William Howson is a CFP® with ten years of industry experience, currently serving as a financial advisor at Mariner Wealth Advisors since 2025. His prior roles include four years at HighTower Securities LLC and Bank of America, as well as experience at Merrill and The Vanguard Group. Mariner serves a diverse client base that includes individuals, pension plans, trusts, and charitable organizations, offering investment management, financial planning, retirement consulting, and tax services. The firm employs discretionary, customized portfolios supported by an internal investment team and third-party managers, and provides enhanced tax and accounting integration as well as family office and employer financial wellness solutions.

Mark Diorio is a financial advisor with Brookstone Capital Management LLC, holding a CFA® designation and Series 63 and 65 licenses, with 16 years of industry experience. He has been with Brookstone since 2015 and previously worked at Parasol Investment Management and Pennant Management Inc. Brookstone Capital Management provides fee-based asset management and financial planning to a diverse client base including individuals, retirement plans, corporations, and trusts. The firm employs strategic and dynamic asset-allocation models and offers discretionary portfolio management through a turnkey asset management platform and wrap-fee program.

James Alexander is a CFP® certified financial advisor at Cerity Partners LLC with 16 years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at Edge Portfolio Management, TD Ameritrade Investment Management, and Scottrade. Cerity Partners provides customized wealth management services to a diverse national client base, including individuals, families, trusts, business entities, and institutional investors. The firm employs tailored asset-allocation and manager selection strategies, integrating proprietary quantitative screens alongside third-party managers and individual securities.

Melissa Hollon is a financial advisor with Principal Financial Services and holds the Series 66 designation. She has four years of industry experience and has worked with firms including Massino Financial Group, Tempus Labs Inc, PwC, and PepsiCo. Hollon serves as Treasurer of the Professional Women's Club of Chicago, overseeing the organization's financial management and budgeting. Principal Securities provides brokerage and registered investment advisory services to a diverse client base, including individual investors, retirement plans, trusts, and charitable organizations. The firm offers financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and access to third-party money manager solutions through various adviser and promoter arrangements.

Tyrone Ball is a financial advisor with Commonwealth Financial Network based in Barrington, IL, holding a Series 66 designation and 12 years of industry experience. His prior work includes eight years at Edward D. Jones & Co. L.P. and four years at Best Energy LLC. Commonwealth Financial Network is a registered investment adviser serving a national network of approximately 2,950 advisors and their clients. The firm provides advisory programs, technology, and operational support while offering a variety of investment solutions, including discretionary model portfolios and customized program structures.

John Cimaroli is a financial advisor at William Blair with 14 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 63 and Series 66 designations and has been with William Blair since 2013. Prior to that, he worked at T. Rowe Price beginning in 2003. 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 various investment strategies and provides proprietary models and access to private funds and co-investment opportunities.

Michael Moleski is a CFP® professional with 22 years of industry experience, currently serving at Creative Planning since 2012. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses. Outside of his advisory role, Moleski manages a family farm business. Creative Planning provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, corporations, and retirement plans, managing approximately $217 billion in assets. The firm emphasizes a financial planning-led investment approach with low-cost indexing and offers a range of supplemental strategies and integrated retirement plan services.

Susan Penno is a financial advisor at Cetera Planning Partners with three years of industry experience. She holds the PFS™ designation and previously worked at Avantax Planning Partners. In addition to her advisory role, she owns Sassetti, LLC, a tax and accounting firm where she provides tax compliance and planning services. Cetera Planning Partners serves individual and high-net-worth clients, focusing on pre-retirees and retirees by offering investment management, financial planning, Social Security optimization, and retirement advice. The firm’s approach features diversified allocations aligned with client objectives, supported by ancillary services such as tax planning, bookkeeping, and estate planning through third-party providers.

Mekhroj Toshpulatov is a financial advisor at Citigroup Global Markets with Series 63 and Series 66 credentials and four years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at Merrill, Bank of America, J.P. Morgan Securities, and JPMorgan Chase Bank. Citigroup Global Markets serves individual and institutional clients across workplace, high-net-worth, and ultra-high-net-worth segments, offering a range of investment advisory programs and brokerage services. The firm employs multi-asset, multi-manager strategies with extensive internal oversight and maintains large institutional capabilities alongside unique market functions such as acting as a swap dealer and futures commission merchant.

Hilary Gellings is a financial advisor at Citigroup Global Markets with 23 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been with Citigroup and its Global Markets division since 2014. Citigroup Global Markets serves individual and institutional clients across various wealth segments, offering a wide range of investment advisory programs and execution services. The firm employs multi-asset, multi-manager strategies and maintains institutional-scale operations, including in-house research and derivatives services.

Benito Ibarra Jr. is a financial advisor at Mariner with 10 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has worked previously at firms including New York Life Insurance Co, Northwestern Mutual, Centaur Financial LLC, and Christopher Financial Group, LLC. He serves as a board member of the Medical Organization of Latino Advancement, a nonprofit association supporting Hispanic/Latino health professionals. Mariner serves a diverse client base including individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, charitable organizations, and corporations. The firm offers investment management, financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and coordinated tax and family office services, implementing customized, discretionary portfolios supported by in-house research and third-party managers.

