GAME OF DRONES

Friendship for Successful Investment Advice
The work of advising
clients regarding
their financial
decisions is more than
just business as usual
for Tom Mantling. As
the owner of Synthesis
Advisors in East Greenwich,
RI; Manning said
he views his clients as
good friends. He believes the level of service he should
provide goes well beyond quarterly calls and newsletters.
Instead, he wants to develop the kind of relationship that
makes him a partner with his clients in formulating their
future financial plans.
“I want to know everything that is going on with them,”
Manning emphasized.
“When you have that kind of relationship
with your clients, you can talk
honestly with them about living for today
and planning for tomorrow,”
there is always something
else going on.
But when you have a
serious enough client
and a strong friendship,
you have the ability to
make a significant difference.”
Manning has worked in the financial sector for the bulk
of his career, starting out as an accountant and then working
in the banking industry doing mortgages, construction
loans and workouts for small and medium businesses. The
clientele for his investment advising firm came from contacts
made in banking, during his tenure as the director of
a credit union and from his work in the non-profit sector.
“I love business people,” Manning said. “I have been
around them all my life and I do tend to gravitate toward
people who own their own businesses and need solid, objective
financial advice especially during the era of deleveraging
and quantitative easing.”
www.synthesisadvising.com
Manning said. “That is the philosophy you want to have.
Planning is the hardest thing in the world to do because
LOOKING OUT FOR THE GREEN INDUSTRY
There is something to be said for growing a business
organically. Just ask the Golden Oak family of companies
who have sprouted new businesses over the
last 25 years. Family members now include the Golden Oak
Co-op Corporation, Birch Financial, Inc., Landscape Contractors
Insurance Services, Inc. (LCIS) and Oak Creek Insurance
Agency, a division of LCIS. Nurturing their growth
has been Nelson Colvin, who serves as president and CEO
of both LCIS and Birch Financial, Inc. “We serve the green
industry – which includes landscaping, tree companies and
the sub-contractors for those companies – by providing a
well-rounded group of services, including our insurance
program through LCIS, which has over 2,000 members,”
said Colvin.
LCIS is the largest independent insurance
broker in the western part of the country
for landscapers, tree trimmers and nurseries.
Currently licensed in 22 states,
plans for expanding nationwide
are underway. Birch Financial
offers premium financing to
landscape contractors who are
insured by LCIS, and also has
an equipment Ffinanceing division
providing business financing for both new and used vehicles
and equipment like mowers, tractors, and trenchers.
Rounding out the suite of services is Oak Creek Insurance,
offering personal insurance from nationwide carriers to
commercial customers of LCIS and others, including auto,
home, group health and life insurance benefits. Golden Oak
also partners with State Compensation Insurance Fund to
provide a group Workers’ Compensation program.
Under Colvin’s watch, this family of companies has been
thriving. LCIS has returned over $40 million in rebates to its
customers since 1990. Birch Financial Equipment Financing
has made over $5 million in loans for new and used equipment
since 2000, and Golden Oak Cooperative Corporation
has distributed over $450,000 in equity shares to retired
members.
As a licensed landscape contractor and past President of
the California Landscape Contractors Association, Colvin is
the recipient of several industry awards and in 2010, was
inducted into the Green Industry Hall of Fame.
www.oakcreek-ins.com
THE SUIT MAGAZINE p.43