--- title: "The Hidden Economics Behind High-Growth Advisory Firms with Patrick Kelly" description: "This week, Kyle Van Pelt talks with Patrick Kelly, Co-Founder and CEO of Signal Advisors. Patrick started his career as a financial advisor at Northwestern…" url: https://www.milemarker.co/podcast/the-hidden-economics-behind-high-growth-advisory-firms-with-patrick-kelly updated: 2026-06-02 --- [Now playing](https://www.milemarker.co/podcast) [Podcast**Next Mile**](https://www.milemarker.co/podcast) [Episodes](https://www.milemarker.co/podcast)[Guests](https://www.milemarker.co/podcast/guests) [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@milemarkerinc) [Apple](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-connected-advisor/id1691759257) [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/0Lw8kHGnS1JJBMZLPYxc9S) Episode 147 · Jun 2, 2026 · 46 min # The Hidden Economics Behind High-Growth Advisory Firms with Patrick Kelly [**Patrick Kelly***Co-Founder & CEO, Signal Advisors*](https://www.milemarker.co/podcast/guests/patrick-kelly) [Apple Podcasts ↗](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-connected-advisor/id1691759257) [Spotify ↗](https://open.spotify.com/show/0Lw8kHGnS1JJBMZLPYxc9S) ## About this episode This week, Kyle Van Pelt talks with Patrick Kelly, Co-Founder and CEO of Signal Advisors. Patrick started his career as a financial advisor at Northwestern Mutual before becoming an independent advisor. Before Signal, Patrick founded RepPro, the first electronic application platform for fixed and fixed index annuities in the IMO business. Patrick talks with Kyle about the hidden economics behind high-growth advisory firms. He discusses why some of the fastest-growing advisors integrate insurance, annuities, and investment management into a cohesive strategy, and how pairing this with recurring revenue can unlock both growth and enterprise value. Patrick also explores how technology simplifies operations, improves visibility into marketing performance, and ultimately helps advisors make better business decisions and enhance client experiences. In this episode: - (00:00) - Intro - (02:02) - Patrick's money moment - (05:06) - Where Signal Advisors fits in the modern advisor ecosystem - (07:11) - Why insurance technology still lags behind wealthtech - (10:52) - The hidden limitations of basic data feeds - (15:12) - Rethinking the commission vs. fee-based debate - (17:10) - The evolution of fee-based annuities and advisor adoption - (19:47) - The real engine behind advisor growth and enterprise value - (21:07) - How Signal Advisors survived its early cash flow challenges - (28:25) - Building a tech stack around advisor economics and visibility - (34:01) - Why advisors work with so many carriers - (36:14) - Patrick’s vision for the future of Signal Advisors - (40:35) - Why AI should improve experience before efficiency - (43:37) - Patrick's Milemarker Minute **Key Takeaways** - Great advisors solve for human outcomes, not just portfolio performance. Clients are often seeking confidence, stability, income, or peace of mind—not simply maximum returns. The firms growing fastest understand how to align financial solutions with real human concerns. - The divide between insurance and investments is disappearing. High-growth advisory firms increasingly integrate annuities, insurance, and investment management into a single client strategy instead of treating them as competing business lines. - Enterprise value comes from scalable growth, not just recurring revenue. Predictable revenue matters, but the firms commanding premium valuations are the ones pairing recurring income with strong acquisition systems, marketing visibility, and operational leverage - AI’s biggest opportunity is improving the client experience. Efficiency matters, but the real long-term advantage comes from creating smoother, faster, and more personalized experiences for both advisors and clients. Efficiency is simply the downstream effect. **Quotes** "In a world where you don't differentiate on products, where you really differentiate is on your financial planning prowess and how you actually help individuals solve problems in their lives." ~ Patrick Kelly "If you're taking commissions, you're reducing the enterprise value of your business because people who buy businesses want recurring revenue." ~ Patrick Kelly "You shouldn't use AI to create efficiency. You should use AI to create a better user experience. Efficiency is a second-order effect of AI." ~ Patrick Kelly **Links** - [Patrick Kelly on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickrkelly/) - [Signal Advisors](https://www.signaladvisors.com/) - [Northwestern Mutual](https://www.northwesternmutual.com/) - [American Equity](https://www.american-equity.com/) - [DTCC](https://www.dtcc.com/) - [Michael Kitces](https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelkitces/) - [Empire of the Summer Moon](https://www.amazon.com/Empire-Summer-Moon-Comanches-Powerful/dp/1416591060) **Connect with