While Padilla Wealth Management is a fairly new financial advisory firm, its founder, Dion R. Padilla, is exceptionally experienced. “I started my career at the wirehouses right after 9/11, and it was a very challenging time for everyone,” said Padilla. “Because of that experience, I learned that a financial planning and investing specialty would be necessary to differentiate my practice and create a message for growth.”
Padilla focused on a few of the largest employers in his home town of San Antonio, TX, including SBC Communications, which has since merged with AT&T. “I learned just about everything there is to know about SBC’s 401k, pension plans, healthcare benefits, employee stock options and more,” Padilla noted. “When executives retired with me as their advisor, word of mouth spread within the company and became an incredible source of referrals and growth.” He has since expanded his focus to several other large companies in San Antonio, including Valero and USAA.
In order to keep up with this growth, Padilla did extensive due diligence to find the ideal technology stack. The need to find a core portfolio management and wealth reporting system was a central focus. “I’m very big on technology and an advocate for platforms that are comprehensive, yet configurable and intuitive,” says Padilla. “By making the move from a broker-dealer to an independent RIA, I needed to find something that was designed for SEC regulations.”
As part of that technology search, Padilla spent several intense months drilling down into the features and capabilities of the leading systems in advisor technology, ultimately selecting the Black Diamond® Wealth Platform. “The look and layout of Black Diamond really caught my eye,” noted Padilla. “We did a ton of homework and research and when you rate Black Diamond’s design, along with the innovative functionality and the vast integration network, it really stood out.”
From there, the technology pieces fell into place. To start, Padilla chose to leverage Black Diamond’s deep connection with Salentica Elements – a CRM system specifically designed for financial advisors, powered by the Salesforce Lightning Platform. In addition, the portfolio analytics platform, Riskalyze, integrated with both Black Diamond’s advisor and client dashboards, help to deliver a unified experience.
The real affirmation to Padilla’s choice of Black Diamond was the reaction he received from his clients. “Clients love it! They enjoy the anytime access to our branded portal through the mobile app and the dynamic reporting capability,” says Padilla. “When they see their Risk Number from the Riskalyze integration, it really helps give their portfolios some perspective. It’s almost like a speed limit for what can feel like an investment highway.”
While the technology from Black Diamond has been game-changing for Padilla, what he finds even more notable is the service and support he receives, which was especially helpful when first launching. “I am so impressed with the level of support from Black Diamond,” Padilla says. “They do an outstanding job of answering questions, knowing the platform intimately, and always being incredibly responsive. So much so, that the level of service makes me feel like they are part of the team, and I am confident that Black Diamond will grow along with us as business expands.”
