Christopher Karam is a financial advisor with Independent Financial Partners, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 18 years of industry experience. He has worked at Independent Financial Partners since 2011 and previously held roles at LPL Financial and Sheridan Road Financial, LLC. Outside of his advisory work, Karam serves as a Supervisor for Cuba Township in Barrington, Illinois, overseeing its operations and finances. Independent Financial Partners offers investment advisory, financial planning, trust, and retirement-plan services through a nationwide network of independent representatives. The firm supports a multi-advisor platform with over $12.5 billion in assets under management and provides specialized retirement-plan advisory and pension consulting services.

Kexin Yang is a financial advisor at Goldman Sachs Wealth Services with two years of industry experience. She holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC since 2023. Her prior roles include positions with the Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center and nonprofit organizations such as The Bail Project and Tzedek DC. Goldman Sachs Wealth Services advises a diverse client base, including individual investors, executives, plan sponsors, and institutional clients. The firm offers tailored financial planning and portfolio management supported by strategic allocation models and access to a broad range of affiliated resources and specialized programs.

Jin Liu is a financial advisor with Hightower Advisors in Deerfield, IL, holding Series 65 and Series 63 licenses and having six years of industry experience. Prior to joining Hightower Advisors in 2019, Liu worked at Navistar INC for five years. Outside of advising, Liu is a partner in Ecommerce Express LLC. Hightower Advisors provides investment advisory and planning services to a diverse client base including individuals, institutional investors, and various organizations. The firm’s approach emphasizes manager selection, multi-manager solutions, and proprietary research, offering a range of portfolio management and financial planning services through its network of Advisor Practices.

Fadel Krisht is a financial advisor at Kestra Advisory with four years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and previously worked at Goldman Sachs for three years. His background also includes roles at Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, LPL Financial, and John Brown University. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to plan sponsors and a range of institutional and individual clients. The firm offers services such as fiduciary consulting, plan design, and employee education, and manages approximately $79.8 billion in assets, including relationships with large institutional investors and sovereign wealth funds.

Craig Hurley is a financial advisor at TIAA-CREF with 26 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63, Series 65, and Series 66 designations. Hurley has been with TIAA and TIAA-CREF in various roles since 2016. TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC’s Advice & Planning Services division serves individuals, trusts, estates, partnerships, corporate entities, and small retirement plans, frequently those connected to TIAA-administered employer retirement plans. The firm offers financial planning, discretionary managed account programs, and separate broker-dealer services, with a fiduciary standard applied to its RIA services and a model separating point-in-time planning from ongoing portfolio management.

Kyle Odeshoo is a financial advisor at CWM, LLC with a Series 65 credential. He has been in the industry since 2026, with prior experience at Carson Wealth and March McLennan Agency. CWM, LLC is an SEC-registered investment adviser serving individuals, high-net-worth families, foundations, endowments, corporations, and institutional clients through a network of partner offices and more than 600 advisors. The firm manages discretionary accounts using model portfolios overseen by an in-house Investment Committee and offers a range of services including portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement-plan solutions.

Lucas Weis is a CFP® and Series 66-registered financial advisor with nine years of industry experience. He is currently with &PARTNERS, having joined in 2024 following roles at Wells Fargo Advisors and Wells Fargo Clearing. &PARTNERS serves a diverse client base including individuals, retirement plans, charitable organizations, foundations, universities, and sovereign wealth funds. The firm provides both investment advisory and brokerage services, utilizing a mix of proprietary and third-party investment strategies alongside financial planning, retirement consulting, and investment banking activities.

Daniel Dolgin is a financial consultant with Kestra Advisory Services, holding a Series 66 designation and eight years of industry experience. He has worked at Kestra Investment Services and Kestra Advisory Services since 2020 and previously at First Allied Advisory Services and Safecor Health. In addition to his advisory roles, Dolgin serves as Vice President of Life at Associated Agencies, managing life, disability, and long-term care insurance. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to plan sponsors and a diverse range of institutional and individual clients. The firm offers services including plan design, fiduciary consulting, employee education, and access to multiple management platforms, serving clients that include large institutional investors such as sovereign wealth funds.

Roman Berkusenko is a CFP®-designated financial advisor with 13 years of industry experience. He is currently with The Huntington Investment Company, having previously worked at Ameriprise Financial Services and JP Morgan Securities. Outside of his advisory work, he co-owns an online collectibles store on eBay. The Huntington Investment Company serves individuals, high-net-worth clients, charitable organizations, and businesses with advisory and brokerage services. The firm employs an open-architecture investment model combining third-party managers and proprietary private bank models across various wrap-fee programs.

Vishaal Tummala is a CFP® and Series 65-licensed financial advisor with 10 years of industry experience. He is currently with Focus Partners Wealth, LLC and has previously worked at Kovitz Investment Group Partners, Strategic Wealth Partners, and Himalaya Enterprise. Focus Partners Wealth serves a diverse client base including individual, high-net-worth, family office, corporate, retirement plan, and institutional clients. The firm employs a long-term, tax- and fee-sensitive investment approach with an enhanced open architecture model, integrating fundamental and quantitative analysis alongside a broad range of investment strategies and affiliated service companies.