our hosts** - [Milemarker.co](https://www.milemarker.co/) - [Kyle on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kylevanpelt/) - [Jud on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/judmackrill/) **Subscribe and stay in touch** - [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/connected/id1691759257) - [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/0Lw8kHGnS1JJBMZLPYxc9S) - [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@milemarkerinc) **Produce game-changing content with Turncast** Turncast helps your company grow by producing top-quality content and fostering transformative conversations. We specialize in content generation, podcasting, digital strategy, and audience growth for fintech and financial services companies. Learn more at [Turncast.com](https://www.turncast.com/). ## The write-up [Listen to this week’s episode](https://open.spotify.com/episode/5630ufYL4huCQIPYmTMFFk) ## Episode 147 On this week’s episode of *Next Mile*, I speak with [Patrick Kelly](https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickrkelly/), Co-Founder and CEO of [Signal Advisors](https://www.signaladvisors.com/). Patrick started his career as a financial advisor at Northwestern Mutual before becoming an independent advisor. Before Signal, he founded RepPro, the first electronic application platform for fixed and fixed index annuities in the IMO business. We explore the hidden economics behind high-growth advisory firms. He discusses why some of the fastest-growing advisors integrate insurance, annuities, and investment management into a cohesive strategy, and how pairing this with recurring revenue can unlock both growth and enterprise value. Patrick also examines how technology simplifies operations, improves visibility into marketing performance, and ultimately helps advisors make better business decisions while enhancing client experiences. #### **Key Takeaways** - Great advisors solve for human outcomes, not just portfolio performance. Clients are often seeking confidence, stability, income, or peace of mind—not simply maximum returns. The firms growing fastest understand how to align financial solutions with real human concerns. - Enterprise value comes from scalable growth, not just recurring revenue. Predictable revenue matters, but the firms commanding premium valuations are the ones pairing recurring income with strong acquisition systems, marketing visibility, and operational leverage - AI’s biggest opportunity is improving the client experience. Efficiency matters, but the real long-term advantage comes from creating smoother, faster, and more personalized experiences for both advisors and clients. Efficiency is simply the downstream effect. #### **Quotes** “In a world where you don’t differentiate on products, where you really differentiate is on your financial planning prowess and how you actually help individuals solve problems in their lives.” ~ [Patrick Kelly](https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickrkelly/) “If you’re taking commissions, you’re reducing the enterprise value of your business because people who buy businesses want recurring revenue.” ~ [Patrick Kelly](https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickrkelly/) “You shouldn’t use AI to create efficiency. You should use AI to create a better user experience. Efficiency is a second-order effect of AI.” ~ [Patrick Kelly](https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickrkelly/) #### **Links** - [Patrick Kelly on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickrkelly/) - [Signal Advisors](https://www.signaladvisors.com/) - [Northwestern Mutual](https://www.northwesternmutual.com/) - [American Equity](https://www.american-equity.com/) - [DTCC](https://www.dtcc.com/) - [Michael Kitces](https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelkitces/) - [Empire of the Summer Moon](https://www.amazon.com/Empire-Summer-Moon-Comanches-Powerful/dp/1416591060) #### **Connect with our hosts** - [Milemarker.co](https://www.milemarker.co/) - [Kyle on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kylevanpelt/) - [Jud on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/judmackrill/) #### **Subscribe and stay in touch** - [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/connected/id1691759257) - [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/0Lw8kHGnS1JJBMZLPYxc9S) - [YouTube](https://youtu.be/cFS-tM6zg5M) While there, please don’t forget to Download, Like, and Subscribe. If you’d like to schedule a time to talk with me about anything we cover on our podcast or [Milemarker](https://www.milemarker.co/), [click here for 15 minutes](https://meetings.hubspot.com/kyle-van-pelt). Kyle Van Pelt [**Patrick Kelly***Co-Founder & CEO, Signal Advisors*](https://www.milemarker.co/podcast/guests/patrick-kelly) Next Mile Conversations with the people building the next era of wealth management, hosted by Kyle Van Pelt. New episodes every Tuesday. 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