Amir Atabaki is a financial advisor at Hightower Advisors with seven years of industry experience. He holds the Series 65 and Series 66 designations and has previously worked at Frontier Investment Management Co, CMY Fiduciary Services, and Upside Options. Hightower Advisors provides investment advisory and planning services to a diverse range of individual and institutional clients. The firm’s approach includes multi-manager solutions and manager selection, utilizing both affiliated and third-party managers, with services spanning portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement plan consulting.

Joshua Erickson is a Wealth Management Advisor with Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, based in Walnut Creek, California. He has been with Merrill Lynch since 2012, bringing experience in corporate finance and real estate analysis. Prior to joining Merrill Lynch, he worked as a senior financial analyst in real estate for Gap, Inc., and as a Senior Associate at Panattoni Development Company, where he was involved in securing private and institutional equity investments for real estate projects across North America and Europe. Mr. Erickson earned a Bachelor's degree in Economics in 2002 and an MBA in 2006, both from Brigham Young University. He holds several professional designations including CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP), CERTIFIED PLAN FIDUCIARY ADVISOR (CPFA), Certified Private Wealth Advisor (CPWA), Personal Investment Advisor (PIA), and Retirement Accredited Financial Advisor (RAFA). Outside of his professional work, Joshua Erickson is an Eagle Scout and enjoys outdoor activities such as hiking, trail running, mountain biking, and backpacking, especially in the Sierra Nevada mountains. He is also actively involved in coaching his children's sports teams. He lives in Moraga, California with his wife, Rachel, their daughter, and three sons.

Michael Welch is a Series 65-licensed financial advisor with Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC, based in Oakland, CA. He has three years of industry experience, including roles at BTR Capital Management and The Van Allen Group. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC is an SEC-registered enterprise advisory firm serving a diverse client base, including individuals, trusts, charitable organizations, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm employs a strategic investment process that combines passive and active management, quantitative and fundamental research, and offers a range of financial planning and asset management services.

Christopher Kenny is a financial advisor with Sanctuary Advisors, LLC in Walnut Creek, CA, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and possessing 37 years of industry experience. He has worked at Bank of America, N.A. since 2011 and at Merrill since 2006. Sanctuary Advisors, LLC offers investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, corporations, pension plans, and charitable organizations, supported by a network of over 400 independent investment adviser representatives. The firm employs various investment strategies and platforms, serving clients through discretionary and non-discretionary account management while acting as a fiduciary under written agreements.

Robindronath Chatterjee is a financial advisor with GWN Securities Inc. in Oakland, CA, holding a Series 66 credential and one year of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at the University of California, Los Angeles, and Head-Royce School. He is involved in pension education through the Pension 101 platform. GWN Securities is an SEC-registered investment adviser and broker-dealer serving individual and business clients, including high-net-worth individuals. The firm offers discretionary managed accounts, financial planning, and access to model portfolios, utilizing a range of investment strategies including legacy market-timing and momentum-based approaches.

Jason Guehl is a financial advisor at Creative Planning with 23 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 63, Series 66, and Series 65 licenses and has been with Creative Planning since 2012. Creative Planning provides wealth management, financial planning, and retirement-plan advisory services to individuals—including high-net-worth and ultra-affluent clients—as well as pension plans, trusts, foundations, and corporations. The firm employs a financial-planning-led investment approach that emphasizes low-cost indexing and buy-and-hold strategies for long-term goals, supplemented by various indexing and tax strategies, while managing approximately $295.6 billion in client assets.

Kevin Fung is a CFP®-certified financial advisor with 21 years of industry experience, currently with Citigroup Global Markets. His prior roles include positions at HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., HSBC Bank USA, N.A., and Wells Fargo Clearing. Outside of his advisory work, he serves as a board member for the Hong Kong Association of Northern California, a nonprofit fostering ties between Hong Kong and Northern California. Citigroup Global Markets serves individual and institutional clients across various wealth segments, offering a range of investment advisory programs and broker-dealer services. The firm generally implements multi-asset, multi-manager strategies through discretionary and non-discretionary programs, leveraging internal standards and oversight committees to select and monitor managers.

Richard Scarpitti is a financial advisor at Empower Advisory Group with 19 years of industry experience and holds a Series 66 designation. His prior work includes roles at Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade, Scottrade, Commonwealth Financial Network, and LPL Financial. Empower Advisory Group provides financial planning and investment management primarily to employer-sponsored retirement plan sponsors and their participants, as well as to Empower Premier IRA and certain retail brokerage account holders. The firm’s services are integrated with Empower’s recordkeeping and administrative platforms and emphasize long-term portfolio returns, annual rebalancing, and clients’ savings rates.

Mark Goyne is a CFA® charterholder currently with Cerity Partners LLC, with two years of industry experience. He previously worked at BNY Mellon, First Bank, and US Trust (Bank of America). Cerity Partners provides customized wealth management and related services to a broad national client base, including individuals, families, trusts, estates, business entities, and institutional investors. The firm employs tailored asset allocation, manager selection, and proprietary quantitative screens alongside third-party managers and individual securities.

Joseph Kovar is a financial advisor at Cetera Planning Partners with 26 years of industry experience. He holds the PFS™ designation and Series 66 license. Prior to joining Cetera Planning Partners, he held various roles at Avantax and 1st Global Advisors. Outside of his advisory work, Kovar is the owner of a family vineyard where he manages winemaking activities. Cetera Planning Partners serves individual and high-net-worth clients, focusing on pre-retirees and retirees by providing investment management, comprehensive financial planning, and retirement-related advice. The firm’s investment approach emphasizes diversified allocations aligned with client objectives and risk tolerance and integrates various affiliated resources within the larger Cetera network.

