Niccolo Coco
For Niccolo Coco, earning the CFP certification was more than a professional milestone. It also marked a first for the Daniels College of Business.
Coco is the first Daniels student to complete the wealth management track within the Reiman School of Finance and earn the CFP certification. Along the way, coursework, faculty mentorship and hands-on experience helped turn his interest in finance into a client-facing career.
The Daniels Newsroom asked Coco about the road to CFP certification, the professors who shaped his journey and his advice for students considering a career in wealth management.
You were the first Daniels student to go through the wealth management track and earn your CFP certification. What does that distinction mean to you?
Being the first student to go through the wealth management track and earn my CFP certification means more to me than simply being the first person to accomplish something. I see it as being a small part of the beginning of what could become a tremendous program for Daniels and for future students who choose to pursue wealth management.
Being able to help establish the path for future financial planners and become part of the history of the program is an honor that I could not have asked for. I hope future students will be able to take advantage of the opportunities within the wealth management track, build on what has already been established and take the program even further with every year that passes.
Which classes, professors and experiences at Daniels had a strong impact on you?
There were many professors at Daniels who had a meaningful impact on me throughout college, but Andy Sherbo and Paul Harrison had an especially significant influence on both my career and my journey toward earning my CFP certification.
Professor Harrison and Professor Sherbo planted the seed for wealth management early in my time at Daniels. They encouraged me to try the courses, made me aware of the wealth management track and continued to support me throughout the process. Their involvement didn’t end when I completed the coursework. They stayed with me through my CFP studies and all the way through preparing for and taking the exam.
There were also plenty of moments when I needed someone to talk to, not just about the technical side of financial planning, but about the business, time management or simply feeling nervous before the exam. They were always willing to be those people for me. Their guidance, wisdom and judgment helped me stay on course and ultimately see the process through to the best of my ability.
I am incredibly grateful that I had professors who were willing to invest that much in me as a student and as a future professional.
You earned several licenses while still in school and later had to take the CFP exam more than once. What kept you motivated through that process?
At the end of the day, I love finance and I love the challenge of the business world. I enjoy planning, analyzing different possibilities and thinking through how decisions today can affect someone’s future. At the same time, I genuinely enjoy working with people, getting to know them and, most importantly, finding ways to make their lives better.
Once Professor Harrison and Professor Sherbo showed me what a career in wealth management could look like and I began working with clients during my first internship, I knew I had found what I wanted to do.
The process of getting there was not easy. There were long hours, an enormous amount of studying, setbacks and, at times, a lack of balance that, looking back, I probably wouldn’t describe as healthy. I also had to take the CFP exam more than once. Through all of that, though, I never lost sight of the reason I was doing it. I wanted to become as qualified and knowledgeable as possible so that I could provide the best possible service to my clients.
I absolutely love what I do. That made the difficult parts worth pushing through. There was never really a question of whether I was going to keep pursuing it. I knew what I wanted to become, and I wanted to do everything I could to become the best advisor I could be.
How has your role evolved from assisting financial advisors to leading client meetings and building your own client base?
My role initially had a heavy back-office emphasis. I worked with client paperwork, back-office systems and organization, scheduling appointments and making sure paperwork and other processes moved smoothly.
After a relatively short time, however, I was given the opportunity to do much more. The first advisor I worked with began having me sit in on client meetings, walk through the analysis and financial planning he was conducting and eventually contribute talking points during those meetings. As I became more comfortable and demonstrated that I could handle more responsibility, my role continued to evolve.
That transition happened very fluidly. While I was still in college and working toward my licenses, I went from supporting meetings to leading client meetings and planning and analysis conversations with my boss. I also began developing the skills and experience necessary to start building my own client base.
That entire evolution happened over roughly a year and a half and involved a lot of hours spent studying and working to gain a strong understanding of each new responsibility. The progression was largely driven by a simple philosophy: Once I understood one part of the practice well enough, I had the capacity to take on something new.
Today, I am continuing to build my own client base while also helping run another advisor’s practice full time, which I will eventually be purchasing. Looking back, it is interesting to see how naturally the role evolved. I didn’t go from an assistant to an advisor overnight. It was a constant progression of learning, taking on harder work and gradually earning more responsibility.
What advice would you give Daniels students who are considering a career in wealth management or pursuing the CFP designation?
My biggest piece of advice would be to get experience in the industry as early as you can. The classroom gives you the foundation, but working with an actual advisor and seeing real client situations helped me understand what wealth management really looks like.
I’d also encourage students not to wait until they graduate to start pursuing the professional credentials that matter to them. If you’re interested in the CFP designation, take advantage of the resources and coursework available at Daniels and start building toward it early.
Most importantly, don’t let the difficulty of the process discourage you. I had to take the CFP exam more than once, and there were certainly points where it would have been easier to give up. The important thing is to keep moving forward. If you genuinely enjoy helping people, solving problems and thinking about finance beyond just investments, wealth management can be an incredibly rewarding career.