2015 PLANSPONSOR National Conference

  • Matt Adamson

    Senior Business Leader, Mastercard,

    Matt Adamson is a Senior Business Leader, Total Rewards for MasterCard. In this role he consults with MasterCard’s business unit leadership and HR teams on the design of compensation, benefits, and global mobility programs for employees. Prior to this role he was responsible for U.S. retirement and financial education plans as well as the global benefits offering for MasterCard’s assignee and expat population. Before joining MasterCard, Mr. Adamson was a corporate retirement consultant at Mercer, where he advised clients on the design, implementation, and ongoing servicing of their defined contribution and non-qualified plans. His scope of duties at Mercer included extensive retirement vendor procurement exercises along with business development. Mr. Adamson is a graduate of the University of Dayton with a bachelor’s degree in Finance.

  • Steve Anderson

    President, Schwab Retirement Plan Services, Charles Schwab,

    Steve Anderson heads Schwab Retirement Plan Services, which provides retirement plans for more than 1.3 million individuals* through their workplace, including 401(k) plans, profit-sharing plans, defined benefit plans, and nonqualified plans. The primary Schwab Retirement Plan Services operational centers are located in Richfield, OH, Austin, TX, and Phoenix, AZ. Mr. Anderson has been in the financial services industry for more than 30 years with extensive management, sales, and client service experience. He joined Schwab in 1999 and has been in his current role since 2008. In prior roles at Schwab, Mr. Anderson managed various business units in Schwab Corporate Services and Schwab Investor Services. His leadership responsibilities in Schwab Corporate Services included overseeing plan sponsor services, consultant relations, and national sales. In August of 2004, he joined the leadership team of Schwab Investor Services and was responsible for the sales, service, and investment advice efforts of Schwab’s retail branch network, with more than 325* U.S. locations as well as international offices. Prior to joining Schwab, Mr. Anderson provided insurance planning for businesses and high-net-worth individuals. Mr. Anderson has served in many community leadership positions including director on a community hospital board, trustee of a hospital foundation, trustee and board president of a hospice organization, and trustee of a city school foundation. He is a graduate of Miami University and has completed the Harvard Business School General Management Program.

  • Bradley K. Arends

    CEO & Senior Consultant, Alliance Benefits Group Financial Services, Corp.,
    Bradley K. Arends, J.D. has worked in the ERISA and investment areas for 30 years, concentrating on the design, communication and funding of defined contribution plans, IRC Section 125 flexible benefits plans, defined contribution health insurance approaches, private health insurance exchanges, health savings accounts, and executive compensation programs. Brad has been instrumental in negotiating strategic alliances with investment companies and custodians for the funding of participant-investment-directed 401(k), 403(b), 457, profit sharing, and money purchase pension plans. Likewise, he has extensive knowledge and experience in designing and implementing effective employee communication/education strategies for salary reduction retirement programs, medical and dependent care flexible spending accounts, health savings accounts, and multi-tiered health programs, for which the firm and several of its clients have received national recognition. Brad is a current member of the Retirement Advisor Council for Fidelity Investments Custody and Clearing Group (FCC), a former member of the Schwab Retirement Business Services Trust & Custody Advisory Board, a current member of the Advisory Council for SunGard Relius, a member and former President of Retirement Advisors and Designers of America (RADA), a member of the Employee Benefit Section of the Minnesota Bar Association, a current member of the Advisory Board for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota, and is on the Board of Managers for Alliance Benefit Group, LLC. He has been involved in various local volunteer organizations, including positions on the Board of Directors of the YMCA and JOBS, Inc., the Albert Lea Lake Restoration Committee, and the United Way. He graduated from Washington University School of Law with an emphasis in tax.

  • Bruce Ashton

    Partner, Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP,
    Bruce L. Ashton is a partner in Drinker Biddle’s Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Practice Group. With more than 35 years of practice, Bruce has gained wide experience representing businesses in sophisticated business transactions and employee benefits matters. Bruce’s practice focuses on all aspects of employee benefits issues including representing public and private sector plans and their sponsors, negotiating the resolution of plan qualification issues under IRS remedial correction programs, advising and defending fiduciaries on their obligations and liabilities, structuring qualified plans, non-qualified deferred compensation arrangements and health care arrangements, and representing plan service providers (including RIAs, independent record-keepers, third-party administrators, broker-dealers and insurance companies) in fulfilling their obligations under ERISA.

