Senior Vice President, Wealth Advisor
Wells Fargo Private Bank - Utah Region Wealth Management
Rob is a Wealth Advisor located in the Utah Wells Fargo Private Bank office. He is responsible for working with large and complex relationships and helping make complex needs and plans simple and actionable. By listening carefully to each client’s goals and then leveraging the vast resources of Wells Fargo, he creates team of specialists who, working together, help achieve these goals.
Prior to joining Wells Fargo 14 years ago, Rob spent nearly a decade working for Fidelity Investments and Goldman Sachs in their Private Wealth groups. He has been in the financial services industry for 24 years.
Rob earned a Bachelor of Arts in finance with a minor in Mandarin Chinese from the University of Utah. He also earned a MBA from Brigham Young University Marriot School of Business. He is a member and past board member of the Salt Lake and Northern Utah Estate Planning Councils, member of the Utah Banking Association, and Utah Planned Giving Round Table.
Senior Vice President, Exchange Traded Products Business Development
U.S. Bancorp Fund Services
Mike serves as business development officer for Exchange Traded Products at US Bancorp Fund Services and serves as Chairman and Interested Trustee for ETF Series Solutions (ESS) US Bank's ETP multiple series trust.
He joined U.S. Bancorp Fund Services in 2013 with more than 20 years of business development, relationship management, marketing, managerial experience, and futures/equity trading experience. Prior to joining U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, Mike worked for Zacks Investment Management as managing director of the Index Services Division. He also held the position of vice president of Institutional Sales for Claymore ETFs (now Guggenheim Funds) and was senior floor trader at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange for a major Wall Street trading firm.
Vice President, Director Creative Services
SunStar Strategic
Marilyn brings a wealth of industry experience in financial services of nearly 30 years. For eight years, as the director of marketing at Calamos Investments, she created marketing and communications targeted to financial consultants and the investing public for institutional, separately managed individual accounts and a family of mutual funds. Previously, her banking career included management positions in trust, corporate cash management and retail banking at Bank of America, First Chicago Bank, NA and a Chicago-suburban bank chain.
Marilyn helps create marketing strategies as well as execute marketing plans resulting in print and digital campaigns. With her Creative Services team of graphic designers, writers and programmers, SunStar Strategic has designed websites, brochures, newsletters, e-news, fact sheets, sell sheets and other collateral materials. She is well-versed in FINRA regulations and compliance issues.
Marilyn has an MBA from the University of Illinois in Chicago specializing in marketing and finance. Her BA magna was earned magna cum laude/Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, where she is recognized on the Bronze Tablet honoring graduates ranking in the top 3% of their class. She also attended the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, ranking in the top five of her class. She previously held a Series 6 license.
Founder, CEO, CIO
Equilibrium Wealth Management, LLC
Al has over 30 years of industry experience, 27 of them in non-traditional investing. He has worked for world-class firms such as Merrill Lynch, Calamos Investments and Man Investment-London.
Al was named as a Wealth Manager Award Winner (from 2015 through 2020), Five Star Professional/Chicago Magazine; 2015 Directors Club-LPL Financial. This distinction is based on an annual production ranking of registered financial advisors supported by LPL Financial, recognizing a production level greater than 80% of LPL Financial Advisors.
For his firm, Equilibrium Wealth Management, he developed its investment philosophy requiring the balance between return, risk and capital preservation. He is also the creator of the firm's unique asset-allocation strategies and our “defensive growth” category of investments.
Partner
Cohen & Company
Brett specializes in the investment company industry, focusing on audit and tax issues for mutual funds, closed-end funds and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
He services multiple family trusts and mutual funds ranging from start-ups to those with assets in excess of a $12 billion. Specifically, his expertise includes working with fund-of-funds; master feeder funds; multi-class funds; foreign currency funds; international funds; alternative strategies funds; and C-corporation mutual funds investing in master limited partnerships.
Brett is active in the firm’s overall growth and staff development. He graduated from Ohio University and is a member of the AICPA and Ohio Society of CPAs.
Senior Director, Distribution Consulting
Foreside
Sonja spearheads development and is responsible for ongoing management of Foreside’s comprehensive distribution consulting service model, which uniquely positions and builds awareness of its’ clients in the marketplace. This service model emphasizes the value Foreside brings to clients by providing educational resources and access to best practices.
Sonja works with established and emerging managers to address their specific needs, empowering them to better serve investors. She is passionate about staying abreast of marketplace trends and translating those into actionable insights to assist clients in navigating the complex marketplace and grow.
