Episode 4: Stacked Against You
March 28, 2025
52 mins
In the first episode of Zero Basis Points, hosts Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti delve into the complexities of the wealth management industry, exploring the evolution of technology, the challenges of data management, and the value of their podcast as a platform for discussion.
Summary
Episode Four of Zero Basis Points explores what a well-designed tech stack should look like at different stages of an advisory firm’s growth. Haik and George kick things off with conference follow-ups and early feedback on the show before getting into three real-world tech-stack setups they’d recommend for firms from startup mode to multi-custodial scale. George talks through how he thinks about picking custodians, CRMs, planning tools, and form-filling systems — and why “best in breed vs all in one” is never as straightforward as people hope. They dig into the spots where integrations typically fall apart, the importance of open APIs, and how inconsistent data quietly becomes the most expensive problem in a firm’s operations. The conversation also touches on how AI and automation can actually help — but only when the foundation is clean. The episode wraps with an invite for listeners to send in their own stacks for a future teardown.
Key Topics Covered
- How to design a tech stack that scales with an advisory firm
- The real trade-offs between best-in-breed tools and all-in-one platforms
- Where integrations fail and why open APIs are non-negotiable
- How inconsistent data quietly becomes a firm’s biggest operational cost
- What AI and automation can actually fix — and what they can’t
- The hidden risks of going custom or headless too early
- How growing firms should think about the next stage of their tech stack
Timecode
00:00 Conference recap, podcast feedback, and opening thoughts
03:00 Fitness routines, discipline, and how habits impact professional life
08:50 Why fitness, stress management, and consistency matter for advisors
10:40 Introducing the tech stack frameworks for firms of different sizes
16:20 Custodians, CRMs, planning tools, and real integration workflows
22:30 Multi-custodial setups, reporting tools, and where complexity begins
28:10 All-in-one vs best-in-breed and how firms should evaluate the trade-offs
34:30 Data ownership, open APIs, and the rising cost of messy architecture
41:00 How advisors define requirements and where enterprise projects break
48:30 Ecosystem thinking, AI layers, and what comes next for firm-built tech
Never Miss an Episode
Subscribe for episode drops, behind-the-scenes notes, and insights
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On-air archive
Featured episodes
See All Episodes
Conquest of Trial-and-Error
Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti sit down with Brad Frey, Sales Director at Conquest Planning, for a candid look at the state of financial planning tech.
15
AdviseAI Hangover
In this episode, Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti share their insights on what really stood out at Advise AI.
14
Make WealthTech Open Again
Episode 13 brings our first guest, Craig Uhlenkott, for a candid conversation on the evolution, current challenges, and future of wealth management technology.
13
Zero Basis Points
Follow Zero Basis Points on your favourite platform.
Subscribe
Subscribe to get the latest episodes and exclusive content.
© 2025 Zero Basis Points. All rights reserved.
Episode 4: Stacked Against You
March 28, 2025
52 mins
In the first episode of Zero Basis Points, hosts Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti delve into the complexities of the wealth management industry, exploring the evolution of technology, the challenges of data management, and the value of their podcast as a platform for discussion.
Summary
Episode Four of Zero Basis Points explores what a well-designed tech stack should look like at different stages of an advisory firm’s growth. Haik and George kick things off with conference follow-ups and early feedback on the show before getting into three real-world tech-stack setups they’d recommend for firms from startup mode to multi-custodial scale. George talks through how he thinks about picking custodians, CRMs, planning tools, and form-filling systems — and why “best in breed vs all in one” is never as straightforward as people hope. They dig into the spots where integrations typically fall apart, the importance of open APIs, and how inconsistent data quietly becomes the most expensive problem in a firm’s operations. The conversation also touches on how AI and automation can actually help — but only when the foundation is clean. The episode wraps with an invite for listeners to send in their own stacks for a future teardown.
Key Topics Covered
- How to design a tech stack that scales with an advisory firm
- The real trade-offs between best-in-breed tools and all-in-one platforms
- Where integrations fail and why open APIs are non-negotiable
- How inconsistent data quietly becomes a firm’s biggest operational cost
- What AI and automation can actually fix — and what they can’t
- The hidden risks of going custom or headless too early
- How growing firms should think about the next stage of their tech stack
Timecode
00:00 Conference recap, podcast feedback, and opening thoughts
03:00 Fitness routines, discipline, and how habits impact professional life
08:50 Why fitness, stress management, and consistency matter for advisors
10:40 Introducing the tech stack frameworks for firms of different sizes
16:20 Custodians, CRMs, planning tools, and real integration workflows
22:30 Multi-custodial setups, reporting tools, and where complexity begins
28:10 All-in-one vs best-in-breed and how firms should evaluate the trade-offs
34:30 Data ownership, open APIs, and the rising cost of messy architecture
41:00 How advisors define requirements and where enterprise projects break
48:30 Ecosystem thinking, AI layers, and what comes next for firm-built tech
Never Miss an Episode
Subscribe for episode drops, behind-the-scenes notes, and insights
we couldn’t say on air.
On-air archive
Featured episodes
See All Episodes
Conquest of Trial-and-Error
Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti sit down with Brad Frey, Sales Director at Conquest Planning, for a candid look at the state of financial planning tech.
15
AdviseAI Hangover
In this episode, Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti share their insights on what really stood out at Advise AI.
14
Make WealthTech Open Again
Episode 13 brings our first guest, Craig Uhlenkott, for a candid conversation on the evolution, current challenges, and future of wealth management technology.
13
Zero Basis Points
Follow Zero Basis Points on your favourite platform.
Subscribe
Subscribe to get the latest episodes and exclusive content.
© 2025 Zero Basis Points. All rights reserved.