  • Tim Atkinson

    Chair, City of Austin Deferred Compensation Committee,
    Tim Atkinson is the current Chair of the Board of Trustees of the City of Austin Police Retirement System. He has served on the board since 2008. The Austin Police Retirement System was established in 1980 to provide retirement, death and disability benefits to its members. It has effectively fulfilled its mission to both retired and active members of the Austin Police Department since its inception. The current funding ratio of the $800 million Plan is 70%. At this time, the Plan actively invests in Private Equity, Energy, Bonds, Domestic Equity, International Equity, Fixed Income, Alternatives, Real Estate, and Hedge Funds. APRS uses the Bogdan Group as consultants. http://www.ausprs.org/ Tim also chairs the City of Austin’s Deferred Compensation Program (457) and has served on that committee since 2006. The Deferred Compensation program is a voluntary defined contribution program for all City of Austin employees. The Plan currently has assets totaling approximately $400 million and boasts one of the highest employee participation rates in the governmental space for programs without an “auto-enrollment” feature. As a result of a recent RFP, the Plan reduced employee administration costs by approximately 80% and significantly streamlined the Plan’s core investment menu. In 2014, the Plan was selected by Plan Sponsor Magazine as the Governmental Defined Contribution (457) Plan of the Year. In the same year, the Plan was recognized by NAGDCA (National Association for Governmental Defined Contribution Administrators) for its Leadership Role. CoADCC uses The Retirement Store as consultants. http://dcaustin.com/ In his 22st year of service to the City of Austin, Tim is a Police Corporal currently supervising an evening patrol shift. He recently celebrated his 20th wedding anniversary to Marissa, the love of his life. The couple reside just outside of Austin and are the proud parents of two teenaged sons.

  • Michelle Barrett

    Manager, University Retirement Programs, University of Rochester,

    Michelle T. Barrett is the Manager of University Retirement Programs at the University of Rochester, a private higher educational institution and teaching hospital in western New York. In her role, she oversees the University’s retirement program, executive compensation plans and retiree benefits, with over 20 years experience at the University. The University of Rochester Retirement Program is pleased to be a finalist for the 2015 PLANSPONSOR Magazine Plan Sponsor of the Year Award. Ms. Barrett earned her bachelor’s degree in Communications from SUNY Geneseo and her master’s degree in Career and Human Resources Development from Rochester Institute of Technology.

  • Barbara Best

    Principal, Capital Strategies Investment Group LLC,
    Barbara is a Principal and founding partner of Capital Strategies Investment Group.  She supports client relationships; conducts service provider searches, plan design and administrative reviews.  Barbara advises clients on enhancing participant engagement, communication and education strategies, and develops customized solutions that involve the engagement of Capital Strategies’ resources.  She also helps manage the strategic growth of the Private Wealth practice. Barbara has over 30 years’ experience in the financial services industry with the past 22 years focusing on corporate benefit programs.  Before Capital Strategies, she held various management roles at a global financial services firm.  Barbara is a regular speaker at industry functions and participates on service provider advisory boards to help those organizations improve their product and service offerings. Barbara received her B.A. in Economics, magna cum laude, from Boston College and studied at London School of Economics and Faculte des Lettres in France. She also received a Business Certificate in Finance from the Professional Program of New York University.  Barbara is an Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF®) and has received the PLANSPONSOR Retirement Professional (PRP) designation.

  • Stephen T. Best

    Vice President, Director of Compensation and Benefits, JE Dunn Construction Company,
    For nearly 12 years, Steve Best has been the Director of Compensation & Benefits at JE Dunn Construction Company, one of the largest domestic General Contractors, by revenue, in the United States. Steve has almost 25 years of experience in Human Resources, mainly in compensation, benefits, and HR Systems roles. Prior to joining JE Dunn, he held HR positions at Hallmark Cards as well as HNTB, an architecture, engineering, and planning firm. Steve serves on the Board and has been Chair of the Mid-America Coalition on Health Care, is on the Board of the Atlanta Area Compensation Association, and currently serves as the only non-physician board member of the Kansas City Metropolitan Physician Association. He graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Marquette University (Milwaukee, WI) with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology, and received a Master of Industrial and Labor Relations degree from Cornell University (Ithaca, NY).

