As a part of this year’s event, we will be hosting our inaugural Deals & Dealmakers Golf Event. This fun and casual outing will include an 18-hole round of golf at the incredibly scenic Monarch Beach Golf Links (Ritz Carlton Coastal Course) on the morning of Tuesday, August 29th. This is a great opportunity to connect with old friends as well as meet and begin networking with other industry leaders prior to the DDM Summit. We’ll even have a few special surprises for those players who exhibit skill, sportsmanship, or comedic value!
If you would like to participate, or if you have any questions, please reply with an email at the link below at your soonest convenience as there will be a limited number of spots.
Sponsored by:
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DDM features the industry's most influential voices on M&A, strategy, leadership and solutions for deal making
Dan Seivert is the CEO and founder of ECHELON Partners – one of the leading investment banks and consulting firms to the wealth and investment management industries. Prior to starting ECHELON, Mr. Seivert was one of the initial principals of Lovell Minnick Partners, where he helped invest over $100MM in venture capital across 15 companies. Before his involvement in private equity, Mr. Seivert was a buy-side analyst at The Capital Group (American Funds) where he valued firms in the asset management and securities brokerage industries. Mr. Seivert’s initial job at Capital was in the capacity of strategic planning and marketing research, where he worked directly for several chairmen of the company as well as the fund boards. Mr. Seivert began his career in the M&A department of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.
Megan Carpenter is CEO and Co-Founder of FiComm Partners, an award-winning agency for RIA firms and financial advisors. FiComm exists to expand the impact of financial advice by leading human-centered business change through New Skool marketing, PR, and advisor marketing education. Their agile and innovative approach have earned them a seat in ThinkAdvisors Luminaries Class of 2021, recognition for 2021 Digital Campaign of the Year by WealthManagement.com, and the honor of top-4 Industry Disruptor in 2020 by WealthManagement.com. FiComm’s services allow advisors to lead with authenticity, target their focus and drive to commercial success. Included in Investment News 40 Under 40 notable list, Meg’s expertise spans over 15 years of helping RIA firms and advisors connect, communicate, and engage effectively with their target audiences. Her passion to promote the industry is demonstrated through her volunteer involvement with the CFP Board Center for Financial Planning Workforce Development Advisory Group, and the Foundation for Financial Planning. She is also part of the Pledge 1% global movement, having pledged 1% of personal equity, profits, time, and product to these industry non-profits. Megan began her career at John Hancock Financial Network before launching her own business, Caritative Wealth Consulting, at the age of 29. Megan merged her consulting business into her second business venture, FiComm Partners in 2014.
Concentrating on financial services and automotive industry issues, Linda Paullin-Hebden serves as a securities compliance advisor to registered investment advisers and as a counselor to venture capital and private equity funds. Linda handles a variety of matters, including mergers and acquisitions, compliance, fund formation, joint ventures, private investments and other transactions as well as general corporate issues.
Dave leads a team that has completed more than 75 M&A deals with over $36 billion in acquired AUM since 2017. Prior to taking on this role, Dave served as Mercer Advisors’ CEO for nine years and held multiple other senior leadership positions including President, Chief Operating Officer, Head of Client Service, and General Counsel. Dave’s leadership experience combined with his law background helps him understand what is important to business owners and how to structure deals for win-win results. During Dave’s tenure as CEO, he was responsible for transforming Mercer Advisors from a closely held company to a national-platform RIA with dozens of offices coast-to-coast and AUM that increased from $2 billion to $12 billion. Dave also architected Mercer Advisors’ family office business model and developed referral partnerships with firms such as TD Ameritrade, Schwab, and Scottrade—making Mercer Advisors one of the fastest-growing RIAs in the United States. Dave was named the “2018 M&A Leader of the Year” by WealthManagement.com and also helped win the Private Asset Management award for “Best M&A Deal of the Year” in 2020. Formerly a trial attorney, he earned his undergraduate degree at the University of California, Irvine, and his Juris Doctor degree from the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law.
Mike Wunderli is a Managing Director at ECHELON Partners, where he is integrally involved in all aspects of the firm’s activities and heads ECHELON’s industry-leading TAMP practice. Prior to joining ECHELON, Mr. Wunderli founded Connect Capital Group (CCG) where he advises private, middle-market companies on pre-transaction planning, growth financing options and the development and execution of exit strategies. He also works closely with the private-equity and venture-capital communities to evaluate acquisition & investment targets and source proprietary deal flow.
Before founding CCG, Mr. Wunderli spent 12 years at Lehman Brothers and UBS as an SVP in the Private Wealth Management division, where he pioneered one of the industry’s most successful cross-divisional practices between Wealth Management and Investment Banking. During this time, Mr. Wunderli sourced over $2 billion in investment-banking and private-equity transactions for his firms and his WM clients, and he managed a $400 million+ HNW advisory practice. He also helped institutionalize the cross-divisional model firmwide. Mr. Wunderli earned an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and holds Series 7, 66, and 79 FINRA Licenses.
Molly is responsible for establishing and leading the strategic vision and growth strategy of Connectus globally. As one of the initial architects of the Connectus business model, Molly passionately works alongside Connectus partners to deliver strategic support and dedicated resources that generate better outcomes and experiences for clients and employees alike. Before joining Connectus, Molly was a Managing Director at Focus Financial Partners, responsible for leading business development and acquisition activities across both the Northeast and Midwest regions of the United States. Prior to Focus, Molly held a leadership position as the Head of the Strategic Initiatives Group at AXA US, where she led corporate strategy and business development initiatives to drive profitable growth and performance across the organization. She also previously worked within Morgan Stanley’s Investment Banking Division, executing M&A, equity and debt transactions within the financial services industry. She began her career at PricewaterhouseCoopers, providing financial due diligence and other advisory services to private equity and corporate clients within the U.S. and Latin America. Molly is a CPA and CFA charterholder. She holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BS in Economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Jeff has more than 20 years of business experience in marketing, technology, operations and finance. He is responsible for overall leadership, growth and development of Wealth Enhancement Group. Jeff began his career with General Mills, Inc., where he served in a variety of marketing management positions. In 1994 he joined Recovery Engineering, Inc., where he was instrumental in the development and branding of the PUR water filtration system. Jeff was a key member of the team that successfully sold the company to Procter & Gamble for a 100% premium over market value. Through his work in technology and management consulting firms, Jeff has helped numerous organizations realize greater levels of success. Jeff provided consulting services to Wealth Enhancement Group before being asked to join the organization as CEO in 2003. Jeff is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional and holds a B.A. from Carleton College and an MBA in Finance and Strategy from the University of Chicago.
