Steven Podgorski is a financial advisor with Capital Analysts in Lombard, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 66 designations and bringing 19 years of industry experience. He has been with Lincoln Investment since 2016 and operates Aspire Financial Group, primarily servicing legacy accounts. In addition to his advisory work, he manages an LLC established for liability protection. Capital Analysts serves a diverse client base, including individuals, high-net-worth investors, retirement plans, trusts, and charitable organizations. The firm offers discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management with a focus on proprietary investment models, third-party manager access, and fiduciary advisory services.

Carlos Coutinho Maia is a financial advisor at Navy Federal Investment Services, LLC with five years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has previously worked at firms including JP Morgan Securities, Equitable Advisors, Prudential Insurance Company of America, and Edward Jones. Outside of finance, he was involved in operating Carambola Gelato and Coffee Shop LLC for two years. Navy Federal Investment Services primarily serves members of Navy Federal Credit Union, individual investors, and trusts, offering portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement-plan fiduciary services. The firm utilizes model portfolios managed by third-party advisers on platforms such as Envestnet, providing account monitoring, rebalancing, and optional tax and impact overlay services.

Tara Hill is a CFP® professional with four years of industry experience. She is currently associated with Mariner Independent and Fortitude Financial Partners. Her prior experience includes roles at Brown Brothers Harriman and Northern Trust. Mariner Independent serves individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and business entities. The firm offers financial planning, portfolio management, retirement plan consulting, tax support, insurance solutions, and access to alternative investments, utilizing both firm-built model portfolios and customized discretionary portfolios.

Jennifer Taylor is a CFP® with 29 years of experience in the financial services industry. She currently works at Pure Financial Advisors, LLC and has prior experience at Fairhaven Wealth Management and Fidelity, where she spent over 25 years in various advisory roles. Pure Financial Advisors provides financial planning and portfolio management primarily for individual and high-net-worth clients, as well as trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and pension and profit-sharing plans. The firm emphasizes a planning-centered investment approach overseen by an Investment Committee and incorporates tax-aware strategies, sub-advisers, and a multi-advisor platform supported by enterprise-scale infrastructure.

Jennifer Shepard is a financial advisor at Curi Capital, LLC with 18 years of industry experience. She holds the CFP®, CFA®, and Series 63 designations. Her prior experience includes roles at United Capital Financial Advisers, LLC and Altair Advisers. Curi Capital serves individuals, families, institutional and corporate clients, retirement plan sponsors, charitable organizations, and pooled investment vehicles through a variety of services including wealth management, asset management, and retirement plan solutions. The firm employs a long-term, fundamental investment approach and combines in-house strategies with external managers, managing approximately $9.83 billion in assets.

Justin Leslein is a financial advisor at Northern Trust Securities, Inc. with nine years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has been with Northern Trust Securities since 2016. 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 a wrap fee program, utilizing a mix of proprietary and third-party investment products delivered via the Fidelity Managed Account Xchange platform.

Howard Kite is a CFP® and ChFC® with 44 years of industry experience. He is currently with Forum Financial Management, LP, where he has worked since 2009, and previously held roles at Purshe Kaplan Sterling Investment and PKS Advisory Services, LLC. Outside of his advisory work, he is a member of several non-investment-related business entities, including real estate management ventures. Forum Financial Management, LP provides 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, offering model portfolios managed primarily with DFA institutional mutual funds and ETFs under a Modern Portfolio Theory approach.

Michael Ryabik is a financial advisor at The Mather Group, LLC in Chicago, IL, with 16 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 63 and Series 65 designations and has been with The Mather Group since 2016. The Mather Group serves high-net-worth individuals, family offices, trusts, corporations, and other entities by providing comprehensive financial planning, investment management, tax and estate planning guidance, and family office services. The firm uses an evidence-based investment approach with multiple risk-based models and offers customization options such as direct indexing and ESG portfolios.

James Niedermeier is a financial advisor at Ausdal Financial Partners, Inc. with 40 years of industry experience. He has been with Ausdal since 2009 and also owns Niedermeier Agency, through which he is involved in insurance sales. Ausdal Financial Partners is an SEC-registered investment adviser and FINRA-member broker-dealer managing approximately $2.13 billion in client assets. The firm offers a range of investment advisory programs, retirement plan services, and financial planning to individuals, trusts, corporations, pension plans, and charitable organizations.

Christopher Janc is a financial advisor with Northern Trust Securities, Inc. in Chicago, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 66 credentials and 12 years of industry experience. His prior experience includes roles at Merrill, Wells Fargo, and J.P. Morgan. Outside of his advisory work, he serves as secretary and member of Duneland 1 LLC, an entity formed with his spouse to own a dual-use vacation and rental property. 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 discretionary portfolio management through model-driven strategies including Separately Managed Accounts and Fund Strategist Portfolios, utilizing both proprietary and third-party investment products.