Episode 4: Stacked Against You
March 28, 2025
52 mins
In the first episode of Zero Basis Points, hosts Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti delve into the complexities of the wealth management industry, exploring the evolution of technology, the challenges of data management, and the value of their podcast as a platform for discussion.
Summary
Episode Four of Zero Basis Points explores what a well-designed tech stack should look like at different stages of an advisory firm’s growth. Haik and George kick things off with conference follow-ups and early feedback on the show before getting into three real-world tech-stack setups they’d recommend for firms from startup mode to multi-custodial scale. George talks through how he thinks about picking custodians, CRMs, planning tools, and form-filling systems — and why “best in breed vs all in one” is never as straightforward as people hope. They dig into the spots where integrations typically fall apart, the importance of open APIs, and how inconsistent data quietly becomes the most expensive problem in a firm’s operations. The conversation also touches on how AI and automation can actually help — but only when the foundation is clean. The episode wraps with an invite for listeners to send in their own stacks for a future teardown.
Key Topics Covered
- How to design a tech stack that scales with an advisory firm
- The real trade-offs between best-in-breed tools and all-in-one platforms
- Where integrations fail and why open APIs are non-negotiable
- How inconsistent data quietly becomes a firm’s biggest operational cost
- What AI and automation can actually fix — and what they can’t
- The hidden risks of going custom or headless too early
- How growing firms should think about the next stage of their tech stack
Timecode
00:00 Conference recap, podcast feedback, and opening thoughts
03:00 Fitness routines, discipline, and how habits impact professional life
08:50 Why fitness, stress management, and consistency matter for advisors
10:40 Introducing the tech stack frameworks for firms of different sizes
16:20 Custodians, CRMs, planning tools, and real integration workflows
22:30 Multi-custodial setups, reporting tools, and where complexity begins
28:10 All-in-one vs best-in-breed and how firms should evaluate the trade-offs
34:30 Data ownership, open APIs, and the rising cost of messy architecture
41:00 How advisors define requirements and where enterprise projects break
48:30 Ecosystem thinking, AI layers, and what comes next for firm-built tech
Never Miss an Episode
Subscribe for episode drops, behind-the-scenes notes, and insights
we couldn’t say on air.
On-air archive
Featured episodes
See All Episodes
Conquest of Trial-and-Error
Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti sit down with Brad Frey, Sales Director at Conquest Planning, for a candid look at the state of financial planning tech.
15
AdviseAI Hangover
In this episode, Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti share their insights on what really stood out at Advise AI.
14
Make WealthTech Open Again
Episode 13 brings our first guest, Craig Uhlenkott, for a candid conversation on the evolution, current challenges, and future of wealth management technology.
13
Zero Basis Points
Follow Zero Basis Points on your favourite platform.
Subscribe
Subscribe to get the latest episodes and exclusive content.
© 2025 Zero Basis Points. All rights reserved.
Episode 4: Stacked Against You
March 28, 2025
55 mins
In this episode, Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti break down wealthtech stacks for firms of all sizes, exploring what works and what doesn’t. From practical setups to AI-driven solutions, they tackle the complexities of choosing the right software in wealth management and discuss whether it’s better to go all-in-one or best-in-breed.
Summary
Episode Four of Zero Basis Points explores what a well-designed tech stack should look like at different stages of an advisory firm’s growth. Haik and George kick things off with conference follow-ups and early feedback on the show before getting into three real-world tech-stack setups they’d recommend for firms from startup mode to multi-custodial scale. George talks through how he thinks about picking custodians, CRMs, planning tools, and form-filling systems — and why “best in breed vs all in one” is never as straightforward as people hope. They dig into the spots where integrations typically fall apart, the importance of open APIs, and how inconsistent data quietly becomes the most expensive problem in a firm’s operations. The conversation also touches on how AI and automation can actually help — but only when the foundation is clean. The episode wraps with an invite for listeners to send in their own stacks for a future teardown.
Key Topics Covered
- How to design a tech stack that scales with an advisory firm
- The real trade-offs between best-in-breed tools and all-in-one platforms
- Where integrations fail and why open APIs are non-negotiable
- How inconsistent data quietly becomes a firm’s biggest operational cost
- What AI and automation can actually fix — and what they can’t
- The hidden risks of going custom or headless too early
- How growing firms should think about the next stage of their tech stack
Timecode
00:00 Conference recap, podcast feedback, and opening thoughts
03:00 Fitness routines, discipline, and how habits impact professional life
08:50 Why fitness, stress management, and consistency matter for advisors
10:40 Introducing the tech stack frameworks for firms of different sizes
16:20 Custodians, CRMs, planning tools, and real integration workflows
22:30 Multi-custodial setups, reporting tools, and where complexity begins
28:10 All-in-one vs best-in-breed and how firms should evaluate the trade-offs
34:30 Data ownership, open APIs, and the rising cost of messy architecture
41:00 How advisors define requirements and where enterprise projects break
48:30 Ecosystem thinking, AI layers, and what comes next for firm-built tech
Never Miss an Episode
Subscribe for episode drops, behind-the-scenes notes, and insights
we couldn’t say on air.
On-air archive
Featured episodes
See All Episodes
Conquest of Trial-and-Error
Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti sit down with Brad Frey, Sales Director at Conquest Planning, for a candid look at the state of financial planning tech.
15
AdviseAI Hangover
In this episode, Haik Sahakyan and George Guidotti share their insights on what really stood out at Advise AI.
14
Make WealthTech Open Again
Episode 13 brings our first guest, Craig Uhlenkott, for a candid conversation on the evolution, current challenges, and future of wealth management technology.
13
Zero Basis Points
Follow Zero Basis Points on your favourite platform.
Subscribe
Subscribe to get the latest episodes and exclusive content.
© 2025 Zero Basis Points. All rights reserved.