Carlson Capital Management

Integrated Wealth Management

Menu
  • Our Firm
    • Who We AreFirmly grounded in foundational values, and intensely focused on each client’s well-being, Carlson Capital Management has been redefining partnership for more than thirty years.
    • Our TeamOur approach to wealth management is to surround you with a team of experts who work together to integrate all of the key financial disciplines into one plan.
    • HistoryKey events and milestones since the founding of our firm in 1987.
    • Community CommitmentIn the same way that we value the deep and lasting partnerships we have with our clients, we place a strong value on being partners in our communities.
    • Mission StatementOur team is guided by this mission each and every day. It’s what gets us up in the morning, and sometimes keeps us awake at night.
    • Zero Alpha GroupFounded in 1995, the Zero Alpha Group community is a national network of eight independent investment advisory firms.
    • Close
  • Our Clients
    • Client ProfileOur clients are individuals, families, businesses and foundations with many varying goals and situations, but one thing in common – the need and desire for integrated solutions.
    • Fiduciary StandardsIntegrity, trust, expertise and care are hallmarks of the CCM experience. They are at the root of all we do and the essence of who we are.
    • Fee StructureOur independent, fee-based status allows us to focus on one simple thing: what is in the best interest of our client.
    • Make a ReferralThe majority of new clients come from referrals from current clients. Access information that introduces colleagues and friends to Carlson Capital Management.
    • Close
  • Our Approach
    • Foundational ValuesOur deep commitment to each client we serve is built upon foundational values like honesty, hard work, and a strong sense of personal dedication.
    • Integrated ExpertiseOur unique, integrated approach to wealth management unlocks opportunities that our clients and their families deserve.
    • Disciplined PerspectiveOur long-term perspective provides the patience, guidance and discipline required for steady growth and protection.
    • Independent InsightOur independent, fee-based structure ensures the highest levels of objectivity, integrity, and fiduciary responsibility.
    • Close
  • Services
    • Integrated Wealth ManagementOur Integrated Wealth Management approach surrounds clients with a team who apply their expertise to integrate all of the financial disciplines.
    • Carlson PortfoliosCarlson Portfolios offers a solution for clients whose situations are less complex than a traditional CCM Integrated Wealth Management client.
    • Retirement Plan ServicesComprehensive integrated retirement plan solutions.
    • Institutional Portfolio ServicesInvestment advisory and fiduciary consulting for foundations, endowments and associations.
    • Risk ManagementSome things in life are predictable, while others are random. Managing risk is as important as seeking opportunities.
    • American Center for PhilanthropyWe develop and implement a philanthropic plan that matches your desire to make a difference and leave a legacy.
    • CCM Tax & Trust AdministrationA commonly-held affiliate of CCM that provides tax return preparation services.
    • Carlson TrustProvides trust solutions for clients whose financial, family or business needs require the services of a professional fiduciary.
    • Close
  • News and Resources
    • Recommended ReadingArticles and resources to give you access to our top picks in investment education, timely industry perspectives, interesting data and financial planning insights.
    • Articles and PublicationsA library of topical publications and articles written by CCM team members specifically for our clients.
    • CCM In the NewsA collection of articles, links and press releases featuring CCM, including interviews in publications and features in national industry rankings.
    • Video LibraryShort videos that introduce you to our team, our approach and the CCM story.
    • Women’s InitiativeResources and information related to CCM’s Women’s Initiative: Promoting the Financial Empowerment of Women.
    • Introduce CCM to OthersThe majority of new clients come from referrals from current clients. Access information that introduces colleagues and friends to CCM.
    • Close
  • Contact Us
    • Request a ConversationTake the next step in learning more about our integrated wealth management services by requesting a conversation with one of our advisors.
    • Contact Our TeamEmail one of our team members directly or send a general inquiry to the firm.
    • Client Servicing ContactsFind the CCM team member who can help with your specific question or request.
    • Join a MeetingJoin your scheduled meeting with Carlson Capital Management.
    • LocationsWe always appreciate the opportunity to meet face-to-face in one of our offices or at a location convenient to you.
    • CareersLearn about employment opportunities and apply online.
    • Close
  • Request a Call
  • Client Login

Are We There Yet? Navigating Volatility.

Adam Hoffmann – Carlson Capital Management
Adam Hoffmann, CFP®, AIF®

Chief Investment Officer
507.321.4004
Email Adam

  Being able to apply my deep-rooted curiosity in a way that allows our clients to focus on what they truly enjoy doing the most, rather than having to worry about their financial well-being, is a wonderful thing.  