  • Rocke D. Blair

    Practice Leader, White Oak Advisors,
    Rocke Blair is Practice Leader and Lead Consultant in the greater Cincinnati, Ohio area for White Oak Advisors. Prior to joining White Oak Advisors, Rocke served as regional Vice President for Transamerica Retirement Solutions/Diversified for 20 years and has been in the employee benefits industry over 25 years. He brings experience of the vendor marketplace and industry background working with healthcare organizations, manufacturing, financial institutions and non-profit organizations. Rocke has worked with clients who have complex retirement plan structures including various defined contribution plans (profit sharing, 401(k), 403(b), 457) and defined benefit plans. Rocke’s approach to working with clients is to construct an efficient platform and then create effective retirement outcomes for participants thru plan optimization which includes the use of behavioral finance best practices. After graduating from Indiana University’ with a B.A. in Chemistry and a dual degree Business from the Kelley School, Rocke complete the CEBS designation from the Wharton School and his MBA in Finance from Capital University. He recently acquired the Certified Behavioral Finance Analyst designation from the Allianz Global Behavioral Finance Institute.

  • Kit Brady

    Vice President of Human Resources, Education & Guest Experience, Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare,
    Kit Brady is the vice president of human resources, education and guest experience at Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare in St. Paul, Minnesota, where she has worked since 2003. Brady has over twenty years of experience in human resources, including benefits, compensation, and talent management. Brady has a GBA designation through the International Foundation of Employee Benefits, is SHPR certified, and has a Master of Arts degree in human resources management from Concordia University.

  • Toni Brown

    Senior Vice President, Capital Group,
    Toni Brown is senior vice president and a senior defined contribution specialist at American Funds, part of Capital Group. She has 24 years of investment industry experience and joined Capital Group in 2013. Prior to joining Capital, Toni was the director of U.S. client consulting and the U.S. defined contribution leader for Mercer Investment Consulting. Before that, she was a senior investment consultant at Callan Associates with management responsibilities for the San Francisco consulting office and the firm’s defined contribution practice. She holds an MBA from Arizona State University and a bachelor’s degree in general business from the University of Denver. She also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. Toni is based in San Francisco.

  • John Carnevale

    President & Chief Executive Officer, Sentinel Benefits & Financial Group,
    John Carnevale, JD, AIF® President & Chief Executive Officer John oversees the management of Sentinel Benefits & Financial Group and is primarily responsible for the company’s vision, strategy and business development. During his nearly thirty-year career, he has acquired and integrated eleven businesses to grow Sentinel to become one of the largest independent employee benefit firms in the United States. John is an active member of several industry advisory councils. His participation helps to shape strategy and influence policy for delivering retirement and benefit services to businesses and individuals. In 2013, John was listed among the Top 100 Most Influential People in the 401(k) Plan Industry. He also serves as a Board Member at St. John’s Preparatory School in Danvers, MA. “I am very fortunate to have found a vocation that I enjoy and that helps impact the lives of families we serve.” Educational Background and Certifications Suffolk University, Boston, MA – Juris Doctor – Legal Bowdoin College, Brunswick, ME – Bachelor of Arts – Government & Environmental Science Accredited Investment Fiduciary®, AIF® The Commonwealth of Massachusetts – Life, Accident and Health Insurance licenses FINRA Series 7, 24, 63 & 65 Contact John Phone (781) 914-1221 Email john.carnevale@sentinelgroup.com https://www.sentinelgroup.com/about-us/our-team/our-leadership/john-carnevale#sthash.QdNlF7YD.d

  • Jason Chepenik

    Managing Partner, Chepenik Financial,
    As a Managing Partner of Chepenik Financial, Jason Chepenik oversees the executive compensation and retirement plan consulting for organizations spanning a wide range of industries, including several Fortune 1000 companies and encompassing more than 35,000 employees. Over just the past few years, Jason has consulted on more than a billion dollars of plan assets. A Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) since 2002, Jason became an Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF®) in 2007. This designation signifies his ability to manage investment processes in accordance with guidelines set forth by the Center for Fiduciary Studies. He has since emerged as a leading strategist and speaker on fiduciary best practices, as well as a key proponent of fee transparency for corporate retirement plans. Recently, PLANADVISER magazine named Jason one of the most successful retirement plan managers in the country. Jason is considered a thought leader in his field and was named the Top Advisor in the Mid-Market Retirement Plan space by the 401kWire acknowledging the respect, insight, and passion toward the improvement of the industry. Beyond his work with Chepenik Financial, Jason is an active and respected member of the business community, contributing his financial expertise to various organizations, including private enterprise, non-profits and government agencies. In 2008, he had the honor of being invited to testify before the Department of Labor on matters pertaining to retirement plans, providing insight that will help shape the policies of tomorrow. Jason resides in Winter Park FL with his two beautiful girls, Gabby and Zoe, and his dog Sebastian!!

