Jose Almanza is a financial advisor with Empower Advisory Group in Berwyn, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and 17 years of industry experience. He has worked at GWFS Equities, Inc. since 2021 and previously at MML Distributors, LLC and Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company from 2016 to 2021. Outside of his advisory role, he serves as Chief Operations Officer for Lakeshore Financial Network, a business specializing in tax preparation, and works as a loan originator for ILoan Home Mortgage. Empower Advisory Group provides financial planning and investment management primarily for employer-sponsored retirement plan sponsors, their participants, and retail brokerage clients. The firm uses an integrated model linked to Empower’s administrative platforms, offering point-in-time financial plans and managed account solutions focused on long-term portfolio returns and annual rebalancing.

Cameron Nylec is a CFP® professional with two years of industry experience, currently advising at Mariner. His prior roles include positions at JMG Financial Group, Ltd. and Total Clarity Wealth Management, Inc. He also spent four years at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Mariner serves a diverse client base that includes individuals, pension plans, trusts, and charitable organizations through investment management, financial planning, and retirement plan consulting. The firm employs discretionary, customized portfolios supported by an Investment Committee and offers integrated tax and accounting services uncommon among large advisory enterprises.

Christopher Sporer is a CFP® professional with 11 years of industry experience, currently serving at Mercer Global Advisors Inc. since 2025. His prior roles include positions at CIBC Private Wealth, Charles Schwab, and TD Ameritrade. Mercer Global Advisors provides investment advisory and planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, high-net-worth families, small business owners, corporate plan sponsors, foundations, and nonprofit organizations. The firm’s investment approach is based on Modern Portfolio Theory, utilizing globally diversified, risk-appropriate portfolios with multi-factor tilts and a variety of implementation options.

Deepen Modi is a financial advisor with Independent Financial Group, LLC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 credentials and bringing 31 years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at First Midwest Securities, Inc. and J.P. Morgan Securities. He is also president and sole owner of DKRS of Northbrook, a corporation unrelated to investment activities. Independent Financial Group, LLC provides investment advisory and brokerage services to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, corporations, pension and profit-sharing plans, and charitable organizations. The firm offers financial planning and portfolio management through multiple platforms, employing a mix of passive and active strategies combined with ongoing manager due diligence.

Jacob Paoletti is a financial advisor with Kestra Advisory, holding a Series 65 credential and four years of industry experience. Prior to joining Kestra, he worked at Fourth Piece, LLC and held positions at several country clubs and a high school. Outside of his advisory role, he also works as a food delivery courier. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to plan sponsors as well as institutional and individual clients. The firm offers a range of services including fiduciary consulting, plan design, employee education, and access to multiple management platforms, serving clients that include large institutional investors and sovereign wealth funds.

Taylor Reynolds is a financial advisor with Eagle Strategies (NY Life) based in Downers Grove, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and possessing seven years of industry experience. He has worked with several firms including Avail Financial Partners LLC, Christopher Financial Group, and Noble Capital Group. Outside of his advisory work, Reynolds coaches youth lacrosse for players aged 6 to 14 and serves on the boards of the Chicago Area University of Alabama Alumni Association and the Rotary Club of Downers Grove. Eagle Strategies provides financial planning, investment management, and retirement-plan advisory services to a diverse clientele, including individual and institutional investors. The firm emphasizes tailored advice and offers a range of program types, managing the majority of its assets on a non-discretionary basis within its integrated New York Life structure.

Anthony Jones is a CFP® professional with two years of experience at Corient. Prior to joining Corient, he worked at Industrial Federal Credit Union and Regions Bank, and he also spent six years at Purdue University. Corient provides investment advisory and financial planning services to individual and high-net-worth clients, trusts, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm employs a goals-based, team investment approach combining in-house strategies with third-party manager solutions, supported by continuous portfolio monitoring and risk management tools.

Steven Gillhaus is a CFA® charterholder with 14 years of industry experience, currently advising at Mariner Wealth Advisors. His prior roles include positions at Savant Wealth Management, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management, LLC, and BMO Harris Financial Advisors, Inc. Outside of his advisory work, he serves as the elected Treasurer of the Farmington Bath and Tennis Club, a summer tennis and swim club in Chicago. Mariner Wealth Advisors serves a diverse client base including individuals, pension plans, trusts, and charitable organizations, offering investment management, financial planning, and coordinated tax services. The firm employs discretionary, customized portfolios combining in-house research and third-party managers, with notable integration of tax and accounting services and operational capabilities such as administrative CFO functions and a Financial Wellness Platform.

Cramer Soebbing is a CFP® professional with 11 years of industry experience, currently serving at Mariner Wealth Advisors since 2015. He is an advisory board member of H Foundation, a nonprofit modeled after the Jimmy V Foundation that raises funds for basic science cancer research through charitable events. Mariner serves a diverse client base including individuals, pension plans, trusts, and charitable organizations, offering investment management, financial planning, retirement consulting, and access to various investment vehicles. The firm employs a discretionary, customized portfolio approach supported by in-house research and third-party managers, with notable capabilities in tax integration and financial wellness services.

