How It All Began
I founded Miller-Green Financial in 1983 and served as its Chief Executive from then until March 2014 when I resigned and formed Miller Wealth Advisors.
When I first opened the doors of Miller-Green in 1983 my goal was to find a client, my first one. Even without a single client I had an idea of what I wanted and was willing to wait, if necessary, until I could find the ideal client. I wanted to work with nice people that didn’t want to do their own retirement planning and investment management. For years, these two attributes were the only notable common denominators in our practice.
Since then, over 30+ years later, there was another. When I left Miller-Green, over 80% of the firm’s clients were ExxonMobil employees, retirees, or someone that was referred to the firm by an ExxonMobil employee or retiree. The majority of those clients were mine. There is a reason for this, and I think it might be important to your decision making process about working with a professional to understand that reason.
In 1990 my very first Exxon employee came to interview me as a candidate to help him with his retirement planning. Like so many since then, he had heard there was going to be a “package” and he wanted to be ready. I remember the conversation vividly. All went well until he asked, “Do you understand the Exxon retirement plans?” The answer to that one was easy; “No sir, I don’t”. He thanked me for my time and said he had other candidates to interview and the most important thing was to find someone that understood the Exxon retirement plans. I was disappointed, but I understood and thought no more about it.
Less than a month later he was back, obviously frustrated. He said he had interviewed all of his candidates and not one of them really understood the Exxon retirement plans at all. Our second meeting was brief and I will never forget it. He said that even though I didn’t understand his retirement plans I was honest enough to admit it and he was going to work with me. Then he said, “You have to find a way to figure this out” and he left me with his thrift statement (a name from the past), his pension estimate and his retirement planning course material, a large three ring binder.
I learned those plans. What I couldn’t get from the material I would ask Exxon Benefits. I would call, give them my name, and ask my questions. After awhile, they would ask “Where do you work?” I answered with “I don’t work for Exxon” and the call would end. After endless discussions one of the “true legends” from benefits called and asked why I kept calling. When I told her I was working with my first Exxon client and gave his name, she said, “I will help you” and she did. As the old saying goes, “the rest is history”.
Want a reference? If you eat lunch at an ExxonMobil facility in the Houston/Baytown area, just ask those at your table if they have ever heard of Bert Miller. If you are eating with those 50 and older, the discussion is about retirement planning, XOM low basis shares, what the tax law really says about all of this, the discount rate and which way it is going. Someone at the table will know me.
My professional focus has been on ExxonMobil employees and retirees for the last 20 years. At Miller Wealth Advisors it still is.
Bert E. Miller, CPA, CLU®, ChFC®
Managing Principal