Molly Crane concentrates her practice on corporate and general business matters, including: Mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures, Private equity transactions, General corporate, partnership, and limited liability company matters, Public and private securities matters, Negotiation and preparation of complex commercial agreements, and Corporate governance
Suzanne joined Edelman Financial Engines in April 2022, bringing with her more than 20 years of leadership experience and a track record of growing and building organizations, both organically and inorganically, within the financial services industry. As our chief financial officer and chief operating officer, she has the important role of directing our financial and corporate strategy, our end-to-end operations functions, and the employee experience for a diverse and passionate team of professionals who represent our competitive advantage in the industry and the heart of our company. She leads a team of more than 175 professionals across our accounting, finance, human resources, data & analytics, client operations, and corporate strategy teams, helping them to achieve Edelman Financial Engine’s business goals. Suzanne works with the entire executive team to develop the firm’s long-term growth strategy and financial objectives and to champion Edelman Financial Engine’s vision to help millions of Americans achieve their financial aspirations. Suzanne earned a Bachelor of Science from Johnson & Wales University and a Master of Business Administration from Northeastern University.
Barnaby Audsley is a Vice President at ECHELON Partners and focuses on a diversity of M&A advisory, investment banking, consulting, and research assignments. Prior to joining ECHELON Partners, Mr. Audsley worked as an Investment Associate for Bel Air Investment Advisors, a $9bn multifamily office based in Los Angeles. During his time with Bel Air, Mr. Audsley focused on private equity and assisted in the sourcing and underwriting of fund and direct transactions. Furthermore, he conducted market research to identify attractive asset classes, industry trends, and investment opportunities. Mr. Audsley has a B.A. in Economics from Occidental College where he was a Director on the student-run investment portfolio. He is currently furthering his education by pursuing his CFA (Level II Candidate). He is a mentor for Play Rugby USA, a non-profit focused on developing youth through rugby. Mr. Audsley grew up in London and now resides in Venice, CA.
Naomi McKean works as Senior Vice President, Deputy General Counsel at AssetMark. In this role Naomi works as a part of the Legal Counsel team within the Legal Department. Before joining AssetMark, Naomi spent over two years working under the CEO and President of Genworth Financial Management, where she oversaw corporate secretary/company administration for several legal entities. Naomi’s experience includes working as an attorney for Morrison Kent where she spent time negotiating and drafting legal and property settlement agreements among other duties.
Amit is passionate about driving growth in financial services. He has been actively involved in the investment industry for nearly 25 years. As President, Chief Operating Officer and board member of tru Independence, Amit is focused on how to better serve the tru Independence community of advisors while also driving the growth and profitability of the firm. Prior to joining tru Independence, Amit was the CXO for Sanctuary Wealth responsible for the overall experience delivered by Sanctuary through its products, investments, services, and technology for its advisors. Amit helped grow Sanctuary from $2 billion to $15 billion in AUM. Before joining Sanctuary, Amit was the CEO of Third Seven Advisors, a national advisory firm that provides technology & services to both RIAs & family offices. Amit was the Managing Director for HighTower Advisors, where he was responsible for over 175 advisors, $35 billion in assets under management generating $150 million in revenue. Amit joined HighTower from The North Highland Company a global management consulting company where he was a leader of their wealth management and advisory group. Amit has previously worked as a Director with BNY Mellon, Brinker Capital and SEI, working with independent advisors and family offices on their growth and technology initiatives. Amit graduated from Boston College, with a BA in Economics and has held past securities licenses as a general securities representative (7) and a uniform investment advisor (63 & 65). When away from work, Amit can be found running his kids to soccer, dance, basketball or their friends’ houses. In moments of true peace, you can find Amit at the beach, skiing or just being outside.
Julianne is a Vice President on the Growth Products & Services team. Prior to Summit, Julianne worked at PowerPlant Partners where she lead their growth equity investing team and served on the board of seven consumer companies. Previously, she worked at Spring Mountain Capital, Focus Financial Partners, Invesco Asset Management and Emerging Global Advisors. Julianne holds a BA, cum laude, in economics and global trade & commerce from Wake Forest University and an MBA, with a focus in private equity and venture capital, from Columbia Business School. Julianne also serves on the board of Synergist Network, a non-profit that supports women in the first decade of their investing career with the mission of working towards gender parity within the private equity and venture capital industries.
Jim Gold serves as CEO, is a Founding Partner, a Board Member, and a member of the Executive leadership team at Steward Partners Global Advisory. He has extensive experience in the financial services industry, having held several senior-level roles. Mr. Gold spent 18 years with Smith Barney, and successor firms, beginning in 1995 as a Financial Advisor. He went on to hold numerous management positions at the firm, including National Training Officer, Assistant Branch Manager, Branch Manager, and Complex Manager. Mr. Gold received numerous accolades from the firm during his tenure. Mr. Gold supports numerous charitable organizations including: The American Heart Association, St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, The Pan Mass Challenge, The Wounded Warrior Project, Wreaths Across America, The ASPCA, and The World Wildlife Fund. Mr. Gold attended Stonehill College. He currently lives in Northport, NY. He and his wife Elizabeth have four children Will, Conor, Kiera and Braedon, a daughter in law Annie Gold and their first Grandchild Liam!
Brett is a Vice President with ECHELON Partners and spends time across all of the firm's core activities including M&A advisory, strategic consulting, and thought leadership. Prior to joining ECHELON, Brett was a Senior Associate with Deutsche Bank Securities, working in their US investment bank and within the Financial Institutions Group. With Deutsche, Brett advised wealth managers, asset managers, FinTech companies, and financial sponsors on a variety of strategic endeavors including M&A, capital raising, IPOs, SPACs, and leveraged finance. Through that experience, Brett spent significant time cultivating relationships with the private equity firms and platform buyers involved and interested in the wealth management ecosystem. While at San Diego State University, Brett served as Vice President of the student investment council.
Christina joined Aquiline in 2019 and is a principal at the firm. Prior to joining the firm, she was a vice president at Focus Financial Partners, pursuing M&A and partner relationships with independent wealth managers. Prior to that, Christina was a senior associate at Evercore advising financial services clients on M&A transactions. She began her career in wealth management advising high net worth individuals. Christina also volunteers with Girls Who Invest. Christina has a MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a BS in Business Management from Stony Brook University.
