Marty Pereira is a financial advisor with Kestra Advisory, holding CFP®, Series 65, and Series 66 credentials and over 23 years of industry experience. He has worked at Kestra Advisory since 2016 and previously held roles at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney and CSMG International Ltd. Pereira is also the Investment Advisor and Director of Research & Analytics for Partners Wealth Management, where he focuses on asset allocation and investment research. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to institutional and individual clients, offering services such as plan design, fiduciary consulting, and employee education. The firm serves a broad client base including large institutional investors and sovereign wealth funds, and supports a range of investment platforms and third-party managed solutions.

Mark Diorio is a CFA® charterholder with 16 years of industry experience. He has been with Brookstone Capital Management LLC since 2015. The firm provides fee-based asset management and financial planning to a diverse client base, including individuals, retirement plans, corporations, and trusts. Brookstone Capital Management employs a range of investment strategies, including strategic and dynamic asset-allocation models, Unified Managed Accounts, and options-enhanced strategies, while also serving as a sub-advisor to other advisory programs.

Michael Moleski is a CFP® professional with 22 years of industry experience, currently serving at Creative Planning since 2012. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses. Outside of his advisory role, Moleski manages a family farm business. Creative Planning provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, corporations, and retirement plans, managing approximately $217 billion in assets. The firm emphasizes a financial planning-led investment approach with low-cost indexing and offers a range of supplemental strategies and integrated retirement plan services.

Mary Gruenberg is a Certified Financial Planner® with 26 years of industry experience. She is currently affiliated with Principal Financial Services and has held roles at Principal Securities, Inc. and Farmers Financial Solutions, alongside a long tenure with Farmers Insurance Group. Principal Securities provides brokerage and registered investment advisory services to a diverse client base, including individual investors and retirement plans. The firm offers direct advisory programs, financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and access to third-party money manager asset allocation and separately managed account solutions.

Alicia Hyland is a financial advisor with Empower Advisory Group, holding Series 63, Series 65, and Series 66 credentials and nine years of industry experience. She previously worked at GWFS Equities Inc. and Stonegate Advisors LLC. Outside of finance, she operates a part-time bookkeeping and accounting business and works as a part-time flight attendant. Empower Advisory Group provides financial planning and investment management primarily for employer-sponsored retirement plan sponsors and participants, as well as Empower Premier IRA and retail brokerage clients. The firm emphasizes long-term portfolio returns and integrates its services with Empower’s recordkeeping and administrative platforms.

Liam Mulligan is a financial advisor at Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC with two years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and previously worked at L.M. Kohn & Company and Benjamin F. Edwards. Mulligan also spent several years in education before transitioning to financial services. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC is an SEC-registered enterprise firm serving a diverse client base including individuals, trusts, charitable organizations, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm offers financial planning, asset management, and specialized consulting, employing a strategic investment approach that combines passive and active management guided by an internal Investment Committee.

Mazen Zanayed is a financial advisor with PNC Wealth Management in Clarendon Hills, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 66 credentials and bringing 32 years of industry experience. He has been with PNC Wealth Management since 2014. PNC Wealth Management offers retail brokerage and advisory services through model-based programs, including an invitation-only digital discretionary model account that uses algorithmic questionnaires to guide portfolio strategy and implements investments via approved model strategies managed by PNC or third-party strategists.

Austin Wegforth is a financial advisor with Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC, holding Series 65 and Series 63 licenses and having one year of industry experience. His background includes positions at Wealth Enhancement Brokerage Services and the Wealth Enhancement Group, as well as prior work in real estate and education. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services manages over $122 billion in assets and offers financial planning, asset management, and retirement-plan consulting to individuals, high-net-worth clients, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm employs a diversified, risk-class based investment approach that combines passive and active management and uses quantitative, momentum, and fundamental analysis.

Chad Stein is a financial advisor with TIAA-CREF in Wheaton, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 66 designations and possessing 25 years of industry experience. He has been with TIAA-CREF since 2006. TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC provides financial planning and discretionary managed account programs to individuals, trusts, estates, and small retirement plans, often serving clients connected through TIAA-administered employer retirement plans. The firm combines point-in-time planning with ongoing portfolio management using both model and customized portfolios, and also acts as adviser to a donor-advised fund.

Daniel Lippold is a CFP® professional with 28 years of industry experience, currently serving at First Command Advisory Services since 2015. He has also been affiliated with First Command Insurance Services and First Command Financial Planning since 2011. Daniel is based in Darien, IL. First Command Advisory Services, Inc. is an SEC-registered investment adviser that serves individuals, corporate, and charitable clients, with a particular focus on active-duty service members and their families. The firm provides financial planning and various wrap-fee asset management programs, utilizing model portfolios managed by a centralized Investment Management Team and Wealth Portfolio Managers.

