The Lie on Both Sides of Investment Management

Jan 14, 2026

Zach Conway, founder of Seeds, discusses the evolving landscape of investment management. He critiques the polarizing narratives: one that sees portfolios as mere commodities, and another that relies on outdated promises of alpha. Conway emphasizes the value advisors bring through personalized portfolio strategies and modern tools that reduce burdens like manual trading. He shares insights on how Seeds connects client preferences to actionable portfolio outcomes, aiming for a balanced approach that enhances the advisor-client relationship.

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INSIGHT

Two Extremes Mask The Real Opportunity

Two harmful narratives exist: old alpha promises and total commoditization.
The real opportunity is a middle path merging planning-led advice with purposeful investment management.

ADVICE

Map Client Inputs To Portfolio Outcomes

Build portfolios from client-specific inputs: goals, taxes, accounts, liquidity, preferences.
Use that mapping to deliver tax location, harvesting, rebalancing, and personalized allocations.

INSIGHT

Start With The 'Seeds' Of The Investor

Personalization starts by capturing the 'seeds' of an investor: goals, preferences, and motivations.
Storytelling about the portfolio must reflect that investor-first understanding.

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Investment management has become strangely polarizing in the advisory industry. On one end, many “planning-led” firms treat portfolios as a commodity—something clients can DIY or outsource entirely because “markets are efficient anyway.” On the other, some firms still rely on outdated investment storytelling: credentials, access, and vague promises of outperformance.

On this episode of Talking Wealth, Michael Batnick sits down with Zach Conway to argue for a rational middle ground. We talk about why investment management still matters, where advisors actually add value, and why even the best firms struggle to deliver that value at scale. We dig into the real problems—lack of a client-to-portfolio framework, clunky implementation, and manual trading—and how modern platforms are changing the way advisors personalize portfolios, manage taxes, and reclaim time to spend with clients. If you think investment management is either “dead” or all smoke and mirrors, this conversation will change how you see it.

This episode is sponsored by Betterment Advisor Solutions. Learn more at ⁠http://Betterment.com/advisors ⁠

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