Alex is the Co-CEO and Co-Founder of NewEdge Advisors and a Managing Partner of NewEdge Capital Group. Prior to serving as CEO of NewEdge Advisors, Alex built his and his father's personal advisory practice into the $8 billion RIA, Goss Advisors. Goss Advisors was subsequently acquired by NewEdge Capital Group and rebranded as NewEdge Advisors. His mission is to provide advisors with the tools and flexibility they require to better serve their clients without the limitations wirehouses and big banks force on advisors. Alex graduated from Louisiana State University and moved to New York City, where he worked for the New Orleans-based technology firm iSeatz.com. It was there that Alex met his current business partner, Neil Turner, and they both went on to co-found AdverCar.com. After developing the business plan into a Silicon Valley venture capital-backed advertising firm, he moved to New Orleans to join his father, Jerry Goss, as a financial advisor. From there, it didn't take long for the idea of what has become NewEdge Advisors to be born. Alex lives in New Orleans with his wife and three children. In his free time, he enjoys golf, hunting, and fishing. He is also passionate about supporting our nation's most valuable asset, its youth. Alex supports and volunteers with multiple organizations that provide education, mentorship, and cultural enrichment to kids in need.
Ahmed Hassanein recently joined SEIA as the company’s CFO. He has over 25 years of experience in start-up to multi-billion dollar revenue firms in the financial services and real estate sectors. Most recently he was responsible for the oversight of finance, human resources, and information technology at a real estate investment firm. Prior to that, Ahmed served as CAO at both Advisor Group and Cetera Financial Group which are two of the largest networks of independent wealth management fintech companies in the US each with over $50 billion in assets under management. He received a BS in Accounting from the University of Maryland and MBA in Finance from Marymount University.
As President & CEO of Emigrant Partners, Jenny sets the firm’s strategic direction and oversees a team responsible for providing capital and advice to the leading wealth and alternative asset managers in which Emigrant has invested, as well as making new platform investments and sub-acquisitions for Emigrant’s partner firms. Jenny has 20 years of experience in financial services, including institutional asset management, wealth management and investment banking. Prior to joining Emigrant Partners, Jenny was a Senior Vice President responsible for Affiliate Management at BrightSphere Investment Group (NYSE: BSIG, formerly Old Mutual Asset Management), a $200 billion multi-boutique asset management company. Prior to BSIG, Jenny was Director of M&A and Strategic Planning at BNY Mellon Wealth Management. As an investment banker at Berkshire Capital Corporation and Canaccord Adams, Jenny executed M&A and raised public and private capital for financial services firms and consumer companies. Jenny holds a B.A. from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Lewis Schiff is the Chairman of Birthing of Giants: The Princeton Fellowship Program for Business and Moonshots and Moneymakers: The Oxford Innovation Conference for Business Leaders held at Oxford University. Schiff is the host of the video series, “How I Did It: Step-by-Step Explainer Videos from Fast-Growth Entrepreneurs” (Howididitvideos.com). Schiff previously founded Inc. Magazine's Business Owners Council where he interviewed some of the most accomplished entrepreneurs in the world and has authored or co-authored several books on success, including The First Habit: The One Technique That Can Change Your Life and Business Brilliant: Surprising Lesson from the Greatest Self-Made Business Icons. Over the past two decades, Schiff built and sold two media businesses to publicly traded companies, iVillage and TheStreet.com. In 2023, Schiff received an honorary Ph.D. in business from Rider University for his contribution to the Rider University – Oxford University exchange program.
Gary Roth is a co-founder and co-CEO at Modern Wealth Management, where he is responsible for execution of the company’s business plan. Prior to being a part of the founding team at Modern Wealth, Roth was a managing director at Goldman Sachs Personal Financial Management. He also served as Chief Business Officer and Chief Financial Officer at United Capital, where he was part of the team that co-founded, scaled and sold United Capital, a $25 billion RIA with 90 locations, to Goldman Sachs for $750 million. Roth was also a co-founder at AssureNet, one of the cloud computing pioneers in financial services that created salesforce automation solutions for financial consultants and insurance brokers. Roth holds MBAs from Columbia Business School and the University of California at Berkeley, Haas School of Business. He received his undergraduate degree from Columbia University.
In her 20+ year career, Stephanie has authored The Power of Practice Management (Bloomberg Press), written columns for Investment News and Financial Planning magazine as well as articles for Kitces.com, FA Magazine and Advisor Perspectives, has been named an Industry Influential, spoken at nearly every major conference and remains a highly sought-after speaker, business strategist and executive coach. She currently writes a monthly column for Investment News. She is also the founder of Limitless Advisor Coaching, now in its fifth successful year. In addition to her coaching work, she is a recognized industry thought leader and consults to various corporations, boards and private equity firms on trends and opportunities in the industry.
Larry is the Head of Corporate Finance and a Partner in the New York office. He is responsible for day-to-day planning, implementing, managing and controlling all financial-related activities of the company, including direct responsibility for accounting, finance, forecasting, strategic planning, and deal analysis. He has more than twenty years of experience in the financial services industry. Larry is a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. Prior to joining Cerity Partners, Larry served as the Director of Operations for the New York Private Bank & Trust, responsible for the bank’s finance and operations. Before NYPB&T, he was the Director of Finance for CIT Small Business Lending, one of the nation’s leading providers of small business credit. Larry also served as Vice President of Private Client Services at Bear Stearns in New York City, where he worked as an asset allocation specialist. He was a member of Deutsche Bank’s Private Client Group on a team responsible for managing over $800 million in private client assets. Also at Deutsche Bank, he was appointed to the Private Client Group’s equity research team, responsible for overseeing the financial services sector.
David Dindi is the Co-Founder and CEO at Atomic, an investment platform that builds critical financial infrastructure that allows fintechs, banks, and consumer-facing companies to offer engaging investing experiences to their customers in a frictionless way. He has previous experience as a Board Member at ET AL Design and a Co-Founder at Clariful Health. David received his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and a master’s degree in chemical and computational engineering from Stanford University.
Doug Fritz is the co-founder and CEO of F2 Strategy. Doug, a veteran CTO and sought-after WealthTech consultant, leads an all-star team of executives in technology-driven operations, digital client engagement, performance and implementation, among many other areas for clients. Through F2’s Outsourced CTO (OCTO) model and strategy consulting services, Doug is passionate about helping firms of all sizes deliver exceptional client and advisor experiences.Doug is also an accomplished industry thought-leader, speaker and judge at In|Vest, American Banker, Financial Times, WM.Com, RIAIntel, InvestmentNews, Family Wealth Report, WealthStack, and Financial Planning. He is also a winner of the 2021 ThinkAdvisor Thought Leader Luminary award. Before founding F2 with his wife and Chief Commercial Officer Liz Fritz, Doug was the Chief Technology Officer of First Republic Bank where he led the execution of the WealthTech roadmap. Prior, he was Senior Vice President of Wells Fargo Wealth Management Group. Doug lives in Santa Cruz.
