Meet the Luminaries Class of 2024 Finalists
This year's program features new awards for innovation and disruption, achievement in marketing and excellence in RIA M&As.
ThinkAdvisor is proud to announce the finalists for its 2024 Luminaries Awards — including individuals, companies and programs associated with roughly 240 financial services organizations who are being recognized for their exemplary leadership, innovation and community impact.
This year’s program features new awards for industry innovation and disruption, outstanding achievement in marketing and excellence in RIA M&As, while honoring next-gen rising stars at advisory firms for the first time.
The 2024 Luminaries finalists will be honored at our gala in Las Vegas, set for Dec. 11 at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas — when will also recognize the 2024 winners, who are being selected this month by our esteemed judging panel.
The Dec. 11 Luminaries gala will cap off the 16th edition of The MarketCounsel Summit, being held the same week at the Fontainebleau. Plus, the Luminaries evening event will be followed by a series of panel discussions and networking events on the morning of Dec. 12.
ThinkAdvisor broadened the scope of its Luminaries awards this year to include more industry segments, such as those for family offices and retirement product firms. Firms focused on support services — like charitable giving, compliance, marketing/PR, recruiting and research — are also being honored.
In addition, our recognition of firms in the financial technology arena has been greatly expanded to encompass companies working in business development, client engagement, financial planning, investment management and operations.
Eighty firms have been named Luminaries finalists in multiple categories for outstanding achievement. Leading the way with the most finalist nominations are Orion, Raymond James, Cambridge Investment Group, Mercer Advisors, Canoe Intelligence, Envestnet, Research Affiliates, RFG Advisory and Vanilla.
“This year’s finalists exemplify the forward-thinking and community-driven spirit that is shaping the future of financial services,” according to Scott Thompson, SVP Market Strategy and Events at ALM, the parent company of ThinkAdvisor.
“By recognizing these leaders, we are not only celebrating their individual successes but also encouraging the entire industry to strive for greater impact, innovation, and inclusivity,” Thompson added.
For more information about ThinkAdvisor’s 2024 Luminaries Awards, visit our event site.
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Advisory Support, Products and Services
Advisor Education Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Financial Advisor Success Syndicate Nationwide Retirement Institute Protected Tomorrows, A Simplicity Company “Rethink. Financial Advice” Podcast Shaping Wealth The American College of Financial Services Firm Award: Innovation The American College of Financial Services The Refocus Coaching Academy TruStage
Advisor Support Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Daylight Advisors Foundation Source
Charitable Giving/Philanthropy Firm Award – Corporate Social Responsibility American Endowment Foundation Financial Alliance for Racial Equity (FARE)
Consultants Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Alaris Acquisitions Endeavor Retirement Ficomm Partners The Oasis Group
Firm Award – Innovation Advisor Legacy MarketCounsel Consulting
Firm Award – Industry Disruption Alaris Acquisitions Compass CFO Solutions, LLC MarketCounsel Consulting The Oasis Group
Recruiting Firms
Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Diamond Consultants Elite Consulting Partners
Research Providers Firm Award – Innovation NEXA Insights Diverse Investing Collective
Financial Advisory and Asset Management Firms
Asset Managers Firm Award – Innovation Brandywine Asset Management Dunham & Associates Investment Counsel, Inc. F/m Investments Meketa Capital Merrill Wealth Management Research Affiliates
Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Cambiar Investors Franklin Templeton FS Investments Hartford Funds Huber Capital Management, LLC PGIM Pickler Wealth Advisors Research Affiliates Russell Investments
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Paul Uhlman, President, Federated Hermes Marti Marache, CEO and Founder, Harbor Asset Private Wealth Inez Louzonis, Head of Merrill Wealth Management Platform and Capabilities, Merrill Wealth Management Kristi Rodriguez, Senior Vice President, Nationwide Financial Chris Brightman, Partner, CEO and Chief Investment Officer, Research Affiliates Omar Aguilar, CEO and CIO, Schwab Asset Management
Individual Award – Luminaries With Heart Dustin Gale, Senior Wealth Advisor, Kayne Anderson Rudnick David Pickler, CEO and President, Pickler Wealth Advisors