Lindsey Buse is a financial advisor at PNC Wealth Management with six years of industry experience. She holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at Merrill, Bank of America, Illinois Bank & Trust, and other firms. PNC Wealth Management offers retail brokerage and advisory services through model-based programs, including a digital discretionary model account pilot available to select employees. The firm’s investment approach uses algorithm-driven risk assessment and delegates portfolio implementation to third-party strategists.

Jennifer Cavalier is a financial advisor with Planmember Securities Corporation, holding a Series 66 license and 19 years of industry experience. She has worked with Veritrust Wealth Management since 2013 and provides income tax preparation services as a proprietor. Planmember Securities Corporation offers retirement-plan advisory services to employers and plan participants, acting as an ERISA Section 3(38) fiduciary for many plans and providing participant-level investment options through risk-based mutual fund portfolios. The firm emphasizes a top-down strategic asset allocation approach combined with education and support services for plan sponsors and participants.

Mary Gruenberg is a Certified Financial Planner® with 26 years of industry experience. She is currently affiliated with Principal Financial Services and has held roles at Principal Securities, Inc. and Farmers Financial Solutions, alongside a long tenure with Farmers Insurance Group. Principal Securities provides brokerage and registered investment advisory services to a diverse client base, including individual investors and retirement plans. The firm offers direct advisory programs, financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and access to third-party money manager asset allocation and separately managed account solutions.

Brian Devlin is a financial advisor with VOYA Financial Advisors, Inc., holding Series 63 and Series 65 credentials and possessing 26 years of industry experience. He has been with VOYA Financial Advisors since 2014 and previously worked at Voya Financial Partners, LLC, Valic Financial Advisors, and Nationwide Investment Services Corporation. He also operates as an independent insurance agent specializing in fixed insurance products. VOYA Financial Advisors, Inc. is an enterprise-scale advisory and broker-dealer firm offering financial planning, portfolio management, UMA and wrap programs, and retirement advisory services to individuals, pension plans, charitable organizations, and corporate clients. The firm uses a combination of in-house and external strategists, model portfolios, and technology tools to manage client portfolios, often on a non-discretionary basis, while also providing limited discretionary management in certain programs.

Michael Beach is a financial advisor with Principal Financial Services holding a Series 66 credential. He has recently entered the financial services industry, with prior experience across various sectors including logistics and insurance. Principal Securities offers brokerage and registered investment advisory services to a diverse client base that includes individual investors, retirement plans, trusts, and charitable organizations. The firm emphasizes direct advisory programs, financial planning, and access to third-party money manager asset allocation and separately managed account solutions.

Susan Winklebleck is a financial advisor with TIAA-CREF in Palatine, IL, holding a Series 66 designation and 14 years of industry experience. She has been with TIAA-CREF and TIAA since 2014. TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC’s Advice & Planning Services division offers financial planning and discretionary managed account programs to individuals, trusts, estates, partnerships, corporate entities, and small retirement plans, often serving clients with existing TIAA-administered employer retirement plan relationships. The firm provides separate broker-dealer services, acts as adviser to a donor-advised fund, and employs a fiduciary standard within its RIA services.

James Juengling is a financial advisor with Independent Financial Group, LLC in Dundee, IL, holding the ChFC® designation along with Series 63 and Series 65 licenses. He has 50 years of industry experience and has been with Independent Financial Group since 2010. Since 1972, he has also owned and operated Juengling & Associates, providing various types of insurance. Juengling has been a member of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors since 1973 and is involved with the Illinois Legislative Council. Independent Financial Group, LLC offers investment advisory and brokerage services to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, corporations, pension and profit-sharing plans, and charitable organizations. The firm utilizes firm- and third-party models for portfolio management, combining strategic asset allocation with ongoing due diligence across a mix of passive and active exposures.

Joel Fliegel is a CFP® professional with 26 years of experience in the financial services industry. He has worked at Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC since 2017 and previously held roles at LPL Financial, LLC, CLA Financial Advisors LLC, and Goldman Sachs Wealth Services. Outside of his advisory work, Fliegel serves as a Level 1 USA Hockey Official, officiating youth hockey games in the Chicago area, and volunteers pro bono counseling for families affected by cancer. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services delivers financial planning, asset management, and retirement-plan consulting to individuals, high-net-worth clients, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm manages over $122 billion in assets through a diversified investment approach that blends passive and active strategies, supported by an internal Investment Committee and a variety of implementation tools.

Stanko Pavlovic is a financial advisor at PlanMember Securities Corporation with 29 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 credentials and has previously worked at firms including LPL Financial, BMO Harris Financial Advisors, and WCG Wealth Advisors. He is also president of Prosperity Wealth Advisors, an investment-related business. PlanMember Securities Corporation provides retirement-plan advisory services to employers and participants, acting as an ERISA Section 3(38) fiduciary for many plans. The firm employs a top-down strategic asset allocation framework and manages unitized, risk-based mutual fund portfolios, offering education and support services including retirement planning and separation counseling.