Andrew Blessman is a CFP® professional with eight years of industry experience, currently serving as a financial advisor at Creative Planning since 2019. Prior to joining Creative Planning, he worked at Sebold Capital Management from 2015 to 2019. He holds the Series 66 designation and is based in Oak Brook, Illinois. Creative Planning provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, corporations, foundations, trusts, and retirement plans. The firm emphasizes a financial planning–led investment process with low-cost indexing and buy-and-hold strategies, complemented by supplemental approaches such as direct indexing and tax-loss harvesting, supported by a broad team and centralized investment infrastructure.

Mark Hughes is a financial advisor with Principal Financial Services in Downers Grove, IL, holding the ChFC® designation along with Series 63 and Series 65 licenses. He has 38 years of industry experience, including roles at Hughes Financial since 2000 and positions at Principal Life Insurance Company and Principal Securities INC dating back to the late 1980s. In addition to advisory services, he is involved in selling and servicing fixed life, fixed annuities, and health insurance products through an outside insurance business. Principal Securities provides brokerage and registered investment advisory services to a diverse client base, including individual investors, retirement plans, trusts, businesses, and active-duty military personnel overseas. The firm offers financial planning, retirement consulting, and access to third-party money manager solutions through various advisory and promoter arrangements.

Christopher Crull is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) with 21 years of industry experience. He has been with Fifth Third Securities, Inc. and its parent company, Fifth Third Bank, since 2004. Fifth Third Securities, Inc. provides brokerage and investment advisory services through its Passageway Managed Account Program to individuals, charitable organizations, corporate clients, and institutional investors. The firm offers multiple discretionary managed-account programs and features such as direct indexing and tax-overlay services, combining its municipal-advisor registration with corporate affiliation to a large bank.

Brian Rapacki is a financial advisor with TIAA-CREF in Wheaton, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and having 19 years of industry experience. He has been with TIAA-CREF since 2015. TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC’s Advice & Planning Services division offers financial planning and discretionary managed account programs to individuals and various entities, often serving clients connected through TIAA-administered retirement plans. The firm operates a fiduciary advisory model with a mix of model and customized portfolios and acts as adviser to a donor-advised fund.

Michael Warren is a CFP®-designated financial advisor with Commonwealth Financial Network, based in Lombard, IL, with 39 years of industry experience. He has been affiliated with Commonwealth and Garrett Consulting since 2008 and has been self-employed since 1985. His additional business activity includes work in fixed insurance. Commonwealth Financial Network is a dual-registered broker/dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser serving a national network of approximately 2,900 advisors and managing around $212.7 billion in client assets. The firm provides a comprehensive adviser-support platform, including managed-account programs, third-party asset manager access, and custody services.

Barbara Natale is a financial advisor at PNC Wealth Management with 35 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been with PNC Investments since 2014. PNC Wealth Management offers retail brokerage and advisory services through model-based programs, including an invitation-only digital portfolio strategy pilot for employees that uses algorithmic risk assessment and manages investments via mutual funds and ETFs with annual rebalancing.

Robert Blanford is a financial advisor with Commonwealth Financial Network in Lombard, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and five years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at Garrett Consulting, Rockstar Rodeo, and The Clubhouse. Outside of finance, he is also a musical performer. Commonwealth Financial Network is a dual-registered broker/dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser serving a national network of nearly 2,900 advisors and managing approximately $213 billion in client assets. The firm provides a comprehensive adviser-support platform with discretionary and nondiscretionary managed-account programs, third-party asset manager access, and custodial services.

Charisma Lariosa is a financial advisor with Transamerica Financial Advisors in Chicago, IL, holding Series 65 and Series 63 licenses with five years of industry experience. She has worked at Transamerica Financial Advisors since 2020 and concurrently with World Financial Group, Inc. since 2018. Outside of advisory work, she is a physical therapist providing therapy staffing services through Select Rehabilitation. Transamerica Financial Advisors serves individual investors, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and corporations. The firm offers advisory and broker-dealer services, including a range of proprietary and third-party investment models, with both discretionary and non-discretionary program options.

Glenn Stears Jr. is a financial advisor with UNITED PLANNERS' FINANCIAL SERVICES of AMERICA and holds the CFP® and ChFC® designations. He has 45 years of industry experience, including roles at Waddell & Reed, Inc. for 37 years and managing his own insurance agency since 1980. He is also vice president and secretary of Sagrado & Stears, Inc., a non-investment related business. United Planners Financial Services of America serves a diverse client base including individuals, corporations, charitable organizations, and institutional clients. The firm operates as both a registered investment adviser and broker-dealer, offering financial planning and portfolio management through an open-architecture platform with multiple custodians and third-party money managers.

Jordan Flowers is a Series 65-registered advisor with Brookstone Capital Management LLC in Wheaton, IL, where he has worked for 10 years. He has a decade of industry experience and maintains a licensed insurance agent role, offering life insurance and annuities through Wealth Financial Services & Tax Advisory. Brookstone Capital Management provides fee-based asset management and financial planning services to individuals, retirement plans, corporations, trusts, and other entities. The firm employs a range of investment strategies including strategic and dynamic asset allocation models, Unified Managed Accounts, and options-enhanced strategies, supported by proprietary funds and external sub-advisors.