Mark Bruno is currently Managing Director of Wealth Management at Informa. He is responsible for developing strategies that will enhance offerings for the wealth management community – and ultimately advance Informa's position as the leading provider of media, events, and targeted business intelligence for financial advisors.
Lauren Seidman is a Managing Director at Stone Point and has more than 10 years of experience in the private equity and investment banking industries. Lauren focuses on Stone Point Capital’s investments in asset & wealth management and real estate finance & services. She has former experience at Goldman, Sachs & Co as an Associate for the Firmwide Strategy Group. Lauren received her B.A from Columbia University and her M.B.A from Stanford University Graduate School of Business.
Jeffrey Bischoff is President and Founder of Old Greenwich Consultants, a retained search firm focused exclusively on the Private Wealth Management sector. With over 20 years of experience in executive recruitment in the financial services industry, Jeff has established extensive contacts on both the corporate and candidate sides throughout the United States. Jeff co-partnered a privately owned executive search business in lower Manhattan. He and his partner grew the business and later sold it to Oppenheimer & Co. As part of the transaction, Jeff agreed to head up regional recruiting for OpCo and relocated to Chicago. After successfully completing that initiative, Jeff then relocated to Los Angeles where he oversaw OpCo’s west coast talent acquisition and new branch expansion. Jeff is a co-founder board member of the “Friends of Eric Sloane Museum” in Kent, Ct. He graduated from Villanova University where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1985. He currently resides in Connecticut with his wife and two children.
Oleg Tishkevich is the founder and CEO of Invent.us, the leading cloud-native software development firm in the wealth management industry. Many of the industry’s largest financial institutions supporting financial advisors leverage the Invent platform, which currently supports over 20,000 users. Known for his innovation in software design and architecture, Tishkevich has garnered several industry awards, including wealthmanagement.com’s prestigious industry awards program for the “Disruptor of the Year” in 2019 for the launch of Invent. Additionally, Tishkevich is the author of numerous industry articles and white papers, including the well-received article series, “Integrated Digital Ecosystems as a Service” which is rapidly becoming the go-to solution for enterprises and organizations supporting financial advisors to create their own, customized technology solutions and eliminate the challenges of technology integrations. Prior to founding Invent.us, Tishkevich founded Finance Logix, a next generation financial planning software company which sold to Envestnet in 2015. Finance Logix pioneered an engaging mobile planning app Retire Logix that was named Best Money Move by Money magazine and voted number one mobile app for advisors. Finance Logix was revolutionary as a platform not only providing advisors with a real-time financial overview and analysis of all of their clients, but also extending that approach to the end client through a powerful and interactive client portal and mobile app. Tishkevich has served as a member of the Corporate Resource Counsel of the Financial Planning Association (FPA).
Angie Herbers is founder and chief executive of Herbers & Company. She brings two decades of experience to consulting, researching and training financial advisory firms to long-term, scalable growth. Her consulting firm creates growth strategies in the eight areas of practice management, which include leadership, corporate finance, client service, operations, management, human capital, sales, and marketing. Investment Advisor has named Herbers one of the “Top 25 Most Influential People in the Advisory Industry” in 2007, 2013, 2015, 2018 and 2019. Herbers is a 2001 graduate of Kansas State University. She has a degree in family studies and human services, personal financial planning and a minor in business.
Timothy D. Welsh, CFP® is President, CEO and founder of Nexus Strategy, LLC, a leading consulting firm to the wealth management industry. Nexus Strategy’s primary focus is working with leading organizations to best market their products, services and technology to the independent advisor community. Prior to founding Nexus Strategy, Tim was Director of Business Consulting Services for Schwab Advisor Services where he led the development and marketing of practice management resources for independent advisors. While at Schwab, Tim also held senior roles in Strategy, Marketing, Advertising, PR and Industry Content development. Prior to joining Schwab, Tim was vice president at Merrill Lynch where he was responsible for marketing, product development and financial advisor training for the financial planning group.
Mike Papedis is Co-Founder of Fusion Financial Partners, a leading strategic consulting firm with expertise in merger and acquisition, enterprise valuations, succession planning and business performance optimization. Prior to founding Fusion Financial Partners, Mr. Papedis was Managing Director, RIA Acquisitions at HighTower – an advisor owned, industry leading national wealth management firm serving wealthy families and institutional clientele. At HighTower, Mr. Papedis played a critical role in building the firm through recruiting advisor teams and lead HighTower’s national business development of RIA M&A strategy. His leadership of the firm's RIA acquisition growth efforts includes the launch of the business channel, marketing, pipeline management and deal-making with COI’s such as investment bankers, law firms, and recruiters serving the M&A marketplace. Additionally, he is an industry expert representing the negotiation of deal terms and consultation to RIA’s regarding maximizing enterprise value of their firm, a critical talent in this current state of our industry. Mike has been a sought-after speaker at industry events, such as those hosted by Fidelity and Pershing/BNY Mellon.
DDM Summit offers insight from the industry's top experts on M&A, strategy, leadership and solutions for deal making
Jodie Papike is the President of Cross-Search, the first third-party, independent broker-dealer advisor and executive placement firm. Since joining Cross-Search in 1997, Jodie has been consulting with financial advisors transitioning to new independent broker-dealers, RIAs and custodians, guiding them through the entire process of identifying their most appropriate options, negotiating a deal and transitioning clients. Jodie has an intricate knowledge of the securities industry and a deep understanding of each of the major independent broker-dealers, hybrids and RIAs enabling her to help advisors find and transition to a firm that best suits their needs. Jodie takes the utmost pride in finding a platform and structure for an advisor that will not only better their career, but will also be a good home for them for years to come. Jodie is a frequent speaker at industry conferences, is regularly quoted and published in publications such as InvestmentNews, Wealth Management, Financial Planning, ThinkAdvisor, Financial Advisor Magazine, Reuters, Financial Advisor IQ and The Wall Street Journal. Jodie earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from San Diego State, graduating with honors.
David Mainzer is a corporate lawyer with more than 25 years of experience advising investment management firms and funds, both in-house and in private practice. He frequently serves as outside general counsel for his clients, handling an array of domestic and offshore corporate, transactional, and regulatory compliance matters. Earlier in his career, David served as General Counsel and Chief Operating Officer of Amerindo Investment Advisors, Inc., an investment management firm with offices in New York, San Francisco, and London, and $8 billion in assets under management (AUM). There, he was responsible for managing all of the firm’s legal affairs, including risk management, regulatory compliance, outside counsel, and the structuring and legal management of the firm’s hedge funds, mutual funds, and separately managed accounts. David attended law school at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, where he also completed his undergraduate degree in accounting. He earned his MBA at Columbia Business School in New York, where he graduated first in his class. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army.