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Cole Pearson, President, OneAscent Investments Jeffrey Kash, AVP, Community Relations, Premier Members Credit Union Jibreel Murray, Fixed Income Investment Officer, The Haverford Trust Company
Individual Award – Thought Leader of the Year John Le, Director of Marketing, Cambiar Investors Jurrien Timmer, Director of Global Macro, Fidelity Investments Que Nguyen, Partner, CIO, Equity Strategies, Research Affiliates
Broker-Dealers Firm Award – Corporate Social Responsibility Cambridge Investment Group LPL Financial Prudential Advisors Raymond James United Planners
Firm Award – Excellence in Marketing/PR Ameriprise Financial Cambridge Investment Group Cetera Financial Group United Planners
Firm Award – Innovation Commonwealth Financial Network Kestra Financial Raymond James
Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Cambridge Investment Group Commonwealth Financial Network Kestra Financial The Merrill Center for Family Wealth
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Amy Webber, CEO and Co-Chairman of the Board, Cambridge Investment Group David Karr, Chairman, Equitable Advisors Tarah Williams, President and COO, Prospera Financial Services Salit Nagy-Todd, Senior Vice President, Technology, Raymond James
Individual Award – Thought Leader of the Year Jeff Vivacqua, President, Growth and Development, Cambridge Investment Group
Individual Award – Luminaries With Heart Colleen Bell, President, Innovation and Experience, Cambridge Investment Group Karen Cecilio, Head of Integrations, Cetera Financial Group Jordan Toma, Financial Professional, Prudential Advisors Erin Linehan, SVP, Supervision – Dispute Resolution and Senior At-Risk Clients, Raymond James Eden Lopez-Robles, Managing Director- Financial Advisor, RBC Wealth Management
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Justin Kissner, First Vice President, Investments, Raymond James Danyell Munassi, AVP, Wealth Management, Raymond James Tara Seegers, Financial Advisor, RBC Wealth Management
Clearing & Custodial Firms Firm Award – Innovation Altruist
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars R. Scott Victoria, Chief Operating Officer, TradePMR
Financial Advisory Support Firm Award – Corporate Social Responsibility Fiduciary Trust International Guardian Mercer Advisors Rubicon Advisors
Firm Award – Innovation Callan Family Office Signal Advisors Zoe Financial
Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education America’s Retirement Headquarters Prospera Financial Services RFG Advisory
Financial Planners/Tax Planners Firm Award – Corporate Social Responsibility Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Center for Financial Planning, Inc. Resilient Wealth Management
Firm Award – Excellence in Marketing/PR Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Center for Financial Planning, Inc. Impact Wealth Management
Firm Award – Innovation SWAN Virtual Family Office (VFO) Ideas by Mike, LLC Capital Investment Advisors
Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Capital Investment Advisors ClearBridge Financial, LLC
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Michael Jensen, Managing Partner, Falcon Wealth Planning Dean Spada, Managing Director, Kingston Wealth Management Group Phil Kim, Founding Member, Managing Director, Signature Wealth Concepts
Individual Award – Luminaries With Heart Luis Rosa, Founder/Financial Planner, Build a Better Financial Future, LLC Kellan Brown, Executive Director, FinServ Foundation William Hoffman, President, Hoffman Wealth Management Zachary Larson, Wealth Advisor and Co-Founder, IntentGen Financial Partners Mary Anne Ehlert, Founder, Protected Tomorrows Derek Fiorenza, COO/CCO, Summit Group Retirement Planners, Inc. Jason DiLauro, Managing Partner, The Wealth Advisory Group of DiLauro Wracher & Thomas
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Zachary Jennings, Financial Advisor, Ameriprise Zackary Royce, Managing Director, Falcon Wealth Planning Kyle Malavasi, Wealth Management Advisor, Main Street Wealth Management Delante Greer, Financial Planner, Opulentia LLC Chris Robertson, Financial Advisor, Peak Financial Group Vinya Muso, Financial Advisor, Raymond James
Individual Award – Thought Leader of the Year Taylor Kovar, CEO, 11 Financial Shannon Harris, Private Wealth Advisor, Ameriprise Nicole Simpson, CFP, President and CEO, Harvest Wealth Financial Caitlyn Salloum, Founder and President, Key Wealth Management David Wilson, Managing Partner, Sincerus Advisory
Insurance & Retirement Products Firm Award – Innovation Allianz Life TruStage Financial Group
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Elle Switzer, Director, Annuity Product Management, TruStage Financial Group Inc.
