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Relay
12 findings

Margaret Ellison, advisor (synthetic persona)Senior advisor, founder and executive practice, New YorkAbout $820M across 183 households; four relationships above $50M; 7 of those households are in this prototypeWho's who

Suggestions

Learned from how you work. It proposes; you decide. Never a rule.

Learning

I watched how you and your clients work and found 5 patterns with enough evidence to propose a settings change. Nothing is applied until you accept it.

  • YouMargaret Ellison: how much each kind of signal counts. market view: 0.7 to 0.6.
  • YouMargaret Ellison: order of options. lowest risk first to lowest cost first.
  • YouMargaret Ellison: review pack section order. What changed → Gaps → Decisions → Open items → Talking points → Documents to Decisions → What changed → Gaps → Open items → Talking points → Documents.

A suggestion can move a preference. It can never loosen a rule; the guard refuses that and the refusal is listed below.

  1. 1. Capture what advisors and clients do
  2. 2. Learn a pattern with enough evidence
  3. 3. Propose one change, with the evidence
  4. 4. The advisor accepts or declines
  5. 5. Apply it as a new settings version
  6. 6. Measure the outcome
  7. 7. Keep it, or undo it

Waiting for your decision (5)

  • Margaret Ellison: how much each kind of signal counts. market view: 0.7 → 0.6

    You dismissed 7 of 9 market view items in 30 days (Not material for this household).

    Evidence: 9 events, 78% agree, last 30 days. Checked after 14 days: Share of this kind of item dismissed falls; nothing you acted on drops off the list.

  • Margaret Ellison: order of options. lowest risk first → lowest cost first

    You chose the lowest-cost eligible option 6 of 7 times.

    Evidence: 7 events, 86% agree, last 30 days. Checked after 14 days: Time from opening options to accepting one falls. Which options are eligible never changes.

  • Margaret Ellison: review pack section order. What changed → Gaps → Decisions → Open items → Talking points → Documents → Decisions → What changed → Gaps → Open items → Talking points → Documents

    You opened "Decisions" first in 6 of 8 review packs.

    Evidence: 8 events, 75% agree, last 30 days. Checked after 14 days: Fewer jumps within the pack before the meeting starts.

  • Alcott family: preferred channel. email → call

    5 of the client's 5 responses came by call; 3 contacts by other channels went unanswered.

    Evidence: 5 events, 100% agree, last 30 days. Checked after 14 days: Client response rate and time to response improve.

  • Thornbury family: client note length. full → brief

    You shortened 5 of 5 drafts for this client before sending.

    Evidence: 5 events, 100% agree, last 30 days. Checked after 14 days: Share of drafts sent without edits rises. Citations and disclosure stay in every note.

Never learned

Rules are set by the firm, a segment or a client, and the loop cannot propose them: escalate unsigned forms after (days); speak to the client before any written note. Nor can it touch client constraints, the approved shelf, compliance checks or the recipient counter.