Mark Kanakaris is the principal of Kanakaris and Associates in Woodstock, GA, holding a Series 65 credential with 13 years of industry experience. He has worked at Royal Fund Management, LLC since 2013 and operates his own tax planning and preparation business, Cherokee Tax Group. Kanakaris is also licensed to sell life, annuity, health, and disability insurance. Kanakaris and Associates manages approximately $7.5 million in discretionary assets for about 62 individual clients, offering portfolio management, financial planning, and consulting services. The firm uses a quantitative, rules-based investment process featuring model portfolios, covered-call strategies, sector momentum analysis, and may allocate assets to sub-advisers or third-party models.

John Peterson is a CFP® and ChFC® with 17 years of industry experience. He is the principal of Corners Financial Planning, LLC in Peachtree Corners, GA, where he has worked since 2018. He also has experience with Dempsey Financial Network and Dempsey & Associates Inc. Outside of advisory work, he is involved in fixed insurance sales through Dempsey & Associates. Corners Financial Planning, LLC provides investment advisory and financial planning services to individuals and small businesses. The firm offers tailored advisory work using various strategies and manages a small client base with discretionary and non-discretionary accounts.

Bryan Ellis is a financial advisor with Horizon Investment Counsel LLC in Marietta, GA. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has 17 years of industry experience, including 10 years at Horizon Investment Counsel and its predecessor firm. In addition to his advisory role, Bryan operates a licensed insurance agency offering life, property, and casualty insurance products. Horizon Investment Counsel provides discretionary portfolio management through two equity-focused programs, serving moderate to high net worth individuals and various institutional clients. The firm’s investment approach emphasizes long-term ownership of high-quality companies purchased at reasonable prices, managing primarily common stocks with a defined sell discipline.

Christopher Brown is the sole advisor at Brown Capital Advisors, LLC in Marietta, GA, holding a Series 66 designation with 11 years of industry experience. He previously worked at LPL Financial LLC and Hennsler Financial before founding his current firm in 2018. Brown Capital Advisors provides discretionary portfolio management, comprehensive financial planning, and CFO advisory services primarily to individuals, high-net-worth clients, and entrepreneurs or small-business owners. The firm manages approximately $16.7 million across about 20 client relationships, emphasizing fundamental analysis, asset allocation, diversification, and risk management, with the use of equities, ETFs, and select alternative investments. Its CFO advisory services to small businesses, combined with a willingness to utilize derivatives and complex investment vehicles, distinguish its offerings from many independent advisory firms.

Benjamin Baldwin III is a CFP® professional with 27 years of experience in the financial advisory industry. He has been with Responsive Financial Group, Inc. since 2003. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved in commercial property leasing through ownership of RBC Phoenix Inc. Responsive Financial Group, Inc. is an independent firm providing discretionary and non-discretionary investment management, financial planning, and consulting services to individuals, families, trusts, estates, foundations, corporations, and other institutions. The firm utilizes model Risk Adjusted Portfolios (RAPs) across various management styles to address client needs, and it serves a range of clients including pension and profit-sharing plans, offering specialized ERISA plan consulting and fiduciary services.

Robert Samsel is a financial advisor at Fortress Capital with four years of industry experience. He holds the Series 65 designation and has worked at several companies, including Colgate Palmolive and Zep. Outside of advising, he is involved with Top Tier Trees, a separate business activity. Fortress Capital provides discretionary portfolio management primarily for high-net-worth individuals and entities, focusing on long-term capital growth through concentrated equity portfolios. The firm employs a performance-based compensation model for qualified clients and also offers limited financial planning reviews for employer-sponsored retirement accounts.

Samuel Newland is a financial advisor at Lighthouse Investment Advisors, Inc. with nine years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has worked at Lighthouse Investment Advisors since 2016 and Lighthouse Financial, Inc. since 2017. Prior to his advisory career, he spent 29 years at Southern Company. Newland is also the owner of Lighthouse Financial, Inc., where he acts as an insurance agent specializing in life, health, and annuity products. Lighthouse Investment Advisors is an independent, fee-based firm serving individual clients and qualified retirement plans. The firm offers non-discretionary asset management, ERISA 3(21) consulting for plan sponsors, and educational seminars, emphasizing investment strategies based on fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis.

Robert Frank III is the principal of Atlas Investment Advisory LLC in Canton, GA, and holds the CFP® designation along with Series 63 and 66 licenses. He has 24 years of industry experience, including ten years with LPL Financial and founding his independent advisory firm in 2016. Outside of his advisory work, he is a co-owner of Twin Ridge Defence, LLC, a non-investment-related business. Atlas Investment Advisory serves individual and high-net-worth clients, offering discretionary portfolio management and financial planning. The firm utilizes a combination of fundamental, quantitative, technical, cyclical, and modern portfolio theory analyses across a wide range of investment instruments and strategies, conducting quarterly account reviews.

Troy Harmon is a CFA® charterholder and holds a Series 66 license, with three years of industry experience. He is the principal advisor at Due West Wealth Advisors LLC and serves as an adjunct professor at Kennesaw State University. Harmon is also the treasurer of the ASFIP Foundation, a nonprofit focused on financial education, and is CEO of A&E Investment Properties, Inc. Due West Wealth Advisors provides discretionary wealth management and financial planning services to individual and high-net-worth clients. The firm employs fundamental analysis and a primarily long-term investment approach, managing portfolios that often include ETFs, equities, mutual funds, and options contracts.