Kathy Freeman Godfrey offers to her clients 3 decades of experience attracting, assessing, and recruiting top financial services talent. Since founding her firm in 1992, she has executed hundreds of assignments for C-Suite executives, executive leadership, and high-impact individual contributors. A frequent speaker and thought leader on human capital and diversity topics, Kathy Freeman Godfrey has contributed to articles for FundFire, Ignites, Financial Advisor IQ, Financial Planning, Family Wealth Report and Private Asset Management. Kathy has also spoken at numerous industry conferences including Schwab Impact, IAA, Family Wealth Alliance, MMI Sales & Leadership Summit, and the Deals and Dealmakers Summit. Kathy graduated from California State University, Chico. She lives in San Luis Obispo, CA, with her husband and has two children. In her spare time, she enjoys golfing, hiking, and cycling.
Mike Wunderli is a Managing Director at ECHELON Partners, where he is integrally involved in all aspects of the firm’s activities and heads ECHELON’s industry-leading TAMP practice. Prior to joining ECHELON, Mr. Wunderli founded Connect Capital Group (CCG) where he advises private, middle-market companies on pre-transaction planning, growth financing options and the development and execution of exit strategies. He also works closely with the private-equity and venture-capital communities to evaluate acquisition & investment targets and source proprietary deal flow.
Before founding CCG, Mr. Wunderli spent 12 years at Lehman Brothers and UBS as an SVP in the Private Wealth Management division, where he pioneered one of the industry’s most successful cross-divisional practices between Wealth Management and Investment Banking. During this time, Mr. Wunderli sourced over $2 billion in investment-banking and private-equity transactions for his firms and his WM clients, and he managed a $400 million+ HNW advisory practice. He also helped institutionalize the cross-divisional model firmwide. Mr. Wunderli earned an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and holds Series 7, 66, and 79 FINRA Licenses.
Patrick J. Burns, Jr., Esq., is the managing attorney with The Law Offices of Patrick J. Burns, Jr., P.C., and also the President of Advanced Regulatory Compliance LLC. He is a member of the California, New Jersey, New York, and Texas Bars, and received his Juris Doctor degree from Southwestern University School of Law in Los Angeles, California and Bachelor of Business Administration degree, concentration in Entrepreneurship, from Pace University’s Lubin School of Business in Pleasantville, New York. Mr. Burns began his professional career with a New Jersey based law firm and then worked in a legal/compliance capacity for several financial services firms located in New York City and Los Angeles. During his financial services career, he acquired numerous FINRA and insurance licenses. Mr. Burns is a frequent industry speaker and a member of several financial services industry organizations.
Kelli Cruz brings more than 20 years of experience to her role as the founder of Cruz Consulting Group (CCG), working closely with advisory firm owners and executives of financial services institutions. CCG is committed to building talent wealth and helping advisory firms realize their true potential, by providing consulting engagements in human capital, including organizational design, compensation planning, performance management, and succession planning. Kelli is a frequent speaker at national industry conferences and a regular columnist for Before joining Schwab, Kelli also held a variety of management positions at Wells Fargo, including managing human resources for the Private Client Services Group.
Rick is the Chief Corporate Banking Officer at First Financial Bank. He is also the President and CEO of Commercial Finance which includes Oak Street Funding and First Franchise Capital businesses. Rick oversees almost $12B in assets across the entire Commercial business and nearly 400 employees. He leads the commercial growth strategy, including expansion of customized lending offerings and services. Rick is a CPA and former Senior Manager at Deloitte. He has a BS in Accounting and MBA from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business and held adjunct professor positions for venture capital and entrepreneurial finance at Indiana University Kelley School of Business.
Candice is the EVP and Head of FiComm's advisor marketing programs designed to help advisors supercharge their growth with the power of social media, video, and podcasting.
Prior to FiComm, she spent her career at two of the fastest-growing RIA’s in the US- Mercer Advisors, and United Capital, acquired by Goldman Sachs. She has also consulted for firms like XY Planning Network. Candice is passionate about helping advisors find their authentic voice to stand out, attract new clients and extend the impact of financial advice. She has coached hundreds of advisors and C-suite executives across the country, is a sought-after expert speaker at industry events like E-money summit, Insiders Forum and Jolt Snappy Kraken. She is also the creator and co-host of the award-winning New Skool Podcast.
Megan Carpenter is CEO and Co-Founder of FiComm Partners, an award-winning agency for RIA firms and financial advisors. FiComm exists to expand the impact of financial advice by leading human-centered business change through New Skool marketing, PR, and advisor marketing education. Their agile and innovative approach have earned them a seat in ThinkAdvisors Luminaries Class of 2021, recognition for 2021 Digital Campaign of the Year by WealthManagement.com, and the honor of top-4 Industry Disruptor in 2020 by WealthManagement.com. FiComm’s services allow advisors to lead with authenticity, target their focus and drive to commercial success. Included in Investment News 40 Under 40 notable list, Meg’s expertise spans over 15 years of helping RIA firms and advisors connect, communicate, and engage effectively with their target audiences. Her passion to promote the industry is demonstrated through her volunteer involvement with the CFP Board Center for Financial Planning Workforce Development Advisory Group, and the Foundation for Financial Planning. She is also part of the Pledge 1% global movement, having pledged 1% of personal equity, profits, time, and product to these industry non-profits. Megan began her career at John Hancock Financial Network before launching her own business, Caritative Wealth Consulting, at the age of 29. Megan merged her consulting business into her second business venture, FiComm Partners in 2014.
Brett is a Vice President with ECHELON Partners and spends time across all of the firm's core activities including M&A advisory, strategic consulting, and thought leadership. Prior to joining ECHELON, Brett was a Senior Associate with Deutsche Bank Securities, working in their US investment bank and within the Financial Institutions Group. With Deutsche, Brett advised wealth managers, asset managers, FinTech companies, and financial sponsors on a variety of strategic endeavors including M&A, capital raising, IPOs, SPACs, and leveraged finance. Through that experience, Brett spent significant time cultivating relationships with the private equity firms and platform buyers involved and interested in the wealth management ecosystem. While at San Diego State University, Brett served as Vice President of the student investment council.