Marketing/PR Services Firm Award – Digital Marketing Campaign of the Year Ficomm Partners Graham Media Partners Intention.ly
Firm Award – Social Media Campaign of the Year Ficomm Partners
RIA Support Platform Providers Firm Award – Industry Disruption Zoe Financial RFG Advisory
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Shannon Spotswood, Chief Executive Officer, RFG Advisory
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Jordan Hutchison, VP of Technology and Operations, RFG Advisory
RIAs: Less Than $10 Billion in Assets Firm Award – Corporate Social Responsibility Bailard Greenspring Advisors R.W. Rogé & Company, Inc.
Firm Award – Excellence in Marketing/PR FAS Wealth Partners The Mendall Financial Group, Securities through Raymond James Financial Services Inc.
Firm Award – Industry Disruption Ashton Thomas Private Wealth JFS Wealth Advisors Keystone Financial Services
Firm Award – Innovation 49 Financial Capita Financial Network Opes Wealth Management Robertson Stephens Wealth Management The Wealth Consulting Group (WCG)
Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Bogart Wealth FSC Wealth Advisors, LLC Great Lakes Wealth Oak Harvest Financial Group Park Piedmont Advisors Regent Peak Wealth Advisors
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Jonathan Foster, Angeles Wealth Management Arthur Ambarik, Perigon Wealth Management Vikram Chugh, Robertson Stephens Wealth Management Heather Fortner, SignatureFD Thomas Goodson, The AmeriFlex Group Jimmy Lee, The Wealth Consulting Group (WCG)
Individual Award – Luminaries With Heart Hannah Moore, Founder and Owner, Amplified Planning Kim Aquino, Senior Vice President and Director of Operations of Wealth Management, Bailard Peter Krull, Partner and Director of Sustainable Investing, Earth Equity Advisors, a Prime Capital Financial Company Anna Barnes, Partner, Adviser, Wealth and Investment Manager, FAS Wealth Partners Jim Roberts, CEO and President, Jim Roberts Investment Advisors LLC
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Madeline Hume, Senior Research Analyst, AlphaCore Wealth Advisory Annalise Durante, Senior ESG Analyst and Investment Counselor, Bailard Patrick Marcinko, Financial Advisor, Bogart Wealth Zoe Bollinger, VP, Porfolio Manager, Bollinger Capital Management Gideon Drucker, President and CEO, Drucker Wealth Justin Haywood, President, Haywood Wealth Management Travis Sholin, CEO, Keystone Financial Services Stacey McKinnon, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Marketing Officer, Morton Wealth Matthew Coutcher, Partner/Wealth Advisor, TrinityPoint Wealth
Individual Award – RIA M&A Leader of the Year Scott Danner, CEO, Freedom Street at Steward Partners Jason Gordo, Co-founder and President, Modern Wealth Management Jon Hoy, Chief Operating Officer, Perigon Wealth Management
Individual Award – Thought Leader of the Year Tom Ruggie, Founder and CEO, Destiny Wealth Partners Bud Sturmak, Head of Impact Investing and Partner, Perigon Wealth Management Jason Britton, President and Chief Investment Officer, Reflection Asset Management Ryan Fleischer, Founder/CIO/President, Revolution Group, LLC/Revolution Capital, LLC Jonathan Satovsky, CEO, Chief Behavioral Coach, Satovsky Asset Management Ross Marino, Founder and CEO, Transitus Wealth Partners
RIAs: More Than $10 Billion in Assets Firm Award – Excellence in Marketing/PR Private Advisor Group Wealthspire Advisors
Firm Award – Innovation Freestone Capital Management NewEdge Capital Group Mercer Advisors NewEdge Capital Group tru Independence
Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Integrated Partners WE Family Offices