  • Sean Ciemiewicz

    Principal, Retirement Benefits Group,
    Sean M. Ciemiewicz, Principal As one of the Principals of Retirement Benefits Group, Sean works with a phenomenal team of professionals dedicated to retirement programs for companies and individuals. Sean’s expertise is working on education and communication programs, individual retirement management and has an interest in behavioral finance. Sean has been in the financial services industry for 17 years and started his financial services career with Prudential Securities, which subsequently changed to Wachovia Securities. Previously, Sean enjoyed a career at the Anheuser-Busch Theme Parks in San Diego and Orlando managing promotional marketing programs. Sean also is on faculty at Boston University where he teaches a course on Retirement Management. Sean’s designations include Accredited Investment Fiduciary Analyst (AIFA) designation through the Center for Fiduciary Studies; Retirement Management Analyst (RMA) through the Retirement Income Industry Association. Education Sean earned his Bachelors of Science degree from San Diego State University with an emphasis in Communications. He also holds a Masters of Business Administration degree from National University. Interests Sean is a high school football official and has his private pilot’s license (flying small airplanes). He also serves on the Board of Directors for the Holiday Bowl and Poinsettia Bowl. Sean attends Penasquitos Lutheran Church in San Diego where he plays drums in the ensemble.

  • Brian Coleman

    Director of Benefits, Compensation, Payroll and HRIS, Dawn Foods,
    Brian has been the Director of Benefits, Compensation, HRIS and Payroll at Dawn Food Products for 8 years. Dawn Food Products, Inc. is the world’s largest privately owned, global bakery supplier with annual sales of over $1 billion, and in more than 40 countries. Under Brian’s leadership, Dawn was recognized by McGraw Wentworth (now Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC), and has earned TrendBender status (keeping 2-year average cost increase near 0%) for 7 consecutive years in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014 Brian has 24 years of experience in Human Resources and has expertise in Business Integration, Human Resource Technology, Employee Relations, Organizational Development, Payroll, Compensation, Benefits, Business Operations, Payroll and Change Management. Prior to joining Dawn, he has held positions at Trinity Health, Accenture (Anderson Consulting) , American Axle and Manufacturing, Inc., Edw. C. Levy Co, Highland Superstores and Eastern Michigan University. Brian is a strong believer in giving back to the community and is a guest speaker at his alma mater, a boys little league coach and is a boy scout leader and Order of the Arrow advisor. Brian has a B.A. degree from Eastern Michigan University, where he majored in Human Resources.

  • Joe Connell

    Director of Retirement Plan Services, Sikich Financial (Formerly Retirement Plan Partners),
    Joe Connell is director of Retirement Plan Services at Sikich Financial. Joe has dedicated the past 15 years to helping organizations improve their retirement programs.  His long-term track record of success is a result of working with hundreds of employers in implementing prudent processes designed to reduce fiduciary liability and plan expenses, meet specific plan objectives and significantly improve participant retirement outcomes. Joe is a frequent and nationally recognized speaker and presenter to many employer and industry groups.   He regularly conducts retirement plan workshops educating employers on the key elements of successful and compliant retirement plan programs. Joe has earned the following credentials: Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF®), Center for Fiduciary Studies at the University of Pittsburgh; Qualified Plan Financial Consultant (QPFC), American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA); Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist Designation (CRPS®), College for Financial Planning in Denver, CO; RF™ (Registered Fiduciary) Designation, DALBAR. Joe was also recently named the 2014 Retirement Plan Adviser of the Year by PlanSponsor in September 2014.

  • Brandy Cross

    Principal , Milliman,
    Brandy is a Principal and Compliance Manager with the Midwest Employee Benefits Practice of Milliman. She joined the firm in 1998. Brandy has more than 15 years of experience with complex nondiscrimination testing, administration, government reporting and consulting on qualified and nonqualified retirement plans. She currently manages the team of professionals who are responsible for the completion of all compliance tasks for defined contribution retirement plans. She also works with clients and staff in relation to various Internal Revenue Service and Department of Labor plan compliance issues.

  • Richard A. Davies

    Senior Managing Director—Defined Contribution and Co-Head of Institutions North America Client Group, AllianceBernstein,
    Richard A. Davies is Senior Managing Director responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction of AB’s defined contribution business. He also serves as Co-Head of Institutions for the firm’s North America Client Group. Davies rejoined AllianceBernstein in 2013 after spending several years leading Russell Investments’ institutional defined contribution business. During his earlier, 16-year career with AllianceBernstein, he led the firm’s institutional defined contribution, sub-advisory, and retail retirement and college savings businesses. Davies also served as head of global marketing and product management and led several business lines and distribution channels for the mutual funds group.He joined Alliance Capital in 1995 from First Chicago Corporation, where he served as president of retail investment services and as a managing director of First Chicago Investment Management Company. Prior to joining First Chicago in 1989, Davies was a strategy consultant and manager with The Boston Consulting Group. He worked in brand management for Procter & Gamble before attending graduate school. Davies holds a BA in economics, with honors, from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He chairs the Advisory Board of the University of Wisconsin’s Economics Department. Davies is a Trustee of the Employee Benefit Research Institute and was a founder and continues to serve on the Executive Committee of the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association.

