Robert Ochenkowski is a CFA® charterholder based in Chicago, IL, with one year of industry experience. He previously worked at Altair Advisers, Fiducient Advisors, and Northern Trust. He has been associated with Th Colony Group, LLC since 2014. Focus Partners Wealth, LLC serves individuals, high-net-worth families, family offices, corporate and institutional clients with wealth management and advisory services. The firm’s investment approach combines active and passive strategies within an “enhanced open architecture” framework, utilizing fundamental and quantitative analysis alongside specialized tools such as trend-following and options overlay strategies.

Neil Davies is a financial advisor with Creative Planning, LLC, holding Series 65 and Series 66 licenses and seven years of industry experience. He has worked at Creative Planning since 2025 and previously spent over a decade at Capital Strategies Investment Group and Wells Fargo Clearing. Creative Planning provides wealth management, financial planning, and retirement-plan advisory services to a diverse client base, including high-net-worth individuals, pension plans, and corporations. The firm employs a financial-planning-led investment approach that incorporates low-cost indexing, buy-and-hold strategies, and selective private market exposure, managing approximately $295.6 billion in assets across more than 1,100 advisors and 151 offices.

Thomas Peterson is a financial advisor with Eagle Strategies (NY Life) based in Oak Park, Illinois, holding CFP® and ChFC® designations and over 25 years of industry experience. He previously worked at Ameriprise and has been affiliated with New York Life and its related entities since 2008. Peterson is also involved in insurance brokering, operating under the DBA Peterson Financial Group, LLC to sell New York Life products and broker non-registered insurance products. Eagle Strategies serves a diverse client base including individual investors and institutional plans, providing financial planning, investment management, and retirement plan advisory services. The firm emphasizes tailoring its advice to client objectives and manages the majority of its assets on a non-discretionary basis.

Andrea Conway is a CFP® professional at Focus Partners Wealth, LLC with one year of industry experience. She has held prior roles at Kovitz Investment Group Partners, RBC Wealth Management, St. Olaf College, and Dundee Crown High School. Focus Partners Wealth serves individuals, high-net-worth families, family offices, and institutional clients with a broad array of wealth management and advisory services. The firm employs a long-term, tax- and fee-sensitive investment approach that combines active and passive strategies, third-party managers, and private funds within an enhanced open architecture framework.

Scott Urbanski is a financial advisor with Hightower Advisors, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and 23 years of industry experience. He has worked at Hightower Advisors and HighTower Securities since 2019 and previously spent 15 years at Sanford C. Bernstein. Hightower Advisors provides investment advisory and planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, institutions, charitable organizations, and pension plans. The firm emphasizes manager selection and multi-manager solutions, offering access to affiliated and third-party managers through programs that use proprietary research and incorporate a range of investment vehicles.

William Lacy is a CFA® charterholder based in Chicago, IL, with three years of industry experience. He is currently with Focus Partners Wealth, LLC and has previously worked at Calamos Wealth Management LLC, Trinity Financial Advisors LLC, Urban Financial Advisory Corporation, and Lifetime Financial Group. Outside of finance, he has experience in the food and lawncare industries. Focus Partners serves individuals, high-net-worth families, family offices, and institutional clients with wealth management, financial planning, and retirement consulting services. The firm employs a long-term, tax- and fee-sensitive investment approach that combines active and passive strategies, third-party managers, and private funds under an enhanced open architecture framework.

Samuel Hacker is a financial advisor at Corient with a Series 65 designation and three years of industry experience. His background includes roles at Corient Services LLC, CIPW Service Company, CI BDF Private Wealth, Motorola Solutions, and Edible Arrangements, along with an academic tenure at Indiana University–Bloomington. Corient provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base including individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm employs a goals-based, team investment approach that integrates in-house security analysis with third-party manager solutions and customized asset allocation, and it offers specialized services such as family office, tax, and trustee offerings through affiliates.

Benjamin Fernandez is a CFP® certificant with 18 years of experience in the financial services industry. He currently works at Schwab Wealth Advisory Inc. and has held roles at Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., Cambridge Investment Research Inc., Gugliuzza Law, P.C., BMO, and Valic Financial Advisors. He is based in Chicago, IL. Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc. provides non-discretionary fiduciary investment advice and financial planning to clients enrolled in the Schwab Wealth Advisory program and certain Charles Schwab & Co.-referred clients. The firm’s guidance is based on Schwab’s internal research tools and asset-allocation models, delivering tailored recommendations with client authorization for trades.

Douglas Nardi is a CFA® charterholder with 26 years of industry experience. He is currently with Cerity Partners LLC and has previously worked at HPM Partners LLC, 1919 Investment Counsel, LLC, and DWS Investment Management Americas, Inc. He is based in Chicago, IL. Cerity Partners provides customized wealth management and related services to a wide range of clients, including individuals, families, trusts, business entities, charitable organizations, and institutional investors. The firm uses a tailored approach to asset allocation and manager selection, combining proprietary quantitative screens with external managers and individual securities.