Joey Hsu is a financial advisor at Commonwealth Financial Network with 15 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has worked at Commonwealth since 2013, with a brief tenure at Investors Capital Corp. in 2013 and LPL Financial LLC since 2026. 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 roughly $212.7 billion in client assets. The firm provides a comprehensive adviser-support platform that includes managed-account programs, third-party asset manager access, retirement consulting, and custody services.

Logan Dunbar is a financial advisor at Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC with three years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has worked at firms including LPL Financial, Bank of America, Merrill, and Nuveen Securities. Prior to his financial services career, he was associated with CGI Group Inc., Julietta Winery, Saint Mary's College of California, and Dunbar Construction. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC is an SEC-registered enterprise advisory firm serving a diverse client base including individuals, trusts, charitable organizations, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm’s investment approach combines strategic asset allocation with both passive and active management, supported by quantitative and fundamental research and an internal Investment Committee.

Lynda Zwack is a financial advisor with Lincoln Investment in Walnut Creek, CA, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 36 years of industry experience. She worked at Legend Equities Corporation for 23 years before joining Lincoln Investment in 2017. In addition to her advisory role, she is involved in selling insurance and annuity products and services a small number of long-term care insurance policies sold previously. Lincoln Investment serves individuals, charitable organizations, businesses, and employer-sponsored retirement plans, with a focus on educators and participants in 403(b) and 457(b) plans. The firm offers a range of financial planning and investment services, managing a mix of in-house and third-party strategies through both strategic and tactical approaches.

James Stehr is a financial advisor at Kestra Advisory with 32 years of industry experience. He holds Series 65 and Series 63 licenses and has worked at Kestra Advisory since 2018, following prior roles at RBI Capital Management and Paragon East Advisors. In addition to his advisory work, Stehr serves as an Assistant Vice President at NFP, supporting client development and private client services. Kestra Advisory provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to a diverse range of institutional and individual clients, including very large investors such as sovereign wealth funds. The firm offers services spanning fiduciary consulting, plan design, investment advice, and access to multiple management platforms and third-party solutions.

Nicole Hanson is a CFP® with 16 years of industry experience. She is currently with MAI Capital Management, LLC, where she has worked since 2025. Before joining MAI, she spent eight years at Concentric Wealth Management LLC. MAI Capital Management provides discretionary and non-discretionary investment management, integrated wealth management, retirement plan consulting, and family-office services to a diverse client base, including high-net-worth individuals, families, sports professionals, trusts, and institutional clients. The firm manages a broad range of strategies and offers additional services such as trust administration and insurance through affiliated entities.

Tristan Bolton is a financial advisor with Private Advisor Group, LLC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and 18 years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at LPL Financial, Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Lion Street Advisors, and Assetmark, Inc. He also provides investment advisory services through Mariner Independent Advisor Network, LLC, an independent registered investment advisor. Private Advisor Group serves individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, businesses, and retirement plans with portfolio management, financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and access to various managed account solutions, including proprietary and third-party platforms. The firm operates under a fiduciary model, offering both discretionary and non-discretionary services while utilizing multiple investment strategies and technology platforms.

Annie Gottbehuet is a financial advisor at Mercer Global Advisors Inc. with 22 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63, Series 65, and Series 66 licenses, and previously worked at TIAA-CREF for 16 years. She serves on the Finance Committee of Parks California, a nonprofit supporting the state park system. Mercer Global Advisors provides investment advisory, financial, tax, retirement, and estate planning services to individuals, families, small business owners, plan sponsors, foundations, and nonprofits. The firm’s investment approach is based on Modern Portfolio Theory, utilizing diversified, risk-appropriate portfolios with a variety of investment vehicles, alongside specialized services such as retirement plan consulting and charitable advisory.

Diane Garcia Spiegel is a financial advisor with Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC and holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations. She has experience in the financial industry dating back to 2015, including previous roles at Ginsburg Financial Advisors and Wealth Enhancement Group. 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 employs a strategic investment approach combining passive and active management, supported by an internal Investment Committee and a variety of program offerings.

Karena Zhu is a CFP®-certified financial advisor with 12 years of industry experience. She is currently with Mariner and has previously worked at firms including Destination Wealth Management, Citi, Morgan Stanley, and HSBC Securities. Mariner serves a diverse client base, including individuals, pension plans, trusts, charitable organizations, and corporations, offering investment management, financial planning, retirement consulting, and coordinated tax and family office services. The firm employs discretionary, customized portfolios supported by an internal management team and third-party managers, with a notable integration of tax and accounting services uncommon for a firm of its size.

Brett Mongeau is a CFP® professional with 10 years of industry experience, currently serving at Creative Planning in Walnut Creek, CA since 2021. His prior roles include positions at Aspiriant and multiple divisions of John Hancock from 2015 to 2021. Creative Planning offers wealth management, financial planning, and retirement-plan advisory services to a diverse client base, including high-net-worth individuals, pension plans, trusts, foundations, and corporations. The firm employs a financial-planning–led investment approach emphasizing low-cost indexing and buy-and-hold strategies for long-term goals, supplemented by private market investments and tailored portfolio management.