Long before I knew what CFP® meant, I was very interested in money and personal finance. Although I was unsure what my career would ultimately look like, I wanted to be confident and secure in my family's finances and future. In my final year of college, I was fortunate to study under the head of the finance department, who was also a practicing financial planner. From that point forward, the idea of being an independent financial advisor— a trusted partner serving people just like my parents— was my dream job. The first decade-plus of my career was dedicated to building the experience, knowledge, and credentials required to best serve my clients. In 2021, I founded Kardinal Financial to continue this pursuit and to deliver the ideal financial planning experience, unshackled by the status quo and constraints of "this is how it's always been done." Everything at Kardinal Financial—the relationship structure, the investment philosophy, the technology, the fees, everything—is designed to best serve my clients. I have over a decade of experience in financial services. My experience includes serving as the Director of Investment Research at a $2.5 billion wealth management firm and an investment portfolio manager to individuals and families. I have obtained the Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) and Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designations. When I'm not working, you'll likely find me spending time with my wife (Maggie) and kids (Rose & Calvin), playing soccer, watching Manchester United, or on a walk with a good podcast.

Jeffrey Tomlinson is a CFA charterholder and the sole advisor at Boulevard Investment Management LLC in Santa Monica, CA, with four years of industry experience. He previously worked at Joel Mogy Investment Counsel, Inc. for eight years before starting his own practice. Boulevard Investment Management LLC is an independent, single-advisor registered investment adviser serving high-net-worth individuals with discretionary portfolio management and financial consulting. The firm manages approximately $51.5 million across a small number of clients, offering tailored investment strategies that include equities, fixed income, alternative investments, and more, with a focus on bespoke client relationships.

Rolando Intia is a financial advisor at ITaxAndInvestments, Inc. with six years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at firms including Lakeshore Capital Group, J.W. Cole Advisors, and Transamerica Financial Advisors. ITaxAndInvestments, Inc. provides tax preparation, financial planning, and discretionary portfolio management to a diverse client base, including individuals, retirement and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and businesses. The firm combines investment advisory and tax/accounting services, using both fundamental and technical analysis to tailor investment recommendations and generally managing accounts on a discretionary basis.

Todd Meier is a CFA® charterholder with 12 years of industry experience. He has been the sole advisor at Boz & Company LLC since 2013, based in Lake Oswego, OR. Boz & Company LLC provides discretionary investment management and financial planning services to individuals, small businesses, and various institutional clients, including charitable organizations and employer-sponsored retirement plans. The firm follows a Graham-and-Buffett value investing philosophy with a long-term horizon and incorporates a “Special Situations” sleeve targeting merger arbitrage and distressed assets, employing derivatives and margin borrowing in its strategies.

Eric McGinley is the sole advisor at POV Wealth LLC in Falls Church, VA, holding a Series 66 credential with 11 years of industry experience. His work history includes roles at USA Financial Securities, Securities America, and Park Avenue Securities. Outside of advising, he officiates field hockey and lacrosse games and provides college funding and student loan consultation services. POV Wealth LLC offers financial planning and discretionary asset management for individuals, families, trusts, and businesses. The firm emphasizes documented client profiles, periodic portfolio reviews, and diversified investment strategies, along with educational seminars and coordination of held-away and custodial accounts.

M. Kimerly Polak is a CFP® professional with five years of industry experience and has been with Polero Ice Advisers since 2008. She operates as the sole advisor at the independent firm based in New York, NY. Polero Ice Advisers is a fee-only advisory firm serving primarily high-net-worth individuals, charitable organizations, and clients with more modest resources. The firm manages discretionary accounts using low-cost, diversified portfolios primarily through exchange-traded and mutual funds, employing a billing model based on retainers, hourly fees, or fixed planning fees rather than percentage-of-assets charges.

Brandon Perry is a CFP® and ChFC® with 22 years of industry experience. He is the principal of Perry Investment Management, LLC, an independent firm he has led since 2009 in Round Rock, TX. Perry Investment Management is a fee-only registered investment adviser managing approximately $27 million in discretionary assets. The firm serves individuals, nonprofits, corporate pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable institutions, foundations, and endowments, using an IPS-driven approach focused on risk control and loss limitation through diversified portfolios comprising stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, and bonds.