Michelle Odom is the founder of Ellevate and provides growth-minded RIA firms with technology consulting and platform optimization services. As the former Director of Solutions Consulting at SS&C Advent and a Senior Executive on the Black Diamond Wealth Platform, she has spent the last 15 years evolving her impact on the wealth management space by designing industry-leading technology solutions for the country’s most successful advisory firms. Michelle was also instrumental in building Black Diamond's Alternatives Strategy, connecting the platform with the largest fund administrator (SS&C) to address RIAs growing alternative investments exposure and aggregation challenges. Michelle holds a bachelor’s degree in Finance from the University of Central Florida and is a member of The Women’s Board of Wolfson Children’s Hospital. She lives in Ponte Vedra Beach with her husband and two daughters. When away from work, Michelle enjoys spending time at the beach, traveling, getting together with friends, and volunteering in her children’s schools.
Mike Papedis is Co-Founder of Fusion Financial Partners, a leading strategic consulting firm with expertise in merger and acquisition, enterprise valuations, succession planning and business performance optimization. Prior to founding Fusion Financial Partners, Mr. Papedis was Managing Director, RIA Acquisitions at HighTower – an advisor owned, industry leading national wealth management firm serving wealthy families and institutional clientele. At HighTower, Mr. Papedis played a critical role in building the firm through recruiting advisor teams and lead HighTower’s national business development of RIA M&A strategy. His leadership of the firm's RIA acquisition growth efforts includes the launch of the business channel, marketing, pipeline management and deal-making with COI’s such as investment bankers, law firms, and recruiters serving the M&A marketplace. Additionally, he is an industry expert representing the negotiation of deal terms and consultation to RIA’s regarding maximizing enterprise value of their firm, a critical talent in this current state of our industry. Mike has been a sought-after speaker at industry events, such as those hosted by Fidelity and Pershing/BNY Mellon.
Barnaby Audsley is a Vice President at ECHELON Partners and focuses on a diversity of M&A advisory, investment banking, consulting, and research assignments. Prior to joining ECHELON Partners, Mr. Audsley worked as an Investment Associate for Bel Air Investment Advisors, a $9bn multifamily office based in Los Angeles. During his time with Bel Air, Mr. Audsley focused on private equity and assisted in the sourcing and underwriting of fund and direct transactions. Furthermore, he conducted market research to identify attractive asset classes, industry trends, and investment opportunities. Mr. Audsley has a B.A. in Economics from Occidental College where he was a Director on the student-run investment portfolio. He is currently furthering his education by pursuing his CFA (Level II Candidate). He is a mentor for Play Rugby USA, a non-profit focused on developing youth through rugby. Mr. Audsley grew up in London and now resides in Venice, CA.
In her 20+ year career, Stephanie has authored The Power of Practice Management (Bloomberg Press), written columns for Investment News and Financial Planning magazine as well as articles for Kitces.com, FA Magazine and Advisor Perspectives, has been named an Industry Influential, spoken at nearly every major conference and remains a highly sought-after speaker, business strategist and executive coach. She currently writes a monthly column for Investment News. She is also the founder of Limitless Advisor Coaching, now in its fifth successful year. In addition to her coaching work, she is a recognized industry thought leader and consults to various corporations, boards and private equity firms on trends and opportunities in the industry.
As President of Diamond Consultants, Louis is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the firm, with an eye toward future growth. Much like the advisors he counsels, his focus remains on providing the best advice possible for those we work with, while transforming the firm into a scalable enterprise. After graduating magna cum laude with a BBA degree in Finance and International Business from George Washington University, Louis began his career with some of the biggest names in the financial services industry. Working as a consultant at Ernst & Young, and in wealth management at Morgan Stanley and UBS, prepared him to understand the financial world from a client’s perspective. Louis is an author and contributor to the financial services media on industry news and trends, including The Wall Street Journal, Financial Planning magazine, Barron’s, The Washington Post, WealthManagement.com, FundFire, RIABiz, ThinkAdvisor, Citywire and OnWallStreet. In addition to being active on social media and writing for the Diamond Consultants article library, he also co-hosts our podcast for financial advisors, Mindy Diamond on Independence.
Richard Lofgren is a Managing Director at Goldman Sachs in the Global Markets Division. Additionally, he has served as a Captain in the US Navy for 30 years. Richard has previous experience as a Managing Director at Schwab Advisor Services and JP Morgan, and was the Founder, President & CEO at FinBack Advisors, LLC. He received his B.A at the University of Texas at Austin.
Lisa Crafford is a Director and the Head of Business Consulting for BNY Mellon Pershing. In this role, Lisa leads the business consulting team for clients of Wealth Solutions to help them grow and strengthen their business. Lisa is also a regular speaker at industry events and contributes to the thought leadership at BNY Mellon Pershing. Prior to joining BNY Mellon Pershing in 2015 as a Relationship Manager, Lisa spent 5 years with an RIA in the DC Metro area as the Director of Business Management. In this role, Lisa was responsible for operations, compliance, technology, human capital, finance, marketing, and business strategy. Lisa also founded Cogent Business Advisors, a unique study group for COOs, and is the coordinator of Bob Veres’ practice management conference (Insiders Forum) COO track. Lisa earned her MBA from The College of William and Mary and a Bachelor of Business with a concentration in Management and French from the University of Technology, Sydney (Australia). Lisa was named as a Top 40 Under 40 by InvestmentNews in 2019.
Timothy D. Welsh, CFP® is President, CEO and founder of Nexus Strategy, LLC, a leading consulting firm to the wealth management industry. Nexus Strategy’s primary focus is working with leading organizations to best market their products, services and technology to the independent advisor community. Prior to founding Nexus Strategy, Tim was Director of Business Consulting Services for Schwab Advisor Services where he led the development and marketing of practice management resources for independent advisors. While at Schwab, Tim also held senior roles in Strategy, Marketing, Advertising, PR and Industry Content development. Prior to joining Schwab, Tim was vice president at Merrill Lynch where he was responsible for marketing, product development and financial advisor training for the financial planning group.
Susie is currently vice president of strategic markets at Oak Street Funding. She specializes in helping advisors and RIAs with funding for acquisition and succession. Prior to joining Oak Street Funding, Susie was vice president of preferred institutional clients at RenPSG where she was responsible for relationship management and fostering growth programs. Susie holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from Indiana University. Outside of work, Susie enjoys traveling and spending time with her grandchildren.
