Shane Swanson is a financial advisor at Mutual of Omaha Investor Services, Inc. with 31 years of industry experience. He holds the CFP® and ChFC® designations and has worked with firms including New York Life Insurance Company and Eagle Strategies. In addition to his advisory role, he is licensed as an insurance agent, focusing on life, annuity, disability, and long-term care insurance. Mutual of Omaha Investor Services, Inc. provides advisory and retirement-plan services to individuals, retirement plans, corporations, and charitable organizations. The firm offers financial planning, third-party money manager programs, and managed accounts, operating primarily through a network of Investment Advisor Representatives who recommend approved products and strategies.

James Neaylon is a financial advisor at IP Financial Advisory Services LLC with 39 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and previously worked at MML Investors Services, Inc. for 25 years and Equitable Advisors for one year. Outside of his advisory work, Neaylon serves as president of the Illinois Manufacturing Foundation, a nonprofit focused on adult education, and holds board positions with several nonprofit organizations related to mental health and education. IP Financial Advisory Services primarily serves individual retail clients, offering portfolio management, financial planning, managed account programs, and retirement-plan consulting. The firm emphasizes customized portfolios and a focus on non–high-net-worth individuals, combining traditional investment advisory services with insurance and risk management consulting.

John Braeseke is a financial advisor at Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC with 39 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and previously worked at Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. for 35 years. Outside of finance, he is involved in voiceover and acting work. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC serves a diverse client base including individuals, trusts, endowments, and corporations, offering portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement services. The firm employs a long-term, diversified investment approach with customized portfolios and sponsors affiliated pooled investment vehicles.

Michele Strauts is a financial advisor with Ausdal Financial Partners, Inc. in Park Ridge, IL, holding a Series 66 designation and 22 years of industry experience. She has been with Ausdal Financial Partners since 2010. Outside of her advisory work, Michele is an online influencer focusing on interior design, seasonal decor, and table setting. Ausdal Financial Partners is an SEC-registered investment adviser and FINRA-member broker-dealer managing approximately $2.13 billion in client assets through a network of 152 advisors. The firm offers investment advisory programs, retirement plan services, and financial planning to individuals, trusts, corporations, pension plans, and charitable organizations, utilizing both discretionary and non-discretionary strategies across a wide range of investment products.

Kenneth Guttentag is a financial advisor with Northern Trust Securities, Inc. in Chicago, IL. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 registrations and has 29 years of industry experience, including 26 years with Northern Trust Securities. Northern Trust Securities, Inc. is a multi-team firm providing discretionary portfolio management through a wrap fee program. The firm serves high-net-worth individuals, retail investors, and institutional clients using model-driven strategies that combine proprietary and third-party investment products with brokerage and custody services.

Luke Pawelkiewicz is a financial advisor with Fourstar Wealth Advisors, LLC in Chicago, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and 11 years of industry experience. His previous roles include positions at Northwestern Mutual Investment Services and Corey McQuade. Fourstar Wealth Advisors serves individuals, retirement and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and business entities, offering financial planning, discretionary portfolio management, and retirement-plan consulting. The firm employs a combined fundamental and technical analysis approach and manages portfolios primarily on a discretionary basis, tailoring investments to client risk tolerance and time horizon.

Saraphina Peters is a financial advisor at Merit Financial Advisors with one year of industry experience. She holds a Series 66 designation and has previously worked at Purshe Kaplan Sterling Investments, Commonwealth Financial Network, Blueprint Wealth Advisors, and other firms. Merit Financial Group, LLC is an SEC-registered advisory firm managing approximately $10.6 billion and serving a diverse client base including individuals, corporate clients, retirement plan sponsors, and charitable organizations. The firm employs a long-term, diversified investment approach through tailored model portfolios and offers specialized services such as fiduciary and ESOP trustee work.

Michael Drozd is a financial advisor at LaSalle St. Investment Advisors, L.L.C. with 12 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has prior work history at Bank of America, Merrill, Citigroup, and JPMorgan Chase Bank. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors provides personalized, fee-based financial planning and investment supervisory services to individuals, trusts, estates, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and small businesses. The firm offers both non-discretionary and discretionary asset management programs, with a notable predominance of non-discretionary assets under management.

Kathleen Hosty is a CFP® with 36 years of industry experience, currently serving as a financial advisor at IHT Wealth Management LLC since 2019. Her prior experience includes roles at LPL Financial, Independent Financial Partners, and 1st Global Insurance Services. She has served on the board of the Chicago Finance Exchange, a nonprofit organization. IHT Wealth Management serves individuals, corporate and institutional clients, and retirement plan sponsors through discretionary asset management, financial planning, and outsourced CIO arrangements. The firm utilizes a combination of fundamental value screening, quantitative optimization, and periodic rebalancing to tailor portfolios to clients’ objectives, risk tolerances, and tax circumstances.

Edward Malysiak Jr. is a financial advisor at Chicago Capital, LLC with 36 years of industry experience. He held a position at William Blair and Company, L.L.C. for 20 years before joining Chicago Capital in 2024. He serves on the Investment Policy Committee of The Carle Foundation, a nonprofit hospital in Urbana, Illinois, and has been a member of its investment committee since 1990. Chicago Capital provides discretionary investment management, financial planning, and consulting services to individuals, families, foundations, registered investment advisers, and corporations. The firm employs an active management approach combining fundamental and technical research to construct individualized portfolios and manages over $4.8 billion in client assets with a focused team of 11 advisors.