Professional Biography
Adam Hoffmann is a member of the firm's Management Team and serves as Chief Investment Officer at Carlson Capital Management. In this role, he leads the firm’s investment team in the areas of trading, investment research, portfolio design and technology support for investment applications. Adam oversees analysis and execution of investment strategies for new and existing client portfolios. He consistently communicates the firm’s investment philosophy and approach by writing for firm publications, presenting to new clients, and by participating in client meetings. Adam chairs the CCM investment committee, represents the firm with strategic partnerships in the investment community, and serves as the firm’s liaison to the Zero Alpha Group investment committee. Adam holds the Certified Financial Planner™ designation granted through the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards and has served as a subject matter expert for the CFP Board, contributing to the development of examination questions for the CFP Certification Examination. He has also served as a presenter at industry events, providing other financial services professionals with continuing education credits in investment topics. In addition, Adam holds the Accredited Investment Fiduciary professional designation, awarded by the Center for Fiduciary Studies. The AIF designation affirms the highest in fiduciary standards of care for CCM clients.

Adam graduated cum laude with Honors Program distinction from Augsburg College, where he earned a Bachelors of Arts degree in Finance with a minor in Business Administration. While at Augsburg, Adam participated in four years of varsity football and was honored by his teammates by being elected captain for both his junior and senior seasons. He also earned all-MIAC and pre-season All-American honors.

Adam is a former member of the board of directors for the Just Food Community Co-op and past trustee for the First United Church of Christ Northfield. He and his wife Rachel grew up in Hastings, Minnesota and now live in Northfield with their two daughters.

Personal Thoughts
A strong sense of curiosity is a cornerstone to who I am and how I live my life. As a kid I used to be fascinated by how things work or why things happen the way they do. I often would take things apart to see what was happening ‘inside,’ frequently with limited success at being able to put them back together. Little has changed since then with regard to my curiosity, but fortunately my success rate of being able to put the pieces back together has greatly improved. I have always been driven by this desire to solve problems and learn more about the world around me.

There is a natural connection between this curiosity and managing portfolios. The investment world today is one of relentless change and evolution. With advances in technology, there is an endless stream of news available at our fingertips that constantly impacts asset prices, shapes investor behavior, and provides an unlimited supply of data and information to digest.

It is our job at CCM to absorb this information and provide guidance and knowledge back to our clients about what it all means and how it may it impact the world we know. The most important role we play in our clients’ financial lives is not only to understand the big picture – that is the Market and the global economic system – but to be able to translate how events and changes around the globe impact each individual client and their personal financial plan.

Being able to apply my deep-rooted curiosity in a way that allows our clients to focus on what they truly enjoy doing the most, rather than having to worry about their financial well-being, is a wonderful thing.

Adam and other members of the CCM Investment Team regularly post articles of interest including investment insights, recommended reading on timely topics, and articles on portfolio management which you can find here.

Adam Hoffmann
Adam Hoffmann, CFP®, AIF®
Chief Investment Officer

The oft-repeated phrase for almost every family road trip in recorded history—“Are we there yet?”—is also appropriately asked by investors experiencing stock and bond markets in 2022. Although we’re not traveling together in the back of a wood-paneled station wagon to grandma’s house halfway across the country, we are all experiencing an uncomfortable journey of volatility.

Questions that I hear and questions I’m asking myself along this investing volatility voyage include:

  • Have stocks reached their bottom for this cycle?
  • Has the Federal Reserve reached its limit on increasing interest rates?
  • Have mortgage rates peaked, or will they continue to move higher?
  • When will inflation come back down to “normal” levels?
  • How long can unemployment rates stay at record lows?

These questions are all very interesting to ask, but we need to understand that there is no way to have a definitive answer to any of them. Moreover, the answers may not be necessary in order to be a successful investor. The answers may impact your portfolio and your financial plan, while at the same time, getting those answers may not tell you exactly what’s to come or what turn you should take next.

For example, the policy of the Federal Reserve has an impact on interest rates and, therefore, financial assets like stocks and bonds. Bonds, in particular, are sensitive to the changing of interest rates, as there is a direct relationship between yields and market prices. That said, the changes that have already taken place so far in 2022 as described in our recent article, Why Now? Context for Recent Volatility., are more impactful on bond prices than future rate increases may be. In quantitative terms, the last one percent increase in interest rates will have had a greater effect on prices than a potential future shift of one percent can have. Additionally, the yield received from holding bonds today is many times higher than just last year, regardless of the direction of future rates. If you liked bonds then, you should love them now

One challenge we face in this journey is understanding how best to measure success as an investor. Is it solely based on the rate of return on our portfolio, and, if so, over what time period? Is it based on the size of our balance sheet, or our goals reached? Do we base our success on the actions we’ve taken, or the risks we’ve avoided?