Greg Gessert is a vice president of enterprise sales for LPL Financial. He is accountable for LPL business development amongst merger and acquisition opportunities of broker/dealers (B/D) & registered investment advisory firms (RIAs). In this role he takes a consultative approach to helping owners understand their operating model options and how LPL can facilitate their growth and exit goals as a strategic or liquidity partner. Mr. Gessert began his career at LPL in 2007 where he started as an analyst supporting LPL’s centrally managed account operations. While at LPL, he has served in a variety of positions ranging from sales support, corporate finance, to practice management consultation. Prior to joining enterprise sales in 2021, Mr. Gessert led LPL’s internal, advisor-facing merger and acquisition department. In this position he consulted on over 200 transactions per year between advisors looking to buy, sell, or merge their practices. Mr. Gessert earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from California Polytechnic University San Luis Obispo and a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Southern California. He holds a FINRA series 7 license and enjoys bike riding, reading, and attending Padres baseball games.
Jeffrey Bischoff is President and Founder of Old Greenwich Consultants, a retained search firm focused exclusively on the Private Wealth Management sector. With over 20 years of experience in executive recruitment in the financial services industry, Jeff has established extensive contacts on both the corporate and candidate sides throughout the United States. Jeff co-partnered a privately owned executive search business in lower Manhattan. He and his partner grew the business and later sold it to Oppenheimer & Co. As part of the transaction, Jeff agreed to head up regional recruiting for OpCo and relocated to Chicago. After successfully completing that initiative, Jeff then relocated to Los Angeles where he oversaw OpCo’s west coast talent acquisition and new branch expansion. Jeff is a co-founder board member of the “Friends of Eric Sloane Museum” in Kent, Ct. He graduated from Villanova University where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1985. He currently resides in Connecticut with his wife and two children.
Kimberly Papedis has over 20 years of experience –all in the independent advisory space. Immediately after graduating from Colorado State University, she began her career as a Financial Advisor running an independent wealth management firm of her own before joining Raymond James. Here she provided consulting to financial advisors desiring to set up and run their own wealth management practices. From there, she became a Regional Director for Wells Fargo Advisors independent channel, FiNet, where she consulted advisors breaking away from an employee model to set up their own wealth management practices. She was also responsible for organic advisor growth efforts of the Western part of the U.S. She was recruited to HighTower in 2014 to help launch their independent platform quickly developing this into their fastest growing business channel which saw rapid success. Kimberly was a Managing Director/Head of National Sales and Platform Strategy overseeing all of HighTower’s inorganic growth. In this role, she was their media spokesperson and responsible for managing the messaging to the marketplace as HighTower went through the transformation of maturing from a W-2 employee channel to offering middle and back offices solutions to independent business owners looking to leverage the HighTower platform for a fee.
Dustin Mangone is a Managing Partner and the Director of Investment Advisor Services for PPC LOAN, a cash-flow based lender providing nationwide financing to service sector businesses. He has over 16 years of experience with cash-flow lending and has evaluated and underwritten over $1 billion in loans for investment advisors. Dustin now spends 100% of his time consulting on the M&A financing needs of RIAs and Independent Investment Advisors nationwide and is a regular speaker on these topics. Dustin’s experience is focused on acquisitions, mergers, buy-ins, buy-outs, equity purchases, succession plans, and debt consolidations. Dustin is a 2002 graduate of Texas A&M University and spent 2 years as a financial advisor providing retirement planning for non-profit organizations before joining PPC LOAN in May of 2005.
Oleg Tishkevich is the founder and CEO of Invent.us, the leading cloud-native software development firm in the wealth management industry. Many of the industry’s largest financial institutions supporting financial advisors leverage the Invent platform, which currently supports over 20,000 users. Known for his innovation in software design and architecture, Tishkevich has garnered several industry awards, including wealthmanagement.com’s prestigious industry awards program for the “Disruptor of the Year” in 2019 for the launch of Invent. Additionally, Tishkevich is the author of numerous industry articles and white papers, including the well-received article series, “Integrated Digital Ecosystems as a Service” which is rapidly becoming the go-to solution for enterprises and organizations supporting financial advisors to create their own, customized technology solutions and eliminate the challenges of technology integrations. Prior to founding Invent.us, Tishkevich founded Finance Logix, a next generation financial planning software company which sold to Envestnet in 2015. Finance Logix pioneered an engaging mobile planning app Retire Logix that was named Best Money Move by Money magazine and voted number one mobile app for advisors. Finance Logix was revolutionary as a platform not only providing advisors with a real-time financial overview and analysis of all of their clients, but also extending that approach to the end client through a powerful and interactive client portal and mobile app. Tishkevich has served as a member of the Corporate Resource Counsel of the Financial Planning Association (FPA).
Diana Britton is managing editor of WealthManagement.com, a trade publication for retail financial advisors. She’s been at the publication for over a decade, covering independent broker/dealers, regulation and the registered investment advisory channel, among other things. She’s also the host of The Healthy Advisor, a podcast focused on advisors’ personal wellbeing and healing. Diana holds a master’s degree in journalism from New York University. A native of Los Angeles, she now lives in Rocklin, California, with her husband and two kids.
Sean Keenan is a Managing Director and Head of Business Development of our Wealth Solutions segment at BNY Mellon | Pershing, which serves wealth-oriented broker-dealers, registered investment advisors (RIAs) and trust companies to provide custody and middle-office solutions. Sean is responsible for the new revenue and asset growth and a member of Wealth Solutions senior leadership team. Prior to this role, Sean led business development for our RIA custody business and member of Advisor Solutions Executive Committee. Sean brings over 25 years of experience in the financial services and institutional business. Prior to joining Pershing in 2009, Sean spent 10 years at Ameritrade in various leadership roles including sales and strategic planning. He was instrumental in the launch of Ameritrade Institutional. After leaving TD Ameritrade, Sean spent 2 years with Fidelity Institutional Wealth Management focused on business development in the Midwest. Sean earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance and Banking from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. He completed the Securities Industry Institute® program, sponsored by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Sean also sits on the Board of Directors at Invest in Others Charitable Foundation.
Mark Bruno is currently Managing Director of Wealth Management at Informa. He is responsible for developing strategies that will enhance offerings for the wealth management community – and ultimately advance Informa's position as the leading provider of media, events, and targeted business intelligence for financial advisors.