Robert Martin is a financial advisor with Mesirow Financial Investment Management, Inc. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has 20 years of industry experience. Martin has been with Mesirow Financial since 2008. Mesirow Financial Investment Management, Inc.’s Wealth Management division provides discretionary and non-discretionary investment management and financial planning services to private individuals, institutional clients, and government entities. The firm employs a disciplined investment process, including the preparation of Investment Policy Statements and due diligence across various asset classes, and offers access to proprietary private investment products and third-party managers.

Nafissa Bounia Yahaya is a financial advisor at Goldman Sachs Wealth Services with three years of industry experience. She holds a Series 66 designation and has been with Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC since 2023. Prior to her advisory role, she spent four years affiliated with Lake Forest College. Goldman Sachs Wealth Services advises a diverse client base including individual investors, corporate participants, executives, and institutional clients. The firm offers financial planning, portfolio management, specialized executive wealth programs, and access to alternative investments, utilizing a range of strategies and integrated resources across the Goldman Sachs platform.

Darren Fabric is a financial advisor with Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 credentials and bringing 19 years of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at Level Four Advisory Services and LPL Financial. Integrated Wealth Concepts serves individuals, high-net-worth clients, families, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans through a network of independent advisors. The firm provides discretionary investment management, financial planning, family office, and retirement plan advisory services, offering customized portfolios with a long-term approach and oversight of third-party managers.

Mark Pietsch is a financial advisor with Guardian Life and Park Avenue Securities, holding Series 63 and 65 credentials and bringing 39 years of industry experience. He has been with Guardian Life and its affiliated entities since 2011. Outside of his advisory role, he is associated with The Pietsch Financial Group, Inc. and True Wealth Strategies LLC. Park Avenue Securities LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, serves individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate clients with brokerage services, financial planning, and investment advisory programs that include both proprietary and third-party strategies.

Jeffrey Hackman is a financial advisor at Kestra Advisory with 33 years of industry experience. He holds Series 66 and Series 63 designations and has previously worked at firms including Icba Securities and Vining Sparks. Hackman also served the Deerfield Bannockburn Fire Protection District for over two decades. In addition to his advisory role, he assists with life insurance business through an affiliated insurance activity. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to institutional and individual clients, offering fiduciary consulting, plan design, compliance testing, and investment advice. The firm serves a broad client base including large institutional investors and employs a comprehensive due diligence process for recommended investments.

Maury Fertig is a financial advisor at NorthCoast Asset Management LLC with 21 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at Focus Partners Wealth, Kovitz Investment Group Partners, and Relative Value Partners Group. He serves as a director on the board of Benefit Security Insurance Company, participating in quarterly meetings. NorthCoast Asset Management provides investment advisory services to individuals, retirement plans, corporations, and charitable organizations. The firm employs a quantitative and systematic investment approach using proprietary models and offers a wide range of strategies including equity, income, and alternatives.

Matthew Lafontaine is a financial advisor at William Blair with 10 years of industry experience and holds a Series 66 credential. He has worked at William Blair since 2015 and is also a principal and head of baseball operations at The Yard, an indoor baseball facility. Additionally, he coaches baseball on weekends for New Trier Pony. William Blair’s Private Wealth Management division offers investment management, financial planning, and wealth services to individuals, foundations, pension, and corporate clients. The firm employs active, research-driven strategies across multiple asset classes and provides proprietary models and access to private funds through its MB Investments Program.

Thomas Buhrmann is a financial advisor at Focus Partners Wealth, LLC with 12 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has worked previously at Kovitz Investment Group Partners, LLC and Strategic Wealth Partners Group LLC. Focus Partners Wealth, LLC provides wealth advisory and investment management services to individuals, high-net-worth families, family offices, retirement plans, institutions, and businesses. The firm employs a long-term investment approach that emphasizes tax- and fee-sensitivity within an enhanced open architecture framework, combining active and passive strategies along with private and registered funds.

James Hammack is a ChFC® credentialed financial advisor with nine years of industry experience. He is currently with William Blair and has previously worked at InterOcean Capital Group, InterOcean Capital, Kestra Advisory, and NFP Corporate Services. William Blair’s Private Wealth Management division offers investment management, financial planning, and wealth services to individuals, foundations, pension, and corporate clients, employing an active, research-driven approach across various asset classes and providing access to proprietary models and private investment opportunities.

Cole Pedro is a Series 66 licensed financial advisor with six years of industry experience. He is currently with Goldman Sachs Wealth Services, where he has worked since 2019, previously holding roles at The Ayco Company and Mercer Allied. Goldman Sachs Wealth Services provides comprehensive financial planning and portfolio management to a diverse client base, including individual, corporate, executive, and institutional clients. The firm offers tailored investment strategies supported by proprietary research, and integrates resources across the broader Goldman Sachs network to deliver specialized wealth and advisory services.