Thomas Cloud is a CFP® and ChFC® with 21 years of experience in financial advisory services. He has worked at Eleven Two Fund Management for 12 years before founding Third Act Retirement Planning, Inc. in 2017, where he remains the sole advisor. Third Act Retirement Planning provides individualized financial planning, discretionary portfolio management, estate-planning consulting, and insurance guidance to individuals, retirement plans, trusts, estates, and other entities. The firm manages approximately $30.4 million on a discretionary basis and offers modular and holistic planning services, utilizing a variety of investment strategies and ongoing portfolio monitoring.

Jay Thurlow is a financial advisor at Kinetic Pathways Company in Dunwoody, GA, with five years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at Alphastar Capital Management, LLC, and operated his own business before joining Kinetic Pathways. Thurlow is also co-owner of The Insurance Shop LLC, where he is involved in life and health insurance sales and client service. Kinetic Pathways provides fee-based investment advisory and financial planning services to individuals, trusts, estates, and charitable organizations. The firm custom-manages income-oriented portfolios using structured notes and market-linked certificates of deposit, and is notable for its integration of insurance activities alongside its investment advisory services.

Eric Holcomb is the founder of Holcomb Financial and holds a Series 65 designation with two years of industry experience. He also serves as a Project Manager at Irrational Kindness, LLC, the operator of Chick-fil-A Canton. Holcomb Financial provides wealth management, investment management, retirement plan consulting, and financial planning services to individuals, small business owners, employer retirement plans, and charitable organizations. The firm operates on a fee-only basis, offering discretionary portfolio management and personalized investment strategies, and is noted for providing educational seminars and speaking engagements to the public.

Ashley Roth is a financial advisor with Arrowhead Investment Advisors, LLC, holding a Series 65 designation and 14 years of industry experience. She has been with Arrowhead since 2011. Arrowhead Investment Advisors is a fee-only registered investment adviser managing approximately $43.1 million for individuals, families, trusts, non-profit organizations, and corporate retirement plans. The firm focuses on long-term growth through equities and bonds using a fundamentally driven research process and provides tailored portfolio management with discretionary authority.

Gary Hyde is a CFP® professional with 10 years of experience in financial services. He is the principal of Shepherd Financial LLC, an independent firm he has led since 2020. Prior to founding Shepherd Financial, he worked at Northwestern Mutual in various roles from 2015 to 2020. Outside of his advisory work, Hyde provides baseball instruction to children. Shepherd Financial LLC offers wealth management, discretionary portfolio management, and financial planning primarily to individuals, high-net-worth households, trusts, estates, and retirement plans. The firm’s investment approach is long-term and ETF-oriented, with additional use of individual securities and occasional shorter-term trades, and it combines individual wealth management with retirement plan consulting services.

Matthew Checkon is a financial advisor at MJ Wealth Management LLC in Roswell, GA. He holds a Series 65 designation and has one year of industry experience. Prior to founding MJ Wealth Management, he worked at Ernst & Young for ten years. MJ Wealth Management LLC provides investment management and financial planning services to individuals, families, trusts, estates, and small businesses, with offerings that range from foundational planning for lower- and middle-net-worth households to comprehensive wealth management. The firm’s investment process focuses on asset allocation guided by an Investment Policy Statement and includes discretionary management, educational workshops, and flexible billing arrangements.

Robert Robinson is a CFP®-certified financial advisor with 23 years of industry experience. He has been with Confidant Financial Solutions, LLC since 2015, where he is the sole advisor. Confidant Financial Solutions serves individual households, including high-net-worth clients, offering discretionary asset management and modular financial planning tailored through a fact-finding process. The firm uses model portfolios primarily composed of exchange-traded funds representing Morningstar style boxes and monitors accounts quarterly, with a focus on both long-term orientation and the ability to trade actively when authorized.

Jeffrey Barnard is the principal of Barnard Financial Group, LLC in Roswell, GA, holding a Series 65 credential with 17 years of industry experience. His career includes roles at AE Wealth Management, LLC and Global Financial Private Capital, LLC, as well as leadership of his own firms since 1998. He also owns an insurance business in Roswell, GA, where he is active in insurance sales and service. Barnard Financial Group, LLC provides discretionary asset management and retirement plan advisory services to plan sponsors, institutional clients, and individuals. The firm offers portfolio management with the ability to engage sub-advisors and specializes in pension consulting for retirement plans, including ERISA-related services.

Patrick Volpe is a financial advisor at Brooke Forest Capital LLC with eight years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at firms including Latitude Advisors, LLC and Edward Jones. Outside of his advisory role, he is a licensed insurance agent. Brooke Forest Capital LLC serves individual clients, including high-net-worth individuals, offering portfolio management and financial planning without an account minimum. The firm employs various analytic approaches and maintains discretionary trading authority to manage a diverse range of investment vehicles.

Clark Jeffries is the sole advisor at Jeffries Wealth Management in Marietta, GA, holding a Series 65 credential with three years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at Orion Advisor Solutions and HiddenLevers. Jeffries Wealth Management provides financial planning, investment management, and retirement plan rollover advice to individual clients as well as pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, and other business or charitable entities. The firm emphasizes broad asset-class diversification and uses tax-aware techniques, third-party sub-advisers, and may allocate assets to private and alternative investment funds, operating with a boutique, adviser-driven model.

Jon Bernier is a CFP® and ChFC® with 23 years of experience in financial advising. He has been with TandemGrowth Financial Advisors, LLC in Alpharetta, GA since 2000. TandemGrowth Financial Advisors serves individuals, high net worth households, trusts, and estates with comprehensive wealth management and financial planning, offering discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management alongside retirement-plan oversight and account aggregation tools. The firm uses a strategic, long-term investment approach across equity-risk spectrums, incorporating mutual funds, ETFs, independent managers, and alternative investments, and provides unique services such as a NextGen program and healthcare planning partnerships.