Pablo Bizjack is Senior Director, leading Business Development in the Western Region for the Wealth Solutions segment at BNY Mellon Pershing, which services wealth-oriented broker-dealers, registered investment advisors (RIAs) and trust companies to provide custody and middle office solutions. Pablo is responsible for new revenue and asset growth and serves as a member of the Wealth Solutions sales leadership team. Prior to joining BNY Mellon Pershing, Pablo held several leadership roles with mPower Advisors, and SEC registered RIA, where he led operation and implementation teams focusing on delivering fiduciary investment advice to employer sponsored retirement plans. After leaving mPower Pablo spent 10 years focused on business consulting and development with Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services. Pablo earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Boston College and has completed the Securities Industry Institute program, sponsored by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Associations (SIFMA), and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He is also former member of the Guardsmen of San Francisco, a volunteer group that provides educational scholarships for at-risk youth in the Bay Area, and has served as a member of the Board of Trustees for San Domenico School, a K-12 school in San Anselmo, CA.
Scott brings more than 30 years of experience providing talent-based solutions to a broad array of industries, including more than 20 years working with wealth managers, and frequently with organizations who are in the midst of significant growth or change. Prior to founding The Talent Enthusiasts, Scott was Director of Human Capital with Carlson Capital Management, Managing Director of Pepin Consulting, and Managing Principal with the Seabury Group, providing talent development and reward solutions to the global professional services industry. Scott is a certified Gallup© Strengths Coach, Social and Emotional Intelligence coach, Senior Professional of Human Resources (SPHR), and is master certified in multiple talent and change management disciplines. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences, on talent, performance, and engagement related issues facing the marketplace.
Molly Crane concentrates her practice on corporate and general business matters, including: Mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures, Private equity transactions, General corporate, partnership, and limited liability company matters, Public and private securities matters, Negotiation and preparation of complex commercial agreements, and Corporate governance
Corey is actively and personally involved in the corporate practice area of the firm including sophisticated corporate structuring, high-level strategic advice, and mergers, acquisitions, succession, and other deals while overseeing the firm’s other practice areas. He is a strategist, negotiator, and dealmaker. A successful entrepreneur from the age of 15, Corey is a rarity among attorneys – he both understands and appreciates how business people think. He knows that every business transaction has a window of opportunity that can be missed when faced with untimely legal delays or over-lawyering. As a member of the New York Chapter of Entrepreneurs’ Organization since 2008, a Board Member since 2010, and Chapter President from July 2014 - June 2016, Corey has been a passionate advocate and leader in the entrepreneurial space. Corey is a frequent speaker at entrepreneurial, business, and securities industry conferences and events on many topics including authentic negotiating, deal-making and structuring, entity and platform design, mergers and acquisitions, entrepreneurship, visioning and planning, employee attraction and retention vehicles, authentic conversation about race and building authentic business relationships. In 2011, New York Enterprise Report honored Corey at its Best Accountants and Attorneys for Growing Businesses Awards with its General Corporate Law and Attorney of the Year awards.
Doug Fritz is the co-founder and CEO of F2 Strategy. Doug, a veteran CTO and sought-after WealthTech consultant, leads an all-star team of executives in technology-driven operations, digital client engagement, performance and implementation, among many other areas for clients. Through F2’s Outsourced CTO (OCTO) model and strategy consulting services, Doug is passionate about helping firms of all sizes deliver exceptional client and advisor experiences.Doug is also an accomplished industry thought-leader, speaker and judge at In|Vest, American Banker, Financial Times, WM.Com, RIAIntel, InvestmentNews, Family Wealth Report, WealthStack, and Financial Planning. He is also a winner of the 2021 ThinkAdvisor Thought Leader Luminary award. Before founding F2 with his wife and Chief Commercial Officer Liz Fritz, Doug was the Chief Technology Officer of First Republic Bank where he led the execution of the WealthTech roadmap. Prior, he was Senior Vice President of Wells Fargo Wealth Management Group. Doug lives in Santa Cruz.
Jared is responsible for global sales, business development, and client service, including oversight of and coordination with the marketing team. Prior to joining Cerulli, Jared worked as an equity analyst at Baring Asset Management, where he was responsible for the U.S. Utilities sector and also contributed to the U.S. Industrials sector. Prior to Barings, Jared spent two years at State Street Bank. Jared earned his B.A. in Finance and Economics from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
John Turner serves as Vice President, Investment Advisory Lending at Live Oak Bank. John joined Live Oak Bank with over 35 years of experience in the financial services industry. Prior to joining Live Oak Bank, John ran a successful practice as a financial advisor in the Midwest. He went on to hold several executive positions within the two largest broker dealers in the industry and the largest fraternal benefit society. Over the years John has had experience buying, brokering, or financing over 600 deals. As a result, John has spoken at advisor groups and industry events both large and small and authored several whitepapers addressing succession and acquisition topics and issues. John holds a bachelor’s degree from Bethel University and a master’s degree from the University of Minnesota. Fun Fact: In college John used to change the light bulbs on radio towers. NOT for the faint of heart!
Concentrating on the financial services industry, Linda Paullin-Hebden serves as a securities compliance advisor to registered investment advisers and as a counselor to venture capital and private equity funds. Linda handles a variety of matters, including mergers and acquisitions, compliance, fund formation, joint ventures, private investments and other transactions as well as general corporate matters.
Her investment adviser clients operate in a highly regulated environment, and she helps them adhere to the rules in a way that helps them achieve their business objectives. Linda often says, "Compliance doesn't run your business; we make sure your business is compliant." Linda’s deep experience in compliance is an asset in negotiating transactions. Her industry knowledge translates to creative problem solving in deal negotiations where she helps clients achieve their desired goals.
Aaron Racino is a Senior Relationship Manager at PPC LOAN, a cash-flow based lender providing nationwide financing to service sector businesses. Since joining PPC LOAN in 2015, Aaron has worked with countless business owners across a variety of industries and has evaluated and underwritten over $350 million in approved loans during that time. Aaron now spends 100% of his time consulting on the financing needs of RIAs and Independent Financial Advisors nationwide with a focus on acquisitions, mergers, buy-ins, buy-outs, equity purchases, succession plans, and debt consolidations.
Bing Waldert leads Cerulli’s U.S. Research team comprising seven research practices that cover all elements of the U.S. asset management, wealth management, and retirement markets. He has authored Cerulli reports on the wealth management industry, high-net-worth market, the annuity industry, and retirement markets. He is a frequent board-level and C-suite speaker and well-regarded industry thought leader. He has spoken in front of FINRA, the Investment Company Institute (ICI), the Asset Management Association of China (AMAC), the Investments and Wealth Institute (IWI), and the Money Management Institute (MMI). He has worked on multiple diligence and acquisition client projects for Private Equity firms, including acquisitions of multiple RIA firms, a alternative investment platform, and a RetireTech firm. Prior to joining Cerulli in 2004, Bing worked in product management and competitive research for MFS and Sun Life. Bing has Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Classics from the College of the Holy Cross.