Ryan Fisher is a financial advisor with DentVest LLC in Fort Wayne, IN. He holds the CFP® designation and Series 63 license, with eight years of industry experience. Prior to founding DentVest, he worked at White Coat Wealth Management and Old National Wealth Management. Fisher also serves as a part-time CFO for a dental practice. DentVest is a small, state-registered independent advisory firm serving individual clients, pension and profit-sharing plans, and charitable organizations. The firm employs a primarily passive, model-driven investment approach using third-party models and technology platforms, complemented by comprehensive financial planning services.

Frank Crosby is a Series 65-licensed financial advisor with Jamerson-Crosby Investment Advisors LLC in Detroit, MI, bringing 12 years of industry experience. He concurrently works as a full-time research scientist at the U.S. Department of Defense's Naval Surface Warfare Center in Panama City, Florida. Jamerson-Crosby Investment Advisors LLC offers investment advisory and portfolio management services to individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, foundations, and endowments. The firm employs a quantitative and economic analysis-driven investment process, combining long-term asset allocation with ongoing monitoring and rebalancing, and provides free services to nonprofit charitable organizations.

Scott Jacobsmeyer is a CFP® with 20 years of industry experience and has been with Argent Wealth Management, Inc. since 2005. He is based in Round Rock, TX, and holds a Series 65 license. Argent Wealth Management provides personalized financial planning and investment management to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and small businesses on a fee-only basis. The firm employs a strategic asset allocation approach using primarily passive mutual funds and ETFs, with an emphasis on non-discretionary management and periodic rebalancing.

Zakriah Gardezy is a CFP® with nine years of industry experience, currently serving as the sole advisor at Wealthstone Private Wealth Management, LLC. He previously worked at Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo in various capacities between 2016 and 2024. Wealthstone Private Wealth Management provides portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement plan consulting to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, corporations, and employer-sponsored retirement plans. The firm uses a comprehensive investment approach that includes fundamental, technical, quantitative, and sector analysis, and it offers a monthly subscription service aimed at young professionals and DIY investors.

Garrick Ruiz is an investment advisor with Aquifer Asset Management, LLC in San Antonio, TX, holding the ChFC® designation and Series 63 and 66 licenses, with 17 years of industry experience. He has worked at several firms including Carolina Financial Securities, LLC and Usaa Investment Management Company. Ruiz is also a licensed General Lines insurance agent in Texas. Aquifer Asset Management provides discretionary portfolio management and consulting services to individual and high-net-worth clients, employing a combination of fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis across diversified mutual funds, ETFs, equities, and bonds. The firm operates with a single adviser under written discretionary authority, using client-directed custodians without aggregating trades or accepting proxy-voting authority.

Carmel York is a financial advisor at Clym LLC with four years of industry experience. She holds the Series 65 designation and has previously worked in mortgage companies and banking. Outside of her advisory role, she serves as Vice President of Sales at OptiFunder LLC, a subscription software company that automates mortgage operations. Clym LLC provides integrated financial planning and discretionary investment management to individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, business entities, and select institutional clients. The firm operates as a fee-only fiduciary and focuses on portfolio management aligned with clients’ goals, utilizing institutional-class mutual funds, ETFs, and private investments, while also offering educational workshops and coordinating with clients’ other professionals.

Mike took a different path, and every stop along the way shaped how Legs Financial works today. Mike started as a high school physics teacher, where he learned to take genuinely complex ideas and make them clear and actionable for people who had never encountered them before. That skill never left. Years at Vanguard grounded his investment philosophy in evidence, low cost, and long-term discipline. Working with advisors across a multi-state territory at LPL gave him a front-row view of the wide range of practices and offerings in the industry, what worked, what didn’t, and what was missing. Time at a tech startup sharpened his eye for the tools that actually help clients. And a stint at a trust company gave him firsthand experience in trust administration, the kind of operational depth that most advisors simply don’t have. The pattern across all of it: every role added a layer. And when it came time to build his own firm, he couldn’t reconcile the standard model. Charging someone twice as much simply because their portfolio had grown, even when the work hadn’t changed, felt fundamentally misaligned. So he changed the model. Legs Financial operates on a transparent flat fee, quoted upfront based on the complexity of your situation, not the size of your portfolio. Mike earned his ChSNC® (Chartered Special Needs Consultant) designation specifically to offer deeper expertise and better support to families navigating Special Needs Trusts, Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) accounts, and the long-term coordination required to plan for two lifetimes. For him, it isn’t just a credential, it’s a commitment to carrying the heavy pack for families protecting a loved one’s quality of life. Mike and his family moved to North Carolina in 2003, settling in the Lake Norman area before relocating to Greensboro in December 2021. Outside the office, he volunteers as lead for Abilities Tennis in Greensboro, serves on the board of the Guilford Regional Tennis Association (GRETA), leads new Blind and Low-Vision tennis clinics, sits on the Mayor’s Committee for Persons with Disabilities, serves as Operations Lead for the Winston-Salem Open professional tennis tournament, and offers educational seminars to organizations across the area.

