Solving the Biggest Tech Problem in Wealth Management by Creating True Ownership of Your Firm’s Data

Jud Mackrill, Co-Founder of Milemarker joins Mike Langford for a conversation about the challenges financial firms face regarding data ownership and integration. They discuss the concept of data lakes, the mission of Milemarker to empower financial advisors with better data control, and the evolution of technology in the financial services industry.

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Resources Mentioned In This Episode:

• Orion - Jud Mackrill shares the story of being employee number 20 at Orion and how getting to work alongside the company's founder, Eric Clarke, shaped his career.
• Skience - As part of Jud's recalling the origin story of Milemarker he reflects on meeting his co-founder Kyle Van Pelt when Kyle was still working at Skience.
• Zapier - Mike mentioned how his sees some high-level parallels between what Milemarker is doing for wealth management firms and how Zapier has created the ability for businesses to connect a variety of other web services.
• Holistiplan - Jud mentioned how Milemarker is working to make it easier for advisors to adopt solutions like Holistiplan, a tax planning softwares tool and
• Wealth.com - An estate planning tool that benefits from deeper integration and ease of use with the advisor's existing workflow.
• Stefan Ludlow - Jud mentioned Stefan and his role as the CTO at Cerity Partners as an example of what a CTO at a modern financial advisory firm hopes their job will look like versus what life is like for most tech leaders in wealth management.
• The Connected Advisor - The Milemarker team are producing Podcast and Newsletter to connect with their prospects, clients, and the wider wealth management community. A side benefit is it helps them better articulate their thoughts about the space.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Data Ownership Challenges

02:28 Understanding Milemarker's Mission

04:25 The Concept of Data Lakes

08:08 The Origin Story of Milemarker

14:06 The Evolution of Technology in Financial Services

19:02 Practical Applications of Milemarker

22:50 Unlocking Insights with Technology

23:19 Working on Your Business vs. In Your Business

24:18 Challenges of Technology Adoption in Advisory Firms

25:15 The Role of Milemarker in Technology Implementation

29:07 The Importance of Data Quality for AI

32:23 Preparing for the AI Revolution in Advisory Firms

36:30 Core Building Blocks for RIAs in 2025

41:29 The Value of Content Creation for Advisors