Kyle Dell is a financial advisor at LaSalle St. Investment Advisors, L.L.C. He holds a Series 66 designation and has been in the industry since 2023. His prior experience includes roles at LaSalle St. Securities, LLC, RHM, Avenue Logistics, Airliner, and American Metalcraft. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors serves individuals, trusts, estates, pension and profit-sharing plans, corporations, and charitable organizations with fee-based financial planning and portfolio management services. The firm employs a range of investment strategies across various asset classes, managing both non-discretionary and discretionary accounts, with an emphasis on non-discretionary management.

Arash Kadivar is a financial advisor at HighPoint Planning Partners with 15 years of industry experience. He holds the CFP® designation and several securities licenses, including Series 63, 65, and 66. Prior to joining HighPoint, he worked at LPL Financial, TD Ameritrade, Charles Schwab, and ALPS Holdings. HighPoint Advisor Group serves a diverse client base including individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm offers discretionary asset management and financial planning, using fundamental analysis and multiple investment platforms to implement tailored portfolios.

Kyle Laska is a financial advisor at Northern Trust Securities, Inc. with six years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has worked previously at North Shore Sign Company, The Ayco Company, L.P./Mercer Allied, and Clybourne. Northern Trust Securities, Inc. is an SEC-registered investment adviser and FINRA-registered broker-dealer serving high-net-worth individuals, retail investors, and institutional clients. The firm offers model-driven discretionary portfolio management through Separately Managed Accounts, Fund Strategist Portfolios, and Strategist UMAs, combining advisory, brokerage, and custody services.

Dennis Wojcicki is a financial advisor at Forum Financial Management, LP with 28 years of industry experience. He has been with Forum Financial Management since 2013 and previously worked at DSL Group from 1997 to 2013. He holds a Series 63 designation. Forum Financial Management, LP provides fee-based wealth management, financial planning, qualified plan services, and educational workshops to individual and institutional clients. The firm also serves as a sub-advisor and turn-key asset management platform for other independent RIAs, managing portfolios primarily with DFA institutional mutual funds and ETFs following a Modern Portfolio Theory approach.

Steven Schmuhl is a financial advisor at McAdam LLC in Chicago, IL, with eight years of industry experience. He has held roles at Madison Avenue Securities and Purshe Kaplan Sterling Investments prior to joining McAdam. Schmuhl holds Series 65 and Series 63 licenses. McAdam LLC serves individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations, and government entities, including high-net-worth households. The firm provides financial planning, investment management, and retirement plan consulting, using a discretionary approach that incorporates a range of investment vehicles such as mutual funds, ETFs, individual securities, and specialized exposures like direct indexing and private investment funds.

John Vires is a CFP® and CFA® with 10 years of industry experience. He is currently a financial advisor at Forum Financial Management, LP and also provides financial advice through Mathieson, Moyski, Austin & Co., an accounting firm. Outside of his advisory roles, he volunteers with the Lions Club of Wheaton and serves as a Park Commissioner for the Wheaton Park District. Forum Financial Management, LP offers fee-based wealth management, financial planning, and qualified plan services to individual and institutional clients. The firm also serves as a sub-advisor and turnkey asset management platform for other independent RIAs, implementing primarily Modern Portfolio Theory-based portfolios using institutional mutual funds, ETFs, and other fixed income strategies.

David Pazdan is a financial advisor at Northern Trust Securities, Inc. with 29 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been with Northern Trust Securities since 2014. Northern Trust Securities, Inc. is a subsidiary of Northern Trust Corporation that provides discretionary portfolio management through a model-driven wrap fee program. The firm serves high-net-worth individuals, retail investors, and institutional clients, offering a range of managed account solutions with brokerage and custody services integrated into its platform.

Craig Ibrahim is a financial advisor at HighPoint Planning Partners with 22 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has been with HighPoint Advisor Group since 2016, also maintaining a relationship with LPL Financial since 2009. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved in several tax preparation and accounting ventures. HighPoint Advisor Group provides discretionary asset management, financial planning, and consulting services to a diverse client base, including individuals, pension plans, trusts, and charitable organizations. The firm manages approximately $4.0 billion in client assets and employs a fundamental analysis approach to construct individualized investment policies across various asset classes and custodial platforms.

Benjamin Offenhartz is a financial advisor at Savvy in Chicago, IL, holding a Series 65 designation with over six years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at Nuveen, Northern Trust, The Mather Group, Capital Group, and Pacific Investment Company LLC. Savvy provides customized discretionary and non-discretionary investment and wealth management services to individuals, trusts and estates, ERISA retirement plans, charitable organizations, corporations, and other legal entities. The firm’s investment approach combines an index-based core with tailored strategies such as direct indexing with tax-loss harvesting, active and passive stock portfolios, option overlays, and ESG-focused models, supported by a parent technology platform and third-party sub-advisers.

Samantha Ngooi is a CFP® professional with four years of industry experience. She currently serves as a financial advisor at Apella Wealth and previously worked at Park Piedmont Advisors LLC and the University of Chicago Medicine. Apella Wealth serves a diverse client base including individuals, retirement plan sponsors, foundations, and institutions. The firm employs a model-driven, quantitative investment approach and offers a range of services such as discretionary and non-discretionary management, financial planning, sub-advisory relationships, and consulting.