Carr Burgoyne Empowering Success

Carr Burgoyne Jr. gives his team of skilled professionals the freedom to succeed

For Carr Burgoyne Jr., wealth management runs in the family. The 30-year industry veteran is third in a line of four generations of financial professionals. This dates back to his grandfather, who started working as a preferred stock advisor in 1927.

As the President and founder of Houston-based Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. – a registered investment advisor  – Carr leveraged his 20-plus year relationship with LPL Financial to build a 27-member firm spanning six locations.

A matter of choice

Partnering with LPL was not a matter left to chance for Carr. “I went through a very exhaustive search to find the right broker-dealer,” he said. “I did a lot of due diligence and homework, and really came up with the fact that LPL was the best.”

The personable Carr was drawn to LPL’s relationship-based approach to management. This culture brought him early and frequent access to LPL leadership. “One of the wonderful things I've had the privilege of doing is being able to meet, and have personal one-on-one meetings, with the three CEOs that LPL has had over the years,” he said. “LPL founder Todd Robinson had a saying: ‘Advisors aren't the interruption of our day. They're the purpose for a day.’”

Carr internalizes that approach for his clients and staff advisors, focusing on providing the best possible service and advice. “At the end of the day, that’s not an interruption of our day, but the purpose for me,” he said.

Acknowledging that LPL’s approach is rather unique in the industry, Carr knows it’s a perfect fit for him, and the reason he and his team have enjoyed steady success. “LPL’s number one business is the advisor, and that shows in everything they do,” he said. “It shows in the products they deliver, the software they put in front of us, and the service we get as well.”

Carr praises the LPL research department as being an invaluable partner, and cites LPL’s business tools as helping his company navigate personal and professional uncertainties during COVID-19. “They gave us the right resources to continually communicate with our clients,” he said.

LPL’s investment in financial technology continually helps him find efficiencies in many of his workflows, and is a fundamental distinction that separates LPL from its competitors. “The presentation tools, the CRM, the e-signature, and texting – those kinds of things are huge,” he said.

A flock of eagles

While Carr’s a meticulous planner and strategizer, he’s also adept at finding the right people to staff Symphony, and empowering them to succeed. “I’ve always had a ‘flock of eagles’ mentality,” he said. “I realized early on that I’ve got to find people that I can associate with who can take my business to the next level.”

Over the years, he’s developed a team of solid professionals – individual leaders who learn from one another, who are given the freedom to exercise their training and skills. “What makes Symphony Financial special is our people,” he said. “We can provide the best services we can, but if we don't have the right people in place, that puts a damper on everything.”

Carr lets his team members make their own decisions and chart their own path, and then helps them grow their practice. “I’m not a micromanager at all,” he said. “When I hired my first advisor back in 2004, he told me that he’d be with me for two years, then go do his own thing. I told him that if I couldn’t add value to his practice, that I’d help him move.”

17 years later, that advisor is still with Carr.

Looking ahead

While Symphony Financial is realizing strong year-over-year growth, Carr’s looking to the future when trying to strengthen his already solid foundation. “I’m working with LPL’s recruiting department because one of the biggest challenges in the industry right now is finding younger financial advisors,” he said. “There are plenty of experienced advisors, but it's the new advisors that are going to be there for that older generation as they transition their practices. At the end of the day, we need more and more advisors under the age of 40.”

With LPL’s help, Carr knows he’ll find the right people – motivated professionals who’ll learn from him and his team, then take the proverbial reigns as they find their own financial practice success. It’s a win-win for everyone involved, and the success of that is all predicated on trust.

“If you can set your ego aside and empower the people on your team, then you can just take your business to the next level,” he said. 

The views and opinions expressed by the LPL Financial Advisor may not be representative of the views of other Financial Advisors and are not indicative of future performance or success. Neither LPL Financial nor the LPL Financial Advisor can be held responsible for any direct or incidental loss incurred by applying any of the information offered.

Symphony Financial and LPL Financial are separate entities.