Matthew Mikula is a CFP® with 16 years of industry experience, currently serving at Corient. His career includes nearly two decades at Balasa Dinverno Foltz LLC before joining Corient and its related entities. Corient provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, trusts, pension plans, and corporate entities. The firm employs a goals-based, team-driven investment approach that integrates in-house strategies with third-party managers and uses advanced risk management and stress testing tools.

Jacob Lankford is a financial advisor with Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC, holding a Series 66 designation and two years of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at LPL Financial and the Wealth Enhancement Group. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC is an SEC-registered enterprise advisory firm serving a wide range of clients including individuals, trusts, charitable organizations, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm employs a strategic investment process combining passive and active management, supported by quantitative and fundamental research and an internal Investment Committee.

Nadim Zayed is a CFP® professional with 24 years of industry experience. He has been with Brookstone Capital Management LLC since 2006 and is also associated with Prizm Financial Advisors. Outside of his advisory work, he is a shareholder in a law firm specializing in estate planning. Brookstone Capital Management LLC provides fee-based asset management and financial planning through a turnkey asset management platform and wrap-fee programs. The firm serves a diverse client base including individuals, retirement plans, corporations, charitable organizations, other RIAs, sovereign wealth funds, and banking institutions, delivering investment management primarily on a discretionary basis via various model portfolios and managed accounts.

Kevin Zasada is a CFP® professional with nine years of industry experience, currently serving at Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC. His career includes roles at Empower Financial Services, Personal Capital Advisors Corporation, Fisher Investments, and Merrill. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services (WEAS) offers 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 and employs a diversified investment process that blends passive and active managers, overseen by an internal Investment Committee.

Tonya Coleman is a financial advisor with VOYA Financial Advisors, Inc. She holds the Series 63 and Series 65 designations and has 14 years of industry experience. In addition to her advisory work, Coleman owns a fast food seafood restaurant and works as a stylist for weddings and magazines. She also serves as the Chairperson of Economic Empowerment for the National Coalition of 100 Black Women. VOYA Financial Advisors, Inc. serves a wide range of individual and institutional clients, including retirement plan sponsors, charitable organizations, corporations, and high-net-worth individuals. The firm offers financial planning, portfolio management, wrap programs, third-party money manager access, and plan-sponsor consulting through various program structures that emphasize recommendation-based, non-discretionary advice.

Lindsay Blaney is a CFP® and Series 66 professional with nine years of experience in the financial services industry. She is currently with Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC and previously worked at Level Four Advisory Services and LPL Financial, where she has been affiliated since 2007. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC serves a diverse client base including individuals, high-net-worth clients, families, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans through a network of independent financial advisors. The firm offers discretionary investment management, financial planning, family office, and retirement plan advisory services, emphasizing customized portfolios with a long-term investment approach and incorporating both internally managed strategies and third-party asset managers.

Christopher Alvarez is a financial advisor at Brookstone Capital Management LLC with three years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Impact Investors and Jewel Osco. Brookstone Capital Management is an SEC-registered adviser providing fee-based asset management and financial planning through a turnkey asset management platform and wrap-fee program. The firm serves a broad client base, including individuals, retirement plans, corporations, charitable organizations, other registered investment advisers, sovereign wealth funds, and banking institutions.

Todd Diven is a CFP®-credentialed financial advisor with Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC, bringing 26 years of industry experience. He has been with Wealth Enhancement since 2013 and also operates a CPA practice focused on basic tax preparation. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services provides financial planning, asset management, and retirement-plan consulting for individuals, high-net-worth clients, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm manages over $122 billion in assets and employs a diversified investment approach that blends passive and active strategies overseen by an internal Investment Committee.

John Welch is a financial advisor with William Blair, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 46 years of industry experience. He has been with William Blair since 2013. Outside of his advisory work, he is a private investor and board member of INFOTOUCH Corp, a POS software developer, and is the owner of Yorkshire Motorsports LLC, a business selling personal car parts collected over five decades. William Blair’s Private Wealth Management division offers discretionary and non-discretionary investment management, financial planning, and wealth services to individuals, foundations, pension, and corporate clients. The firm employs active, research-driven management across multiple asset classes and provides proprietary models and access to private funds and co-investment opportunities.

James Benages is a financial advisor with TLG Advisors, Inc. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has 17 years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at LPL Financial, Numark Credit Union, and Cetera Advisor Networks. Benages is also involved with Resource Ins & Fin Group, where he provides financial planning, investment management, and insurance services. TLG Advisors, Inc. is an SEC-registered investment adviser managing approximately $2.0 billion in discretionary assets. The firm serves individuals, retirement plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, businesses, and institutional investors, offering investment supervisory and portfolio management, comprehensive financial and estate planning, ERISA fiduciary services, and a direct-to-consumer program called Starlight Portfolios.

Anthony Dinverno is a CFP® with 13 years of industry experience, currently serving at Corient. He previously worked at Balasa Dinverno Foltz LLC for 13 years before joining Corient and its affiliated entities. Corient provides investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, pension plans, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm employs a goals-based, team investment approach that integrates internal security strategies with third-party managers and incorporates risk management tools and alternative investment options when appropriate.