Orion poaches AssetMark rainmaker to pull its pieces together -- not long after putting ex-AssetMark CEO Charles Goldman on its board

Orion Advisor Solutions is now well into Phase 2 of its bid to be top TAMP by again shopping for talent seasoned at No. 1.

The Omaha, Neb., software and investments firm, with $3.7-trillion of assets administered by its technology, added Tom McCarthy, 45, from $91.5-billion AssetMark to fill the big shoes of Ed Kelly, who recently departed. 

This talent addition reflects the recent arrival of Charles Goldman to its board. See: AssetMark suddenly parts ways with president/CEO Charles Goldman; protégé Natalie Wolfsen named CEO; Michael Kim president

Gaining two AssetMark talents in six months is not mere coincidence, says Orion CEO Eric Clarke.

“I'd say there's a half a coincidence,” he says. “To have Charles's endorsement [of McCarthy] was a big, big plus.”

McCarthy joined a month ago and is reporting to Ryan Beach, president of Orion Wealth Management. 

Orion's TAMP manages about $60 billion as of Dec. 31.. It includes legacy accounts from its acquisitions of FTJ Fundchoice, TownSquare and Brinker Capital. See: Orion enters booming OCIO market with $6-billion AUM TownSquare purchase

The hire of McCarthy reflects the desire to shift from growth-by-M&A in the business of outsourced money management to growth by organic sales, Beach said in a release.

“Having executed on our M&A strategy at Orion over the last few years and assembling a best-in-class TAMP platform, complemented by a full-stack tech solution powered by Orion technology, we are well positioned to grow," he says.

Orion also seems intent on a best-in-class talent acquisition spree to execute on the second phase.

Peripatetic career

Orion announced in September it was hiring Mike Wilson in the newly created role of executive vice president, Orion Tech Suite. See: Eric Clarke hands 'Orion' reins to Brian McLaughlin in big reorganization that frees him to begin high-level hacking of 'One Orion' with newest hire Michael Wilson

Orion also bid farewell to its chief strategy officer, Brad Shepard in January of 2022. See: Brad Shepard unexpectedly resigns from Orion Advisor Services after 10 months, and his chief strategy officer position will remain vacant, the company says

Kelly, 53, largely oversaw the same duties as executive vice president, TAMP Sales, at Orion Portfolio Solutions. He joined Orion in 2020 as part of the company's purchase of Brinker Capital. See: In a deal wired by a 'Tony,' Orion leaps to the top TAMP tier, with $42 billion and $1 trillion-plus of RIA portfolios, which may make it more lethal to rivals

He was with Brinker for 11 years. Kelly also worked for Curian Capital, Genworth Financial Wealth Management and Nationwide during his career. 

McCarthy was at AssetMark for nine years, 2013-2022, when assets grew from $1 billion in AUM to over $90 billion, according to his LinkedIn profile.

 Connected

His AssetMark career overlapped with Goldman, who became chairman in 2013 and served as CEO from 2014 to 2021. See: Charles Goldman takes seat on Orion board sparking thoughts about RIA custody comeback in Omaha and just what it can do with the Redtail, Brinker and TownSquare acquisitions

“Financial advisors, now more than ever before, are demanding world-class technology and investment solutions that enable them to serve clients across all their financial needs," McCarthy says in a release. 

“Orion has built and assembled a connected wealthtech platform that does all of that today.”

Still, Clarke says he hopes that McCarthy can help usher in an even better, more “open-architecture” turnkey asset management program to optimize the subadvisors that comprise the holdings of the Orion TAMP products.

Subadvisors are the critical components of a TAMP. The objective of the TAMP is to have the best subadvisors for their niche segment without overdiversifying or layering on too many expenses.