According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the private sector has added 16.3 million jobs to their payrolls in the 85 months of sustained growth since February 2010.

Against that backdrop, the financial advisory industry appears to be in a rut. In 2010, there were 638,881 registered reps and 163,303 branch offices, according to FINRA and ThinkAdvisor. Today, the number is virtually unchanged.

What’s more, demographic point to a continuing contraction in the advisor workforce. According to the CFP Board of Standards, 49% of certified financial planners are age 50 or older.

Registered investment advisors appear to be bucking that trend, at least for now. As of April of 2015, there were 11,473 SEC registered RIA firms, which was a 5.4% year-over-year increase. With an aging workforce, however, it’s likely that retiring individuals may limit the overall increase in RIAs.

The declining number of advisors presents a variety of challenges for the industry. Perhaps the most pressing issue involves business succession planning for retiring owners of advisory practices.

While larger firms may have a bullpen of younger workers to take over the reins when owners retire, smaller shops may lack a sufficiently deep bench of talent. In addition, younger advisors are more likely to appeal to younger prospects, which in turn can help firms diversify their client base by age, reports Investor’s Business Daily.

With those concerns in mind, numerous colleges have launched financial planning programs and welcome efforts by advisory firms to recruit their graduates. Indeed, Financial-Planning.com has ranked the 35 best schools for advisory firms to recruit aspiring planners.

Many advisory firms are taking creative approaches to recruiting college graduates. Stephanie Elliott, chief operating and compliance officer of Chapin Davis, worked with Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois, to build a nine-member team of students that built an equity portfolio. Of that team, eight members ended up joining the firm, reports ThinkAdvisor.

Other firms, such as Allen & Co. of Florida, are offering employee ownership stakes to help attract younger employees. The programs also help prevent younger employees from stealing clients from older advisors.

Firms seeking to recruit millennials should be prepared to create a company culture that will appeal to the younger generation. Many millennials value flexible work hours, so providing flexible hours can go a long way in winning over younger recruits.

Millennials also value supporting social causes, so emphasizing how financial planning can help improve individuals’ lives can also play a role in recruiting younger employees. Not surprisingly, recruiters also emphasize the importance of using social media to recruit tech-savvy millennials.

Advisory firms should also review if their businesses have been reviewed by employees on Glassdoor. The website provides salary information and other employment detailers that workers provide. Firms can then use the information to make changes to compensation or other employment characteristic to make their companies more attractive to younger job candidates, reports Jibe.