Edgardo Devariel is a financial advisor at William Blair with six years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at William Blair since 2017, with a three-year tenure at Pritzker Private Capital and prior experience at Ernst & Young. William Blair’s Private Wealth Management division provides investment management, financial planning, and wealth services to individuals, foundations, pension, and corporate clients. The firm employs an active, research-driven approach across equities, fixed income, and alternative strategies, offering proprietary models and access to private funds through its MB Investments Program.

Gilbert Fitzgerald is a financial advisor at William Blair with five years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at William Blair since 2020. His prior experience includes roles at Discover Financial Services and a position at Indiana University-Bloomington. 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 an active, research-driven management approach across multiple asset classes and provides proprietary models, third-party sub-advisers, and access to private funds through its MB Investments Program.

Daniel Leibforth is a financial advisor with Citigroup Global Markets in Chicago, IL, holding a Series 66 license and 14 years of industry experience. He has been with Citi since 2012. Outside of his advisory role, he manages DLJB Ventures LLC and 532 Capital LLC, where he focuses on investment and real estate opportunities. Citigroup Global Markets serves individual and institutional clients across various wealth segments, offering multi-asset, multi-manager investment strategies through discretionary and non-discretionary programs. The firm combines large institutional scale with unique market roles, including in-house research and derivatives services.

Jason Sternberg is a CFP® professional with experience across real estate and financial services. He currently works at Corient and previously held roles at Vivaldi Capital Management, Peak Realty, and ICM Properties. He is based in Chicago, IL. Corient provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, pension plans, and corporations. The firm uses a goals-based, team investment approach that integrates in-house strategies with third-party managers and risk management tools.

Griffin Lau is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) and holds a Series 66 license with five years of industry experience. He is currently with Corient, where he has worked for one year, following previous roles at Vivaldi Capital Management, RBC Capital Markets, Wells Fargo, and Ameriprise Financial. Corient provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, trusts, pension plans, and charitable organizations. The firm uses a goals-based team approach combining in-house strategies with third-party managers, incorporating risk management tools and alternative investments as appropriate.

John Roessler is a CFP® credentialed financial advisor at Focus Partners Wealth, LLC with 22 years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at Kovitz Securities, LLC and Kovitz Investment Group Partners, LLC, as well as earlier tenures at Firstwave Financial Inc and Budros, Ruhlin & Roe. Focus Partners serves individuals, high-net-worth families, family offices, and institutional clients with wealth management, financial and tax planning, and retirement plan consulting. The firm employs a long-term, tax- and fee-sensitive investment approach that combines active and passive strategies, third-party managers, and private funds within an enhanced open architecture framework.

Eric Grauer is a CFP® and holds a Series 66 license with 10 years of industry experience. He has worked at Creative Planning since 2021 and previously held roles at Raymond James Financial Services and Invesco. Creative Planning provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, corporations, foundations, trusts, and retirement plans. The firm manages approximately $217 billion in assets and employs a financial planning-led investment approach that emphasizes low-cost indexing and buy-and-hold strategies, supplemented by tactical options such as direct indexing and tax-loss harvesting.

Jake Bernarde is a financial advisor at Citigroup Global Markets with three years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and previously worked at Northwestern Mutual Investment Service LLC and Robert Mohr. Bernarde’s background also includes roles at Hillcrest Builders and Allar Unlimited. Citigroup Global Markets serves individual and institutional clients across various wealth segments, offering a broad range of investment advisory programs, broker-dealer execution, and custody services. The firm employs multi-asset, multi-manager strategies and combines large institutional scale with unique market roles, including in-house research and serving as a swap dealer and futures commission merchant.

Stephanie Feldman is a financial advisor with Mesirow Financial Investment Management, Inc. in Chicago, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 66 credentials and having 14 years of industry experience. She has been with Mesirow Financial since 2013. Outside of her advisory role, she serves as co-treasurer for the parent organization of Solomon Schechter Day School, a nonprofit private elementary school. 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 comprehensive investment approach that includes setting asset allocation targets, due diligence across various asset classes, and offering access to proprietary private investment products and affiliated feeder funds.

Matthew Clark is a financial advisor at Janney Montgomery Scott in Chicago, IL, with 15 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 63 and Series 66 designations. Prior to joining Janney Montgomery Scott in 2025, he worked at Bank of America, Merrill, and J.P. Morgan in various roles spanning from 2011 to 2025. Clark also serves as an associate board member for the Daniel Murphy Scholarship Foundation, reviewing applications for prospective students. Janney Montgomery Scott is a large, dually registered broker-dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser managing approximately $110 billion in client assets. The firm serves a diverse client base including individuals, families, trusts, estates, corporate and retirement plan sponsors, charitable organizations, and municipal clients, offering brokerage, financial planning, consulting, and multiple advisory programs.

Kevin Brock is a financial advisor with William Blair in Chicago, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 37 years of industry experience. He has been with William Blair & Co., L.L.C. since 2002 and previously worked at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Securities Corporation beginning in 1993. William Blair’s Private Wealth Management division serves individuals, including high-net-worth clients, as well as foundations, pension plans, and corporations. The firm employs an active, research-driven investment approach across multiple asset classes and offers proprietary models, third-party sub-advisers, and access to private funds through its MB Investments Program.