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Larry Miles, CEO, Choreo Nate Lenz, CEO and Founder, Concurrent Paul Saganey, CEO and Founder, Integrated Partners Daniel Gourvitch, President, Mercer Advisors Rick Kent, CEO, Merit Financial Advisors Rob Sechan, Managing Partner | CEO and Co-founder, NewEdge Capital Group | NewEdge Wealth Michelle Knight, CEO and Chief Economist, RWA Wealth Partners Adam Malamed, CEO, Sanctuary Wealth Brian Holmes, CEO, SEIA Jim Gold, CEO, Steward Partners Jeffrey Concepcion, CEO and Founder, Stratos Wealth Holdings
Individual Award – Luminaries With Heart Justina Lai, Chief Impact Officer, Laird Norton Wetherby (LNW) Hayley Bates, Financial Advisor, MBA, CFP, AIF, SEIA Laura Mattia, SVP, Financial Advisor, Wealth Enhancement Group
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Erin Christy, Senior Director, Wealth Management, Choreo Sean Carr, Portfolio Manager, Freestone Capital Management Dane Sauer, Wealth Advisor III, Senior Director, Mercer Advisors Hunter Gehring, Principal, NewEdge Wealth Michael Foley, Financial Advisor, North Star Resource Group Joel Callagan, VP Financial Advisor, Wealth Enhancement Group Kevin Brady, Advisor, Vice President, Wealthspire Advisors
Individual Award – RIA M&A Leader of the Year Conor Meehan, Vice President, Mergers and Acquisitions, Choreo Suzanne van Staveren, CFO and COO, Edelman Financial Engines Robert Sandrew, Chief Growth Officer, Integrated Partners David Barton, Vice Chairman, Mergers and Acquisitions Leader, Mercer Advisors Neil Turner, Co-Founder, Co-CEO and Managing Partner, NewEdge Advisors Adam Malamed, CEO, Sanctuary Wealth Jim Gold, CEO, Steward Partners Lou Camacho, President, Stratos Wealth Enterprises Michael Nathanson, CEO and Chair, The Colony Group
Individual Award – Thought Leader of the Year Ryan Detrick, Chief Market Strategist, Carson Group Justina Lai, Chief Impact Officer, Laird Norton Wetherby (LNW) Don Calcagni, Chief Investment Officer, Mercer Advisors Mary Ann Bartels, Chief Investment Strategist, Sanctuary Wealth Stephen Craffen, SVP, Wealth Enhancement Group
TAMPs & Model Marketplaces Firm Award – Innovation GeoWealth Envestnet
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Chris Radford, President, AE Wealth Management Andres Garcia-Amaya, CEO and Founder, Zoe Financial
Individual Award – Thought Leader of the Year Dana D’Auria, Co-CIO and Group President, Envestnet
UHNW Wealth Management/Family Offices Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Fiduciary Trust International Morgan Stanley
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Jack Ginter, CEO, Callan Family Office
Individual Award – Luminaries With Heart Lisette Cooper, Vice Chair, Fiduciary Trust International
Individual Award – Thought Leader of the Year Ghislain Gouraige, Partner, NewEdge Wealth
Technology Platforms, Products and Services
Fintech Marketing Firm Award – Excellence in Marketing/PR Docupace IncomePath
Fintech Thought Leadership Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education CAIS Envestnet Fidelity Investments
Business Development Digital Marketing Firm Award – Excellence in Marketing/PR Lyceus Group Snappy Kraken Wealthtender
Firm Award – Industry Disruption Catchlight Couplr AI FutureProof Invent Snappy Kraken Testimonial iQ
Firm Award – Innovation AssetMark Catchlight Couplr AI Snappy Kraken
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Michael Kim, CEO and President, AssetMark Yelena Melamed, Co-founder and Head of Product, Catchlight Natalie Wolfsen, CEO, Orion
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Andrew Johnson, CEO and Co-founder, Testimonial iQ
Individual Award – Luminaries With Heart Bill Wostoupal, EVP, OCIO, Orion
Client Engagement Artificial Intelligence Firm Award – Innovation Seismic TIFIN AG Wealth Management GPT YourStake
Client Portals Firm Award – Innovation CapIntel Wealth Access