Prior to joining Foreside, she worked as a Relationship Manager with Fidelity Investments where she managed multiple strategic relationships, consulted on product, positioning, and marketing strategies, and led the build-out of Fidelity’s FundsNetwork Distributor Service Model. She holds the FINRA Series 7 registration and has over 30 years of experience within the financial services industry.
Founder & CEO
ADVISORSHARES
Noah’s 15+ years of experience includes a focus on innovative financial technology and innovative financial products. His experience spans a solid financial services foundation at Fidelity Investments. From that foundation, Noah has had the opportunity to develop one of the first web-based brokerage trading and systems, to the start-up of the first web-based personalizes portfolio management systems, to direct a national mutual fund firm which was an early provider of index-based ETFs, to found one of the first firms to offer actively managed ETFs.
Noah is the founder and CEO of AdvisorShares Investments. AdvisorShares is one of the first firms to apply for actively managed ETF exemptive relief from the SEC. AdvisorShares is designed as a platform for the development of actively managed ETFs.
Lead Talent Booker
TD Ameritrade Network
Alex is a Talent Booker with the TD Ameritrade Network based in Chicago, IL. She is the lead booker for TDAN’s flagship programs, Morning Trade Live and Market on Close, booking up to five hours of live television every weekday, scheduling money managers, CEOs, television personalities, and industry professionals from around the world and across a range of industries.
After graduating from Purdue University with a degree in Public Health, her professional career took a sharp turn into broadcasting to aid in the launch of the TD Ameritrade Network in 2016. She has had a hand in every element of live TV from her first position as a production tech, then video operator, producer, and now talent booker.
Executive Vice President & Partner
SunStar Strategic
Melissa’s clients know that her top priority is the strategy needed to grow their business. To achieve this mission, she designs and implements customized marketing and communications strategies for companies of all sizes at various stages of growth to help attract investors via diverse distribution channels. Melissa has been helping financial services companies grow since 2001 when she joined SunStar Strategic.
Melissa is a contributor to SunStar's blog with over 4,500 subscribers featuring resources to help financial marketers learn and share ideas about marketing and distribution.
Formerly, Melissa worked as a leadership training program participant and registered representative with Strong Investments (now Wells Fargo Advantage Funds), where she earned her Series 6, 7 and 63 licenses. Melissa received her BSBA, magna cum laude, in marketing, with minors in advertising and communications studies from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She had dual concentrations of strategy and marketing in her MBA program at the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland, College Park, MD. Melissa also completed coursework in economics at Oxford University, England.
President & Chief Operating Officer
Hennessy Advisors, Inc.
Terry serves as President, Chief Operating Officer, and Director for Hennessy Advisors, Inc., the investment manager of the Hennessy Funds. She also serves as Executive Vice President and Treasurer of Hennessy Funds.
Terry joined Hennessy in 1989 and has helped build Hennessy Funds from its inception, alongside founder Neil Hennessy. She serves as the general business manager, and she is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the firm, including all marketing and sales operations.
Terry received a BA in Economics from the University of California, Davis.
Reporter
Barron's
Teresa Rivas is a reporter who has covered financial markets for Barron's since 2007. Her work has also appeared in other publications including The Wall Street Journal and the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Her current beat is consumer-oriented stocks (retail, restaurants, staples). You can read her work online, in the magazine, as well as listen on the Barron's podcast and live events.
Vice President & Partner
SunStar Strategic
Hibre enjoys building relationships with clients and helping them shape key messages so that every conversation with clients, prospects and the media has relevance and a positive impact. Media coverage has been and continues to be an important way to increase a company’s profile and establish branding, which requires both time and energy. Hibre makes this process a positive and motivating experience through patient and positive coaching on technique and strategy to maximize efficacy.
Hibre joined SunStar Strategic in 2007, working with financial services clients to help them grow their businesses and effectively communicate their key messages to clients and prospects. Even during tough markets, Hibre has helped clients grow and raise their firms’ profiles to add credibility in the minds of investors. Her insight into her clients’ needs has helped her identify opportunities and create the processes and accountability needed to engage in effective public relations and marketing campaigns.
Prior to joining the SunStar Strategic team, Hibre spent a year in China exploring Chinese business culture. Hibre was also a registered representative with Prudential Financial where she earned her Series 7 and 66 licenses. Hibre received her BS in management from the University of Massachusetts and an MBA at Pace University, New York, with a concentration in international business.
Hibre is fluent in Amharic (Ethiopian) and volunteers in the Ethiopian community to help newcomers adjust to the United States.