Micah Mc Collum is a financial advisor at McCollum Investment Advisors in Dayton, OH, holding a Series 65 designation with six years of industry experience. He previously worked at Carnegie Investment Counsel from 2016 to 2020. McCollum Investment Advisors provides discretionary portfolio management and financial consulting to individuals, non-profit organizations, trusts, estates, and business entities. The firm’s investment approach combines tactical growth driven by supply and demand analysis with strategic allocations for income accounts, using various methods including technical, fundamental, and cyclical analysis, and incorporates margin and options writing in select managed accounts.

Jonathan Hurm is a financial advisor at NextGen Wealth Defense LLC in Lorain, Ohio, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses with 10 years of industry experience. He previously worked at Equitable Advisors LLC for nine years before founding NextGen Wealth Defense in 2024. In addition to his advisory role, he is a licensed insurance agent involved in insurance sales. NextGen Wealth Defense LLC provides discretionary investment management, wealth management, and financial planning services for individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, estates, and businesses. The firm employs a primarily long-term investment approach that combines fundamental and technical analysis with Modern Portfolio Theory and utilizes unaffiliated Independent Managers for portfolio implementation and oversight.

Benjamin Krapu is a financial advisor at QP Financial with five years of industry experience. He holds the CFP® and ChFC® designations and has worked at Knights of Columbus Insurance and Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC. He is also licensed as an insurance agent and remains actively involved in insurance sales alongside his advisory work. QP Financial provides financial planning and portfolio management services to individuals, high-net-worth households, and small businesses. The firm employs an investment approach based on Modern Portfolio Theory with emphasis on scenario analysis and stress testing, implementing portfolios through third-party sub-advisers and offering both comprehensive and modular planning solutions.

Dennis Noss is a financial advisor at Cayman Capital Management, Inc. with 12 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63, 65, and 66 licenses and has a background that includes roles in real estate, tax planning as an IRS Enrolled Agent, insurance sales, and commodity trading advisory. Noss currently operates as a Realtor and provides tax representation and strategic tax planning services. Cayman Capital Management, Inc. offers investment management and financial planning services primarily to individuals, families, trusts, and closely held businesses. The firm employs a selective client model and focuses on asset allocation and broad diversification using ETFs, mutual funds, equities, and bonds, managing portfolios on a non-discretionary basis with client approval required for trades.

Joseph Grundy is a CFP® professional with eight years of industry experience and has been self-employed since 1988. He operates Grundy Financial Advisory Services as a sole advisor and engages in gold futures trading for his own personal benefit. Grundy Financial Advisory Services provides financial planning and discretionary investment management to individuals, families, and small businesses. The firm emphasizes strategic asset allocation based on Modern Portfolio Theory, managing portfolios primarily with mutual funds and ETFs and maintaining a long-term investment approach tailored to clients’ risk tolerance and objectives.

Mukul Khandelia is a financial advisor at Quantwealth Advisors LLC with two years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations and previously worked at Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated and Bank of America, Merrill Lynch. He is also the managing member of Quantroll Capital LLC, a currently dormant entity. Quantwealth Advisors LLC provides discretionary and non-discretionary asset management primarily for high-net-worth individuals, using a combination of quantitative and traditional investment methods. The firm focuses on ongoing portfolio management with quarterly reviews and employs a broad range of strategies tailored to client goals and risk tolerance.