Get ready for the Morningstar Investment Conference 2025

Successful advisors are able to balance and address client needs throughout the lifecycle of advice: from attracting new clients, to serving existing clients, and then retaining those clients. Through a series of projects, we've uncovered ways in which advisors can address client needs throughout the cycle. In this presentation, we discuss what motivates investors to hire an advisor, what investors look for over the duration of their relationship with their advisor, and the precursors to why investors may choose to part ways with their advisor. The results point to a complex picture of engagement that requires financial advisors to adapt and anticipate the (sometimes unspoken) needs of their clients. 

In this session, Morningstar’s Daniel Needham and renowned geopolitical strategist Ian Bremmer delve into the complexities of navigating uncertainty. Needham poses the tough questions financial advisors need answered: how to prepare for unforeseen threats, manage emerging-markets risk, and capitalize on opportunities in a “G-Zero” world. Gain the tools to guide your clients toward success in a rapidly changing global landscape. Don't miss this dynamic exchange packed with actionable insights.

The recent rise of the “robo-advisor” has called into question the relevance of financial advisors and the viability of current advisory business models. Yet the reality is that technology “disrupting” financial advisor business models isn’t new, and has actually happened repeatedly over the past several decades. Advisors have to adapt or be left behind. In this session, we look at how technology is once again driving major changes in the business model of financial advisors, driving a Great Convergence across historically-separate industry channels, triggering a Crisis of Differentiation, a Search for New Business Models, and rising pressure on improving the Client Experience. Join the conversation to prepare for the coming years as the consumers of financial planning shift from Baby Boomers to the Gen X and Millennial generations—digital natives who demand advisors to leverage technology and add value on top.  

The businesses of asset management and advice continue to evolve and, in some cases, the two are increasingly converging. While asset managers and advisors continue to specialize, relying on each other to drive better outcomes for their clients, the relationship between these pieces of the value chain is changing. Some advisors feel that asset managers are encroaching on their territory, while others have embraced innovative new solutions from asset managers to grow their business and deepen client relationships.

In this session, Bob Oros and Katie Koch discuss issues critical to both registered investment advisors and asset managers, including consolidation, regulation, fee pressure, the evolving advisor tech stack, the rise of exchange-traded funds, models, and direct indexing. Attendees will come away from the session with a fresh understanding about the evolving roles of asset managers as key suppliers and the changing demands of the advisors they serve in their joint efforts to empower investor success.

For investors, the right path can be simply avoiding the wrong one: financial frauds. In recent years, we’ve seen the demise of FTX and Theranos. Before those scandals, there was Enron. The crimes vary, but the fallout left in their wake is similar: financial turmoil, defrauded investors, lost savings, and scrambling regulators.

Join us for an insightful conversation with two renowned journalists—Zeke Faux of Number Go Up and Bethany McLean of The Smartest Guys in the Room and All the Devils Are Here—as we discuss the notable financial frauds of our time. Together, we unravel their shared traits, empowering investors to navigate future frauds with greater insight.

Big shifts are afoot within the U.S. equity market. 2024 is likely to bring broadening leadership (from the “Magnificent Seven” to the “Other 493”), rotations within size/style/sectors, and a market ripe with inefficiencies creating an environment where fundamental stock selection should outperform passive index investing. Join Savita Subramanian, Bank of America Global Research Head of U.S. Equity & Quantitative Strategy, for her outlook for the rest of the year and how to position your portfolio for outperformance.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is progressing at an unprecedented rate,  prompting organizations to adapt swiftly to its rapid evolution. In the  ever-changing business environment, it is vital to comprehend the  convergence of cutting-edge AI advancements and their practical  implementations. We will investigate the current status of AI, its  trajectory, and how various industries are utilizing it to revolutionize  efficiency, alleviate employee burnout, and reshape work processes.  Zack will articulate his vision of a future enhanced by AI, offering  practical strategies for organizations to leverage this technology for  the betterment of their workforce. Additionally, we will explore the  ramifications of AI on financial advisory firms and the future prospects  of careers in an increasingly AI-dominated world.

Small-cap stocks have badly underperformed their large-cap counterparts in recent years, so why invest in them? And if you do, where are the opportunities?

In a special live taping of Morningstar's The Long View podcast, two veteran international equity managers discuss why U.S. investors should keep the faith in investing overseas and where they're finding opportunities today. They also share how they navigate geopolitical risk factors when investing in non-U.S. stocks.