Carolyn Armitage, who was appointed head of the Thrivent Advisor Network just two years ago, was let go by the company, along with four members of her team as part of a restructuring, she told ThinkAdvisor on Thursday.
She was informed of the firm's decision on June 26, and her last day at Thrivent was July 10, she said by email.
The team members also laid off included executives Tom Pistole Sr. and Erik Feldman, business development officers, and Lori Sherman, growth and education manager, Armitage said in a LinkedIn post on Thursday. Also let go was Katie Tram, business development consultant.
"It was an honor to work toward positioning TAN as an independent wealth management firm for the past two years," Armitage said in her LinkedIn post. "While Thrivent is restructuring, the TAN offices/Advisor Owners are positioned to do good and do well and will thrive."
While restructuring, Thrivent has also halted hiring new advisors.
In response, James Slaughter, president and co-founder of Sierra Ridge Wealth Management, said, "Thrivent was moving in the right direction with recruiting new advisors to their independent side. This halt on recruiting new advisors to its RIA is [a] major step backwards. I feel sorry for all the candidates in their pipeline."
