Mark Sifling is a CFP® with 20 years of experience in financial advising at Simple Life Financial, where he has been a principal since 2006. He also serves as the principal consultant of Blu Pagoda LLC, a management consulting firm that provides services to financial companies. Simple Life Financial offers investment advisory and financial planning services to individuals, families, small businesses, and related entities, with experience serving multi-generational households through tailored investment profiles, cash-flow and liquidity planning, and coordination with clients’ other professional advisors.

Ian Tongol is an advisor at Investment Growth Management, Inc. with one year of industry experience. His prior work history includes positions at Armanino LLP, Century Group, and Robert Half. Outside of his advisory role, he is also involved with ECA Marketing. Investment Growth Management provides discretionary portfolio management and financial planning primarily for individual clients, including high-net-worth households, as well as business retirement-plan sponsors and participants. The firm focuses on long-term, diversified portfolios combining equities, fixed income, mutual funds, and individual securities, and offers additional services such as personal cash-flow tracking and educational presentations.

Alexander Boeri is a CFP®-certified financial advisor with seven years of industry experience. He currently works at Miller Avenue Advisors LLC, where he has been since 2021. Prior to that, he held roles at Fiduciary Financial Group and Brighton Jones LLC. Miller Avenue Advisors serves individual and high-net-worth clients, small business owners, and qualified retirement plans, offering discretionary asset management, ongoing financial planning, and limited ERISA 3(21) fiduciary services. The firm also facilitates private placement investments for qualified clients and manages portfolios tailored to client goals with quarterly monitoring and integrated reporting.

Evan Ke is a CFA® charterholder with seven years of industry experience. He currently serves as a financial advisor at Van Strum & Towne Inc, where he has worked since 2026. Prior to this, he was with SKBA Capital Management and Nari Suda LLC. Van Strum & Towne primarily serves high net-worth individuals and manages accounts for a variety of clients including trusts, foundations, and pension plans. The firm focuses on fundamental analysis for stock selection, capital preservation, and long-term growth, maintaining generally low portfolio turnover and tailoring asset allocation to client objectives.

Karen Medford is a CFP® with eight years of experience at Fleming Financial Advising in Walnut Creek, CA. She has been with the firm since 2009 and holds a Series 65 license. Fleming Financial Advising serves individual clients with fee-only financial planning and portfolio management under a fiduciary standard, focusing on later-life planning and survivor-transition work. The firm emphasizes goal- and risk-focused investment strategies using diversified pooled vehicles and fixed-income instruments, managing most accounts on a discretionary basis with individualized portfolios rather than model portfolios.

Cathy Jackson Gent is a financial advisor at Global Investment Company with 35 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked previously at Cambridge Investment Research Advisors and OZI Company, LLC. Outside of her advisory role, she is involved in several nonprofit and community organizations, including serving as a founder of the Women’s Chamber of Commerce and holding leadership roles in local advisory councils and nonprofit boards. Global Investment Company provides portfolio management, financial planning, and pension consulting to individuals, including high net worth clients, and charitable organizations. The firm uses model portfolios and third-party money managers, focusing primarily on asset allocation and employing a range of investment strategies and instruments.

Holly Ruxin is a financial advisor at Montcalm TCR LLC with 23 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has been with Montcalm TCR since 2012. Outside of her advisory role, she serves on the Board of Directors of the Crypto Company, where she participates in governance and committee decisions related to compensation, audit, and governance. Montcalm TCR LLC provides customized investment management primarily for individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and business entities. The firm manages discretionary, asset-allocation based portfolios using fundamental and technical analysis and also sponsors a private fund focused on early-stage and privately placed securities.

Nikhil Bhardwaj is a financial advisor at Trillium Investments with 14 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Carlson Financial Management for 16 years before joining Trillium Investments in 2022. Trillium Investments offers discretionary investment management along with financial, retirement, estate, and tax planning services primarily for individual and high-net-worth clients. The firm employs a tax-aware, value-oriented investment process with a focus on risk controls, diversification, and defined time horizons.

William Lahl is a financial advisor at Vista Advisor Group, LLC with 16 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has worked at Vista Advisor Group since 2020 and at Cetera Advisor Networks LLC since 2013. Outside of his advisory role, he serves as a speaker and instructor for the Retirement Planning Today program, which provides general retirement education. Vista Advisor Group offers investment advisory services to individuals, trusts, pension and profit-sharing plans, and business entities, managing over $314 million in assets. The firm emphasizes a fiduciary, client-centered approach with personalized portfolio management and comprehensive planning services, supported by a high client-to-advisor ratio and a wrap fee program.

Alexander Harmsen is a financial advisor at Global Predictions Inc with a Series 65 designation and three years of industry experience. Prior to his current role, he worked at Iris Automation for six years and serves as chairman there. He also acts as a technical advisor at VeriSIM Life. Global Predictions provides online, non-discretionary portfolio allocation recommendations to individual investors through its web application, PortfolioPilot. The firm uses quantitative, model-based analysis and machine learning to deliver personalized investment guidance and tax optimization tools, while clients retain full discretion and custody.

