Fidelity Advisor HR Solutions Can Help Breakaway Brokers Establish
and Manage Staffing Requirements When Starting New RIA Firm

BOSTON, March 12, 2009 -- As registered investment advisors (RIAs) seek to manage their firms as efficiently as possible through unprecedented market turbulence, Fidelity Investments (Fidelity) today introduced a comprehensive new program designed to help RIAs hire, develop and retain highly productive employees. The program also was designed to help brokers looking to establish their own RIA firms develop effective talent management policies and procedures as they transition to independence.

Fidelity Advisor HR Solutions, built in conjunction with HR and talent management consulting firm Veritude^®,¹ offers customized consulting services, as well as training programs for management development, team-building and organizational effectiveness. The program also includes a new Web site that features over 40 planning resources, tools and white papers, including The Power of Small, an in-depth report offering advisors six step-by-step strategies for motivating and retaining talent.

"With their assets and revenues under significant pressure, now more than ever RIAs need to make sure they are getting the most out of their employees," said Ronald P. Fiske Jr, executive vice president, Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services^®. "Our new program can help advisors more effectively manage HR by providing access to the high quality resources they may need to help motivate employees and maximize their productivity."

Even in less volatile times, advisors see talent management as a key issue. According to a 2007 study by Fidelity² , 40 percent of decision makers at RIA firms with assets under management ranging from $25 million to over $1 billion considered "training staff" to be a major challenge in the next two years. Moreover, in the near future, an advisor shortage may be looming: Just three percent of today's advisor force is under the age of 30, while 40 percent is over the age of 50.³

"Our people are by far our most meaningful asset, so we want to promote an environment where they are eager to stay and build their skills," said Michael Eckton, Managing Partner of Crestwood Advisors in Boston. "In times like these, when market turmoil puts greater pressure on people, it's even more important to make sure that employees are motivated and energized. Veritude's on-site consulting validated some of our key HR practices, such as making sure that our employees are regularly providing feedback on the tools and resources they need to succeed in their jobs."

Fidelity Advisor HR Solutions provides advisors a comprehensive set of resources in the areas of hiring, developing and retaining talent. Specifically, the program offers:

•		Custom consulting -- Veritude provides customized consulting to help RIA clients address a variety of specific talent management issues, from organizational design and workforce plans to sales training and executive coaching. Veritude will leverage its broad talent management and HR expertise as well as the expertise of a network of nearly 60 third-party providers.
•		Online tools and resources -- Through the new Fidelity Advisor HR Solutions Web site, advisors will have access to resources such as sample employment applications, tips for delivering performance reviews, and advice on designing a compensation system, as well as guides, tools, and white papers on a host of other talent management topics.
•		Client events and engagements -- Roundtables and webinars, planned for 2009, will offer advisors opportunities to learn directly from human resources experts on strategies for developing, motivating, and retaining top-performing employees.

Fidelity Practice Management Program

Fidelity Advisor HR Solutions is part of the Fidelity Practice Management Program. The program offers advisors access to the resources of nearly 50 third-party providers as well as Fidelity PracticePerks, an innovative online marketplace that offers preferred pricing from hundreds of third-party retailers and service providers, making it one of the industry's most comprehensive practice management platforms. The Fidelity Practice Management Program provides advisors access to the resources they may need to help them meet three critical business needs: Accelerate Growth, Streamline Operations, and Manage Risk.

"To compete effectively and build their businesses, advisors need to look for better, faster and cheaper ways to manage all aspects of their practices, including HR," said Fiske. "That's why we continue to expand our practice management platform, drawing upon Fidelity's own in-house professionals and experienced third-party providers."

About Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services

Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services is a leading provider of trading, custody and brokerage services to Registered Investment Advisors, Trust Institutions and Third Party Administrators. The company is able to leverage the capital, resources and expertise of the Fidelity organization, one of the world's largest financial services companies, on behalf of its clients. This includes access to a comprehensive set of products and services, innovative investment tools and research, an integrated brokerage and trust platform, and dedicated client service professionals -- all designed to help its clients thrive by growing their businesses, more effectively meeting customer needs, and enhancing operational efficiency and profitability. Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services custodies more than $292 billion in assets on behalf of over 3,500 clients, as of December 31, 2008. For more information about Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services, please visit http://fiws.fidelity.com.

About Fidelity Investments

Fidelity Investments is one of the world's largest providers of financial services, with custodied assets of over $2.6 trillion, including managed assets of over $1.2 trillion as of December 31, 2008. Fidelity offers investment management, retirement planning, brokerage, and human resources and benefits outsourcing services to 24 million individuals and institutions as well as through 5,500 financial intermediary firms. The firm is the largest mutual fund company in the United States, the No. 1 provider of workplace retirement savings plans, the largest mutual fund supermarket and a leading online brokerage firm. For more information about Fidelity Investments, visit Fidelity.com.

¹Veritude is a Devonshire Investors company. Devonshire Investors is the private equity arm of Fidelity Investments.

²The Fidelity survey was conducted on the phone between May 29, 2007 and July 6, 2007 with firm's representative of the RIA marketplace and received completed responses from 436 RIA firms each with at least $25 million in total assets under management, and not necessarily clients.

³Cerulli Associates, The Cerulli Report: Financial Planning: Trends in Advice Delivery, 2008. Cerulli Associates is an independent research firm not affiliated with Fidelity Investments.

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Unless otherwise noted, the opinions provided are those of the speaker and not necessarily those of Fidelity Investments.

Fidelity Investments is not affiliated with Crestwood Advisors.

The content in the Advisor HR Solutions web-site is provided by Veritude, should be considered general in nature and is for informational purposes only.The information is not individualized and not intended to serve as the primary or sole basis for your decisions as there may be other factors you should consider. Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services has not been involved with the preparation of the content supplied within the Advisor HR Solutions site and does not guarantee or assume any responsibility for its content. There is no assurance that the information is accurate, complete, or timely. The opinions expressed within the web-site are those of the Veritude authors and do not necessarily reflect those of Fidelity Investments.

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