequencing.
• Present plans directly to clients and their families, and revisit them on a defined cadence as circumstances, markets, and tax law change.
• Document planning assumptions, recommendations, and client decisions to firm standards.

Client Relationship Management

• Establish and nurture long-term relationships with clients, understanding their unique financial needs and objectives.
• Proactively resolve client issues and concerns, ensuring a high level of client satisfaction and loyalty.
• Conduct regular, in-depth conversations with clients regarding market conditions, asset allocations, and investment strategies, framed against the client's plan.

Collaboration and Coordination

• Work with portfolio managers and research to align account positioning, allocation, and tax-lot decisions with each client's plan.
• Coordinate with clients' outside CPAs, estate attorneys, and insurance professionals to implement recommendations, and identify where outside counsel is warranted.
• Partner with senior team members and the sales force on planning support for complex relationships.
• Participate in ongoing learning and development and maintain CFP® continuing education requirements.

Operational Excellence

• Help develop and standardize the firm's planning deliverables, templates, and review cadence as the planning function grows.
• Independently improve and streamline service models and operational procedures to enhance efficiency.
• Provide excellent telephone coverage, managing priorities and handling urgent calls with professionalism and good judgment.
• Comply with all industry rules, regulations, and firm policies, including fiduciary standards and the firm's compliance review process for client-facing planning materials.

Administrative Support

• Perform administrative duties such as handling telephones, processing forms, and completing travel and expense reports as needed.
• Produce plans, reports, and documentation to support client service and maintain regulatory compliance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree with 1-5 years of experience in financial planning, wealth management, or a comparable client-facing advisory role.
• CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification required; candidates with all coursework complete and the exam scheduled will be considered.
• Must hold Series 65 license.
• Demonstrated experience building and presenting comprehensive financial plans, not solely investment proposals.
• Working knowledge of individual income tax, retirement account rules, Social Security, and estate planning concepts sufficient to coordinate with a client's tax and legal professionals.
• Proficient with financial planning software (eMoney, MoneyGuidePro, RightCapital, or similar), Salesforce CRM, MS Excel, Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, M365, and Teams.
• Strong knowledge of investment concepts, practices, and procedures in the securities and insurance industries.
• Excellent communication, presentation, time-management, and organizational skills.
• Proven ability to build and maintain strong client relationships.
• Experience working with high net worth and ultra-high net worth clients.
• Ability to provide high-touch, comprehensive wealth management services.
• Experience in public speaking and writing on financial topics.

Successful completion of a background check and pre-employment assessment is required. To qualify, applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States without requiring sponsorship for employment visa status now or in the future.

Who Is Zacks?

The Zacks Group of companies consists of Zacks Investment Research (ZIR), Zacks Investment Management (ZIM), and Zacks Trade. ZIR, founded in 1978, is the 2nd largest provider of independent stock, mutual fund and ETF research in the US. The Professional Services Division of ZIR is one of the largest providers of software analytics and investment data to professional investors. The Zacks.com Division of ZIR operates one of the most widely used investment information sites on the web. ZIM is a Chicago based RIA that manages over $25 Billion for individual and institutional investors. Zacks Trade is an online broker serving active stock and option traders located in US and overseas.

Compensation range:

130K – 150K base salary and discretionary bonus structure. Total compensation will be commensurate with experience.