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Diana Cabrices, Founder, Diana Cabrices Consulting LLC
Financial Planning Firm Award – Industry Disruption Flourish Tolerisk Vanilla wealth.com
Financial Planning Firm Award – Innovation Alphathena Asset-Map Conquest Planning Docupace Thrivent Vanilla wealth.com
Retirement Income Firm Award – Innovation DPL Financial Partners Envestnet Flourish Specialized Planning Applications Firm Award – Innovation FP Alpha Luminary Tolerisk
Financial Planning Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education Asset-Map IncomeConductor (WealthConductor LLC) IncomePath Orion
Individual Award – Executive of the Year H. Adam Holt, CEO and Founder, Asset-Map Max Lane, CEO, Flourish Gene Farrell, CEO, Vanilla Aaron Schumm, CEO and Founder, Vestwell Rafael Loureiro, CEO, wealth.com
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Jordan Haines, Director of Product Marketing, Elements
Individual Award – Thought Leader of the Year Phil Lubinski, Co-founder, WealthConductor LLC Steve Lockshin, Founder and Chairman, Vanilla
Individual Award – Luminaries With Heart Joellen Meckley, AVP, Center Strategy and Operations; Managing Director, Center for Special Needs, The American College of Financial Services
Investment Management Firm Award – Excellence in Marketing/PR intelliflo Adhesion Wealth Advisor Solutions
Firm Award – Industry Disruption Alphix Solutions Nitrogen Wealth Opto Investments
Alternative Investment Platforms Firm Award – Innovation CAIS Crystal Capital Partners
Investment Management Firm Award – Innovation Kwanti VRGL
Investment/Data Analytics Firm Award – Innovation 55ip Alphix Solutions Helios Quantitative Research
Portfolio Management, Accounting and Performance Reporting Firm Award – Innovation Adhesion Wealth Advisor Solutions Ethic FusionIQ MyVest and Income Discovery FINIAT MyVest SMArtX Advisory Solutions Summit Wealth Systems Vestmark
Rebalancing Firm Award – Innovation Apex Fintech Solutions Inc. intelliflo Pontera
Alternative Investment Platforms Firm Award – Innovation Opto Investments
Custodial Platform Firm Award – Innovation RBC Clearing and Custody
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Matt Brown, CEO, CAIS Mark Healy, CEO, FusionIQ Lawrence Calcano, Chairman and CEO, iCapital Aaron Wormus, Chief Technology Officer, SMArtX Advisory Solutions Rob Battista, SVP, Head of Advisory Solutions, Vestmark Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Ryan Eisenman, CEO and Co-founder, Arch Dan Bolton, Vice President of Corporate Marketing, Nitrogen
Operations Business Support Systems/Workflow Automation Firm Award – Industry Disruption AdvicePay Canoe Intelligence CogniCor Orion Quik!
Business Support Systems/Workflow Automation Firm Award – Innovation Agio, Inc. Canoe Intelligence Milemarker Orion Sycamore
Operations Firm Award – Innovation Advisor360° Laserfiche RegVerse – A Surge Ventures Company
Unified (All-in-One) Systems Firm Award – Innovation Advyzon Amplify Technology Micruity, Inc.
Firm Award – Thought Leadership and Education AdvicePay F2 Strategy
Individual Award – Executive of the Year Hailin Li, CEO, Advyzon Jason Eiswerth, CEO, Canoe Intelligence Sindhu Joseph, Founder and CEO, CogniCor David Knoch, CEO, Docupace Doug Fritz, CEO and Co-founder, F2 Strategy Adrian Johnstone, CEO, Practifi Kim Crawford Goodman, CEO, Smarsh Mike Overdorf, CEO, Sycamore Company
Individual Award – Next-Gen Rising Stars Aman Soni, VP of Data Strategy, Canoe Intelligence Naomi Win, PsyD., Behavioral Finance Analyst, Orion Jamie Susanin, Senior Portfolio Manager, Custom Indexing, Orion Emily Wilcox, Chief Operations Officer, Practifi
Individual Award – Thought Leader of the Year Trevor Gary, CEO and Co-founder, Micruity, Inc. Daniel Crosby, Chief Behavioral Officer, Orion
(Credit: Chris Nicholls/ALM)