In situations like we are in today, it often feels like action is needed, regardless of the risks. It feels that if we are not individually “doing something” dramatic, we are willingly subjecting ourselves to the will of the market. But isn’t that the same thing we do when markets are going up? Aren’t we more than willing to accept market rates of return when they’re strongly positive? Why does the downside feel more painful than the upside feels good, and why do we feel the need to intervene?

Entering 2022, we were coming off of over a decade of incredibly strong stock market performance, which grew the balance of our collective investments to record highs. At the same time, we were experiencing inflation that was the lowest in 50 years. Said differently, the value of our assets (stocks, bonds, houses, etc.) was worth more than it had ever been before, while at the same time the things we spent our money on were hardly increasing in price.

This combination of events was the perfect storm for a persistent experiencing of the “wealth effect” within our economy. The wealth effect is a theory suggesting that when households have more wealth, whether through earnings or because of the increased value of their assets, they tend to spend more and are more optimistic about future financial goals, which may have the impact of perpetuating further financial gains. If the value of our assets is increasing, all will be well; right?

When I think about this concept, I think of a commercial that aired in the mid-2000s by a large financial institution revolving around the amount of money that will be necessary for a successful retirement. They coined the campaign and concept, Your Number. For many, this resonated, as it gave a tangible objective to be reached. Who wouldn’t want to have such a goal? In such a world, once you reach your number, the game is over. You’ve won, and you’re destined for a future without worry or concern. But what they don’t mention is what to do when your portfolio falls below that number as it may have in a bear market like 2022. Do you need to go back to work or stop spending? I certainly hope not.

Although I think that at a base level this concept is helpful to get people pointed toward a goal, it’s very misguided as to why that goal is important. The reality is, there is no magic orange number for each of us to carry around under our arms and be reminded of every day. There is a true downside to the wealth effect. When the numbers don’t continue to go up at the same rate or in the same manner as they have in the past, there can be an equally impactful downside risk to how we feel about our financial stability. That is why it’s important to move away from a tendency toward a wealth effect mindset and how a number plucked from the air may guide our spending and ability to have a successful retirement. Rather, I’ll assert that the more important way to think about wealth is through what I call the Plan Effect.

With Investing, and especially during periods of volatility, the only goal that matters is yours.

The Plan Effect is the security you feel by having a well thought out and rigorously tested financial plan supporting your spending and gifting strategies, not simply increasing spending according to the value of your portfolio at any given point in time. The Plan Effect is the understanding that with the strong foundation of a financial plan that accounts for your current state, potential future outcomes, taxes, desires, goals, dreams, and risks on the horizon that may affect you in the future, you will be OK. The Plan Effect might not feel as fun at times as the wealth effect, in that you’re not just focusing on the proverbial scoreboard to see if a new digit is added to the total, but hopefully the sense of ease, comfort, and stability that it provides in up markets and in down, are worth the effort.


NOTE: The information provided in this article is intended for clients of Carlson Capital Management. We recommend that individuals consult with a professional adviser familiar with their particular situation for advice concerning specific investment, accounting, tax, and legal matters before taking any action.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT DISCLOSURE INFORMATION.

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn

Published October 17, 2022 Topics: Discipline, Economy, Financial Planning, Inflation, Market Volatility, Retirement Planning

DO NOT DELETE

News & Resources

  • Articles and Publications
  • CCM In the News
  • Recommended Reading
  • Video Library

Topics

Active Management Alternative Investments Annual Returns Bond Portfolio Brexit CCM Women's Initiative Charitable Giving Dimensional Fund Advisors Discipline Diversification Economy Estate Planning Financial Advisors Financial Planning Financial Planning for Women Inflation Integrated Wealth International Investing Investment Insight Investor Returns IRAs Market Conditions Market Volatility Politics and Markets Portfolio Management Rebalancing Retirement Planning Tax Planning Tax Reform Women and Investing

Contact Us

Contact us for a complimentary discovery meeting or for a second opinion on your current financial plan.

Contact Us

Email Updates

Sign up here to receive CCM articles and updates by email:

Subscribe

Our Clients

Client Profile

Fiduciary Standards

Integrated Wealth Management

Carlson Portfolios

Our Firm

Our Team

News and Resources

Locations

Careers

Compliance

Important Disclosure Information

Privacy Notice

Form CRS

Form ADV Part 2A

Contact Us

Request a Conversation

Contact Our Team

952.230.6700

© 2023 Carlson Capital Management, LLC, d/b/a Carlson Capital Management.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.