Network advisor spotlight: Kennie Taylor
The importance of reaching back, asking others for help and paying it forward.
When reflecting on his career highlights, Kennie Taylor doesn’t point to a specific instance or single moment that stands above the rest – rather, he’s proud of his long-term impact as a mentor for other younger advisors.
“I’m passionate about mentoring early-stage professionals,” Kennie said, “not because I had a mentor who shared similar experiences in life, in fact, quite the opposite. I’ve been in the business since the 90s, and for a good deal of my career I was the only Black advisor in my office, at times the only Black advisor in town. That could often feel like being on an island.”
While Kennie may not have had a formal mentor who faced similar barriers or experiences as a Black professional, he stressed there were others who helped answer broader questions and share their philosophies with him along the way. Receiving help and support emphasized the importance of reaching back.
Kennie takes pride in the fact that he’s been able to give newer advisors the opportunity to glean important lessons from his experiences based on what’s most applicable to their own situations and career trajectories.
“I want to see my mentee’s practices make mine look small in comparison once they mature,” Taylor said. “But seeing is very much believing. Visibility is critical for any aspiring professionals, especially Black professionals. The more I can do to help talented Black advisors succeed, the more I believe we can enhance the financial services industry as a whole.”
“Help comes in different forms. The important thing is to ask for it.”
Kennie believes that BFAN embodies his belief in reaching back and helping others succeed. At a luncheon panel held during the 2024 BFAN Symposium, addressing both Raymond James and Alex. Brown advisors and leaders alongside representatives from other firms, Taylor’s point was clear: “Help comes in different forms. The important thing is to ask for it.”
“Succeeding in this industry isn’t a given. Competency, familiarity with the business and a hunger to help clients are all key,” Taylor said. “But to fully realize our potential, especially in the early days of our professional journeys, takes a certain type of community support that I feel BFAN provides.”
At a separate session at the 2024 BFAN Symposium, Kennie, who is also a board member of the YMCA of Greater St. Petersburg, took the opportunity to talk to attendees about community involvement. Reaching back and helping advisors isn’t the only way he demonstrates his passion – his efforts extend to assisting young people and students, too.
The YMCA’s YReads! Program, which is focused on providing students with intensive reading instruction to succeed from anywhere between kindergarten age and eighth grade, is one reason that indicates the why behind his passion for the cause. Florida State Comprehensive Assessment Test results showed that in 2023, 47% of Pinellas County’s third graders did not meet expected reading standards.
“Reading is the gateway to learning. The program ensures students can engage with material appropriate for their grade-level. That’s how kids learn and keep learning,” Kennie said. “I believe the more we invest in reading and education, the greater the opportunities there will be for aspiring professionals to one day sit in my chair.”
Beyond the YMCA, Kennie leads the “Barbeque School,” a space that invites young men ranging from sixth grade to college age to learn basic life skills, from seasoning and grilling meat to tying a necktie and shining their shoes.
“One Barbeque School story I like to share is of a young man who went on to the University of Alabama,” Taylor said. “In his interview, he highlighted two key lessons: mastering a firm handshake and tying a necktie. His father, a career military officer, expressed his disbelief he had never shown his son how to tie a tie, but the truth is helping develop a young person takes a village.”
As a young man himself, financial advising wasn’t the goal for Kennie Taylor.
A licensed dentist from the University of Michigan Dental School, his dental career was cut short by a car accident.
" I believe the more we invest in reading and education, the greater the opportunities there will be for aspiring professionals to one day sit in my chair. "
But even now as a health enthusiast, he puts health and well-being conversations at the forefront of client interactions.
“Why?” his clients often ask. His answer: “Because financial advising represents problem solving. No matter how much wealth we accumulate, our long-term health is one of the most valuable investments we can make and, to an extent, control. Conversations about health enable advisors to optimize a client’s financial plan to an even deeper level.”
“All of those things: supporting young advisors, helping improve reading levels among students and encouraging people to invest in their long-term health are all interwoven in one way or another into my faith, who I am as a person and a professional,” Kennie said.
His closing reminder: “Be early in your attempts to seek help from others, and don’t be afraid to be aggressive in your efforts to help others.”
Follow along on social media with #RJBFAN.