Andrew Junkin

You’d be hard-pressed to find a knowledge broker who has a more embedded understanding of consulting than Andrew Junkin—he literally grew up in it. Junkin got his start at his father’s consulting business, which gained an edge by being one of the early consultants in the field. “At that time, consulting was mostly about calculating performance, but it’s changed significantly since then,” he says.

When he moved from his father’s business to Wilshire 12 years ago, he got a sense for just how complex investing can be. “The industry right now is at an inflection point,” Junkin notes. “We aren’t seeing the same rate of organic growth on the client side and there is a lot of consolidation happening within the industry. It’s a point where you will start to see who the real differentiators are.” Indeed many of the new areas of growth have significant differences from the pension space—private wealth, family offices and defined contribution plans are all adding consultants but have differing goals.

Junkin adds that the defined contribution space is a new area of interest for consultants, but the industry is still working out its place. “There is a role for consultants in defined contribution plans—there are significant opportunities to help improve the outcomes there. But it will require some experimentation. Plan sponsors are realizing that they can come to us for advice. We will have to prove that it’s helpful.”

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