Justin Slack is a financial advisor with Principal Financial Services and holds a Series 66 designation. He has one year of industry experience, having joined Principal Financial Services and Principal Life Insurance Company in 2025. Prior to this, he was involved in various businesses including Balanced Fitness and Health and hospitality ventures in San Diego. Principal Securities provides brokerage and registered investment advisory services to a diverse client base, including individual investors, retirement plans, trusts, and military personnel, offering financial planning, retirement consulting, and access to third-party money manager solutions.

Paul Cotofana is a financial advisor with Independent Financial Group, LLC in San Diego, CA. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 designations and has 16 years of industry experience. Prior to joining Independent Financial Group in 2021, he worked at SagePoint Financial from 2009 to 2021. Independent Financial Group, LLC provides investment advisory and brokerage services to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, corporate and pension plans, and charitable organizations. The firm offers a range of financial planning and portfolio management solutions utilizing both firm- and third-party models, combining passive and active investment exposures tailored to client risk profiles.

Carrie Foote is a financial advisor with Guardian Life and Park Avenue Securities, holding Series 63 and Series 66 designations and 26 years of industry experience. Her prior work includes 17 years at CUSO Financial Services, LP and a year at Commonwealth Financial Network. Park Avenue Securities, a subsidiary of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, provides brokerage and investment advisory services to individuals, retirement plan sponsors, charitable organizations, and businesses. The firm offers a combination of advisor-led discretionary management and model-based strategies, along with access to insurance products and alternative investments through its connection with Guardian Life.

Deanne Palmer is a CFP® professional with three years of industry experience, currently serving at Prime Capital Financial. She has previous experience with Ameritas Life and Ameritas Investment Corp. In addition to her advisory work, she is involved as lead advisor to the ETA Gamma House Corporation Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity at the University of San Diego, overseeing their budget and advising on chapter activities. Prime Capital Financial is an SEC-registered enterprise advisory firm serving high-net-worth individuals, trusts, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm provides a range of services including asset management, financial planning, qualified retirement plan sponsor and trustee services, and family office offerings.

Michael Winaker is a financial advisor with Hightower Advisors in San Diego, CA. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has five years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at UBS Financial Services and Centaurus Financial Inc. He studied at Pepperdine University from 2018 to 2022. Hightower Advisors provides investment advisory and planning services to a diverse range of individual and institutional clients. The firm’s approach includes manager selection and multi-manager solutions, utilizing both affiliated and third-party managers, with services spanning discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement plan consulting.

Cory Morrison is a financial advisor with Guardian Life and Park Avenue Securities, holding the ChFC® designation and Series 66 license, with 20 years of industry experience. His work history includes roles at Merrill and MSI Financial Services, Inc. He also occasionally writes health insurance for clients. Park Avenue Securities LLC, a subsidiary of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, provides brokerage and investment advisory services to individuals, corporate and retirement plan sponsors, charitable organizations, and businesses. The firm offers advisor-led discretionary management alongside model-based strategies, integrating proprietary and third-party platforms, and provides a range of financial planning, consulting, and educational services.

Zhi Ren Liang is a Series 66-registered financial advisor with VALIC Financial Advisors in San Diego, CA. He has experience at Corebridge Financial and AIG Retirement Services, among other roles in both the private and public sectors. Liang has also worked with Elder Delivers, LLC, indicating involvement in entrepreneurial activities outside of financial advising. VALIC Financial Advisors, Inc. serves primarily U.S. individuals, including high net worth clients and employer-sponsored retirement participants. The firm offers portfolio management, financial planning, and discretionary unified managed accounts through a large network of advisors and leverages centralized technology and model solutions to manage approximately $29.2 billion in assets.

Connor Boone is a financial advisor at Mariner with a Series 65 credential and one year of industry experience. Prior to joining Mariner, he spent eight years in full-time education. Mariner serves a diverse client base including individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations, and private funds. The firm offers investment management, financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and integrated tax and administrative services, utilizing customized discretionary portfolios supported by in-house research and third-party managers.

Terrance Arges is a financial advisor with Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and bringing 17 years of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at Laurel Wealth Advisors, Raymond James Financial Services, Mission Federal Credit Union, CUSO Financial Services, LPL Financial, and Merrill. He is also a licensed insurance agent in California, authorized to solicit and sell annuity contracts. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC serves individuals, high-net-worth clients, families, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans through a network of independent advisors. The firm offers discretionary investment management, financial planning, and family office services, employing customized portfolios and a primarily long-term investment approach combined with selective shorter-term trades.

Timothy Wheelwright is a CFP® credentialed financial advisor with Corient, based in San Diego, CA, and has three years of industry experience. His work history includes roles at Corient, Dowling & Yahnke, LLC, and involvement with Albion SC San Diego and La Roca FC. 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 both in-house and third-party strategies, with ongoing portfolio monitoring and risk management.

