Click here for a pdf version of the Top 50 Bank Reps from BIC's December 2008 issue.

Click here to access the photo gallery of the winners.

We're proud to introduce you to BIC's third annual ranking of the best bank-based advisors in America. The field was ­especially ­challenging this year as we received over 200 ­nominations, all from deserving candidates. We selected winners not just for their ­production performance, but also for their opportunity to produce, which we count as the level of deposits held in the branch or branches a rep covers. The more deposits, the bigger the branch and the greater the ­number of prospects. That's why an $800,000 ­producer might rank ahead of a $1.5 million producer. Congratulations, winners of 2008!

#1

Charles Rood
Bank/TPM: U.S. Bancorp
Location: Portland, Ore.
2008 production: $810,000
2007 production: $706,473
2008 AUM: $286m
2007 AUM: $270m
No. of branches: 1
Deposits covered: $18m
Product mix: Fixed income 40%, managed accounts 20%, equities 20%, insurance 20%

Charles "Chuck" Rood credits his success to his diversified business model-he works equally with corporate accounts, individuals and 401(k)s. What unites this diverse book is a commitment to doing what's right for the client even when Rood loses out as a result. "If there's a five-year CD paying 5% and a five-year fixed annuity paying 3%, I'll make a lot more selling the annuity, but the client is far better off with the CD," he says. "I lose out in the short-term, but I'll gain in the long run." Indeed he prefers fixed-income products to annuities.

Rood has forged strong bonds with bankers by helping them with their 401(k) allocations, which has led to a torrent of referrals. Rood holds both CPA and CFA designations, which give him greater credibility and he relies on a "fantastic" assistant. He urges advisors to get an assistant early-he demanded one when he joined the bank. "Some banks 'reward' advisors with an assistant when they get to a certain production level, but they have it backward," he says. "If you're given a great territory and the right tools from the get-go, you should be fired if you can't make that work." Rood has been a member of U.S. Bancorp's President's Club three out of the four years he's been there.

#2

William Oliver
Bank/TPM: Wachovia
Location: Charlotte, N.C.
2008 production: $1.7m
2007 production: $1.4m
2008 AUM: $125m
2007 AUM: $150m
No. of branches: 1
Deposits covered: $42m
Product mix: Managed accounts 45%, variable annuities 30%, equities 10%, mutual funds 7%, insurance 5%, fixed annuities 3%

William Oliver leverages resources inside the bank and makes sure referrals go both ways with key bankers. This enables him to cross-sell in many different areas, including mortgages and lines of equity. "I refer business to those areas and bankers introduce investment services to new clients they work with," he says. Private banking has been his most profitable partnership because through it, he has gained a number of small-business owners and wealthy families.

Referrals don't happen in a vacuum. "It's always a case of putting your hand out first rather than waiting for a banker to give you business," Oliver says. "I let bankers know how I can help and I build relationships through genuine friendships, just as I do with my clients."

Most of Oliver's business is fee-based, and he typically works with clients who have $1 million or more. "I limit my client base to 100 to 150 people," he says. "There's no way I could deliver high-touch service if I had 600 clients!"

#3

Richard Ewalt
Bank/TPM: SunTrust
Location: Silver Spring, Md.
2008 production: $1m
2007 production: $620,000
2008 AUM: $120m
2007 AUM: $100m
No. of branches: 3
Deposits covered: $30m
Product mix: Variable annuities 72%, fixed income 17%, mutual funds 5%, managed accounts 3%, equities 1%, fixed annuities 1%, other 1%

Richard Ewalt has the good fortune to work in a retirement community, but he doesn't limit his outreach to the retirees. "I work with their children by getting them involved with their parents' accounts," he says. "When a client dies I work on the inheritance, and I often end up retaining the heirs."