Kory Swekla is a CFA® charterholder with 25 years of industry experience and has been with Ascension Wealth Partners, LLC since 2008. He holds the Series 65 license and is based in Pleasant Hill, CA. Ascension Wealth Partners provides discretionary investment management to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, estates, retirement plans, and business entities. The firm manages approximately $127.8 million for 43 client households, focusing on broad global diversification primarily through indexed and tax-managed mutual funds and ETFs, guided by personalized Investment Policy Statements.

Joseph Fuqua is a Series 65-licensed financial advisor at Granite Capital with 19 years of industry experience. He has been with Granite Capital Management since 2000 and has previous experience at Banc of America Securities. Granite Capital Management is an independent advisory firm managing approximately $315 million for about 76 clients. The firm offers discretionary portfolio management and wealth management services to individuals, institutions, and charitable organizations, with an investment approach that emphasizes diversified equity exposure, fixed-income holdings, and a combination of fundamental and technical analysis.

Techi Carreon is a financial advisor at Baker Street Asset Management, LLC with 24 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has previously worked at Investor's Fiduciary Advisor Network, LLC and Raymond James Financial Services Advisors, Inc. Carreon was also involved with LiteBite, Inc. for eight years. Baker Street Asset Management provides discretionary portfolio management and financial planning to individuals, institutions, corporations, registered investment advisors, and retirement plans. The firm utilizes a combination of research, quantitative analysis, and multiple investment methodologies to manage portfolios, which may include equities, fixed income, mutual funds, ETFs, and various trading strategies.

Michael Sappington is a financial advisor with Ascension Wealth Partners, LLC in Pleasant Hill, CA, holding Series 63 and Series 66 designations and bringing 23 years of industry experience. He has been with Ascension Wealth Partners since 2008. Ascension Wealth Partners provides discretionary investment management to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, estates, retirement plans, and business entities. The firm manages approximately $127.8 million for 43 client households, focusing on broadly diversified portfolios using registered mutual funds and exchange-traded funds, with an emphasis on indexed and tax-managed funds.

Antonio Kwok is a financial advisor at AK Global Asset Management, LLC with 24 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 designations and has been with AK Global Asset Management since 2005. AK Global Asset Management provides personalized portfolio management services to individuals, retirement plans, trusts, estates, corporations, and other business entities, focusing primarily on individual and high-net-worth clients. The firm employs a combination of fundamental and technical analysis, including long- and short-term trading strategies, and manages roughly $117.8 million in discretionary assets across a small client roster.

Sampurna Khasnabis is a financial advisor at Nia Impact Capital with a Series 65 designation and four years of industry experience. Prior to joining Nia Impact Capital, she held roles at the University of Chicago, Ashoka University, the Centre for Civil Society, and Amnesty International India. Nia Impact Capital provides discretionary investment management and financial planning primarily for individual and high-net-worth clients, using a proprietary Six Solutions Themes framework and gender-lens screening to guide investment decisions. The firm is notable for acting as adviser and sponsor to a registered mutual fund while also serving other advisers and program sponsors.

James Collins is a CFA® charterholder and holds a Series 65 license, with five years of industry experience. He is affiliated with Van Strum & Towne Inc, a firm operating since 1998. Van Strum & Towne primarily serves high net-worth individuals and manages accounts across a variety of entities including trusts, foundations, and retirement plans. The firm focuses on fundamental analysis for stock selection, capital preservation, and long-term growth, managing approximately $430 million in assets with a small advisory team.

Alexander Tsuruda is a financial advisor at D & T Financial Advisors, Inc. with two years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has worked at D & T Financial Advisors since 2025, as well as at Downs & Tsuruda, Inc. since 2020. In addition to his advisory role, he operates a tax accounting firm, Jackson Downs & Tsuruda CPA's, where he prepares individual and entity tax returns and provides bookkeeping services. D & T Financial Advisors provides discretionary investment management and retirement plan advisory primarily for individuals, including high net worth clients, as well as trusts, qualified retirement plans, charitable organizations, and businesses. The firm employs a Modern Portfolio Theory-based approach focusing on diversified, low-turnover, passively managed asset-class funds with a buy-and-hold strategy.

Konrad Kuciej is a financial advisor at Lava Creek Capital Management, LLC with 21 years of industry experience. He has been with Lava Creek since 2012. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations. Lava Creek Capital Management provides discretionary portfolio management to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, retirement plans, donor-advised funds, and certain business entities. The firm employs an active mid-cap value strategy with concentrated portfolios and utilizes options and other derivatives as part of its investment approach.

Kenneth Silva Ballard Jr. is a Series 66–licensed financial advisor with 10 years of industry experience. He is currently the sole advisor at Communitas Financial Planning PBC and has previously worked with First Affirmative Financial Network, Summit Financial, and other firms. Outside of finance, he owns and operates Chef Pro Life, a consulting and training business in the culinary field. Communitas Financial Planning PBC primarily serves institutional clients such as plan sponsors and retirement plans, focusing on socially responsible investing combined with diversification and asset-allocation strategies. The firm provides services including retirement plan consultation, participant education, third-party manager due diligence, and investment advisory program implementation.