Angela Grundig is a financial advisor with Ameritas Advisory Services, LLC, holding a Series 66 designation and two years of industry experience. She has worked at Ameritas Advisory Services and Ameritas Investment Company since 2024 and is also involved with Boom Planning, where she serves as an employee and paraplanner. Ameritas Advisory Services, LLC provides investment advisory and planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, high-net-worth investors, retirement plans, charitable organizations, and businesses. The firm offers a variety of portfolio management options, utilizing model portfolios, mutual funds, ETFs, and individual securities, and operates multiple program platforms supported by third-party technology and managers.

Nicholas Bialecki is a financial advisor with Citigroup Global Markets, holding a Series 66 credential and 17 years of industry experience. He has been with Citi Smith Barney since 2008. Citigroup Global Markets serves individual and institutional clients across various wealth segments, offering a range of investment advisory programs alongside broker-dealer execution and custody services. The firm employs multi-asset, multi-manager strategies and operates with significant institutional scale and specialized market roles.

Carsten Lester is a CFP® with two years of industry experience, currently serving at Corient in San Diego, CA. His work history includes roles at Dowling & Yahnke, LLC and Axos Bank. Corient provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a broad client base, including individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm uses a goals-based, team investment approach that incorporates in-house strategies along with third-party managers, employing risk management tools and alternative investment options where appropriate.

Peter Stratton is a financial advisor with Independent Financial Group, LLC, holding a Series 66 credential and 27 years of industry experience. He has worked with Independent Financial Group since 2018 and was previously with Union Capital Company for two years. Stratton is also the sole owner and officer of Stratton & Associates Accountancy Corporation, a CPA firm providing tax preparation and accounting services. Independent Financial Group, LLC offers investment advisory and brokerage services to a diverse client base, including individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, and institutional plans. The firm utilizes a combination of proprietary and third-party models for portfolio management and financial planning, employing both passive and active investment strategies across various risk profiles.

Dionisio Meneses is a financial advisor at Mercer Global Advisors Inc. in San Diego, CA, holding Series 65 and Series 66 licenses with six years of industry experience. Prior to rejoining Mercer Global Advisors in 2025, he worked at DNM Creative Properties Inc. for 28 years. Mercer Global Advisors serves individuals, families, small business owners, plan sponsors, foundations, nonprofits, and endowments, providing a range of investment advisory, financial, tax, retirement, estate planning, and family office services. The firm employs a globally diversified investment approach based on Modern Portfolio Theory, utilizing low-cost ETFs, index funds, and other vehicles, and offers specialized programs along with educational content and integrated service platforms.

Tyler Morris is a financial advisor at Stratos Wealth Partners, Ltd with 15 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at LPL Financial, Wells Fargo Clearing, and Thrivent Investment Management prior to joining Stratos in 2015. His outside business activities include operating BWM Financial, a wealth management and financial planning firm based in San Diego. Stratos Wealth Partners, Ltd is an SEC-registered enterprise adviser with approximately 379 advisors and $18.6 billion in assets under management. The firm serves a diverse client base including individuals, retirement plans, corporations, nonprofits, and institutional clients, offering customized portfolio management through an open-architecture platform integrating multiple third-party managers and specialized planning services.

Keith Mckenzie is a financial advisor with Hightower Advisors and holds a Series 66 designation. He has 21 years of industry experience, including ten years at Delphi Private Advisors prior to joining Hightower in 2019. Hightower Advisors provides investment advisory and planning services to a wide range of individual and institutional clients. The firm’s approach emphasizes manager selection and multi-manager solutions, utilizing both affiliated and third-party managers across various investment vehicles, including mutual funds, ETFs, alternative investments, and customized indexing strategies.

Matthew Belardes is a CFP® and CFA® with 20 years of experience in the financial services industry. He is currently with Independent Financial Group, LLC, where he has worked since 2017, following roles at Wells Fargo Clearing, Credit Suisse Securities, Morgan Stanley, and Citigroup Global Markets. He is also the owner of Praesidio Estate Planning, providing estate planning advice and document drafting. Independent Financial Group, LLC offers investment advisory and brokerage services to a wide client base, including individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, and institutional plans. The firm employs a combination of firm- and third-party investment models with ongoing due diligence, managing portfolios that blend passive and active strategies across various risk profiles.

Susan Pillen Levine is a financial advisor with Commonwealth Financial Network in San Diego, CA. She holds a Series 66 designation and has 13 years of industry experience, including nine years at LPL Financial before joining Commonwealth in 2022. Commonwealth Financial Network is a dual-registered broker/dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser serving a national network of approximately 2,900 affiliated advisors and hundreds of thousands of clients. The firm offers a broad adviser-support platform with discretionary and nondiscretionary managed-account programs, access to third-party asset managers, retirement consulting, and custody services.

Kenneth Maring is a financial advisor at Concurrent Investment Advisors, LLC with 40 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations and has previously worked at Morgan Stanley Private Bank, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup Global Markets. Maring is also the owner of Great Basin Asset Management, a support company. Concurrent Investment Advisors, LLC is an SEC-registered multi-team advisory firm serving individuals, high-net-worth clients, families, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans. The firm emphasizes customized, primarily long-term portfolios and offers a range of wealth management, financial planning, and retirement advisory services.