Kevin Geiger is a financial advisor with Blackridge Asset Management, LLC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 credentials and 16 years of industry experience. He has worked with several firms, including The Retirement Guys Formula and Retirement Wealth Advisors. Geiger is also involved with Geiger Investments and Peak Brokerage Services, where he engages in brokerage and insurance-related activities. Blackridge Asset Management provides financial planning, investment management, and consulting services to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, estates, corporations, retirement plans, and charitable organizations. The firm utilizes model-based portfolio management, third-party money manager referrals, and estate-planning support delivered through an online platform.

Matthew Kahovec is a CFP® and holds a Series 65 license with seven years of industry experience. He has worked at The Mather Group, LLC since 2019, following five years at Astraeus Advisers LLC. The Mather Group primarily serves high-net-worth individuals, family offices, trusts, corporations, and other entities, providing financial planning, investment management, tax and estate planning guidance, and family office services. The firm employs an evidence-based investment approach with risk-based allocation models and tax-synchronized portfolio construction, offering customization options such as direct indexing and ESG factor portfolios.

Cooper White is a financial advisor at Waverly Advisors, LLC with 15 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has worked at Promus Capital since 2010 alongside his current role at Waverly Advisors. He serves as an advisory committee member for Apogem Real Asset Funds, Ridge Lake GP Stakes Fund, and Kayne Anderson Direct Lending. Waverly Advisors is a multi-team registered investment adviser managing portfolios for individuals, retirement plans, and pooled investment vehicles. The firm integrates traditional equity and fixed-income strategies with alternative and private-markets allocations and offers a range of investment management and planning services.

Christopher Martella is a financial advisor with First Advisors National, LLC in Chicago, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 65 designations and two years of industry experience. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved in real estate and energy consulting through Domain Properties, Keystone Property Management, and Navigate Power. First Advisors National provides investment management, asset allocation advice, and retirement plan consulting primarily to individual clients, implementing strategies mainly via third-party money managers and employing both tactical and strategic asset allocation methodologies.

Robin Patinkin is a CFP®, CFA®, and Series 65 credentialed advisor with 22 years of industry experience. He is currently with The Mather Group, LLC and has prior experience at Focus Partners Wealth, The Colony Group, InterOcean Capital Group, and Cedar Hill Associates. The Mather Group serves high-net-worth individuals, family offices, trusts, corporations, and other entities by providing financial planning, investment management, tax and estate planning guidance, and family office services. The firm employs an evidence-based investment approach with risk-based allocation models and offers customization options including direct indexing and ESG portfolios.

Elliott Vaughn is a CFP® and holds a Series 66 license with 10 years of industry experience. He is currently with IHT Wealth Management LLC and has previously been associated with Prairie Sky Financial Group, LLC and LPL Financial, LLC. Vaughn operates Prairie Sky Financial Group, an independent investment advisor firm through which he provides advisory services. IHT Wealth Management serves individual, corporate, and institutional clients, including retirement plan sponsors, offering discretionary asset management, financial planning, and ERISA plan consulting among other services. The firm’s investment process integrates fundamental value analysis with quantitative methods and uses proprietary models and third-party managers tailored to client objectives.

Jeffrey Menough is a CFP® professional with 34 years of experience in the financial industry. He has been with Highpoint Planning Partners since 2013 and also maintains a longstanding affiliation with LPL Financial beginning in 2010. Menough has established a home-based business entity for tax and investment purposes that he manages with limited monthly time commitment. Highpoint Planning Partners serves a diverse clientele including individuals, high-net-worth clients, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm provides asset management, financial planning, retirement plan advisory, and utilizes a range of investment vehicles and third-party platforms to deliver tailored advisory services.

Eric Fasse is a financial advisor at Northern Trust Securities, Inc. in Chicago, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses with four years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at Cabrera Capital Partners, Cabrera Capital Markets, and American Trust Investment Services. Northern Trust Securities, Inc. provides investment advisory and model-based managed account services to high-net-worth individuals and institutional clients, utilizing a model-driven approach that combines proprietary mutual funds and ETFs with third-party managers. The firm is affiliated with a large banking holding company, offering custody and broker-dealer services alongside its advisory programs.

Connor Garrigus is a financial advisor with Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC holding a Series 65 designation. He joined the firm in 2026 and previously held positions related to education at Wake Forest University and Loyola Academy. He has no prior industry experience before joining Chicago Partners Investment Group. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC provides discretionary and non-discretionary investment advisory services to high-net-worth individuals, trusts, not-for-profit plans, endowments, corporations, and other business entities. The firm employs a long-term, diversified, asset-allocation oriented investment approach that incorporates fundamental analysis and quantitative optimization across various asset classes including mutual funds, ETFs, direct indexing, and fixed income.

Christopher Peterson is a financial advisor at Highpoint Planning Partners with two years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and previously worked for St. Charles Bank & Trust Company N.A. for ten years before joining Highpoint Advisor Group and LPL Financial in 2024. Highpoint Advisor Group serves individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm offers discretionary asset management and financial planning services, constructing client investment policies through personal consultations and implementing portfolios using fundamental analysis across a range of securities and third-party platforms.