  • Mike Devlin

    Principal , BCG Pension Risk Consultants,
    Michael E. Devlin, AIF ® Principal and Accredited Investment Fiduciary BCG Pension Risk Consultants Mr. Devlin is a Principal at BCG, which specializes in assisting Plan Sponsors with managing their pension risk. BCG has consulted on over 2000 liability settlements for defined benefit pension plans since 1983 and Mr. Devlin is responsible for all marketing efforts and is based in the Boston, Massachusetts Office. In June of 2011, BCG announced it had completed the first Buy-In transaction in the US, for which Mr. Devlin was the lead consultant. Mr. Devlin graduated from The Pennsylvania State University with a degree in Business. Experience He started his career with British Tire and Rubber based in London, England. He then joined KPMG in their retirement plan office in Boston, MA. After KPMG, he went to The Hartford where he worked with plan sponsors, advisors and consultants in the defined benefit retirement plan space. Mr. Devlin left The Hartford in 2000 to form Business Consultants Group (BCG) which joined with Terminal Funding Co. in 2003 to form BCG Terminal funding Company. Mr. Devlin has over 20+ years experience in the defined benefit retirement plan space, and is a frequent speaker on pension de-risking strategies at various National conferences. He also participates in various training webinars for clients and their participants. Mr. Devlin holds his FINRA Series 6 and 63 security licenses along with life and annuity insurance licenses. He is not affiliated with any insurance company as an agent. Mr. Devlin also is the one of the founders of a non-profit entity named “The VIDA” that build schools and clean water systems for children/communities in Africa.

  • Glenn Dial

    Managing Director, Head of US Retirement Strategy, Allianz Global Investors,
    Mr. Dial is a managing director with Allianz Global Investors, which he joined in 2011 as Head of Retirement Strategy. Mr. Dial has 21 years of investment-industry experience. He previously held senior-management positions with JPMorgan and Ceridian. Mr. Dial is a co-inventor of the “method and system for evaluating target-date funds” and is also credited with developing the target-date fund category system commonly referred to as “To versus Through.” He has a B.S./B.A. in finance from the University of Central Florida and an M.B.A. from Rollins College.

  • Geoffrey Dietrich

    Vice President , Dietrich & Associates,
    Geoff has been helping plan sponsors manage pension obligations since 1999. An experienced consultant, underwriter and transition manager, Geoff has served as a trusted advisor to Fortune 500 companies, municipalities and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Geoff works directly with plan sponsors, actuaries, pension attorneys and the highest rated life insurance companies to provide custom de-risking solutions.

  • Gerald Erickson

    Principal, Milliman,
    Gerald is a Principal and Benefits Consultant with the Midwest Employee Benefits practice of Milliman with offices in Chicago, Minneapolis and Omaha. He joined the firm in 1996. Gerald’s consulting experience is focused in the areas of design and implementation of defined contribution retirement plans. In addition, he is familiar with a variety of other qualified and nonqualified retirement plans. His background includes marketing and communications. Gerald is actively involved in setting the direction of Milliman’s defined contribution services and the Midwest Employee Benefits practice. He is currently a member of Milliman’s Marketing Committee and Chairman of the Marketing Focus Group. Gerald also serves on Milliman’s Employee Benefits Steering Committee. Gerald previously served as Chairman for the Defined Contribution Strategic Planning Group and is a former member of the Oversight Committee for Milliman’s Employee Benefits Research Group in Washington, D.C. Gerald also participates on various subcommittees. Prior to joining Milliman, Gerald served with the U.S. Army for three years. Gerald earned a BA (cum laude) in Social Science from the University of North Dakota

  • L. Rita Fiumara

    First-Vice President, Investments, UBS Financial Services, Inc.,
    Rita is First Vice President and Institutional Senior Retirement Plan Adviser for UBS’ Retirement Plan Consulting Team. Rita specializes in both ERISA risk management in partnering and serving as a co-Fiduciary for qualified plan investment committees, as well as, a specialist in managing and working with compensation committees, on plan design and investment management process in setting up and managing non-qualified plan structures. Since 1996, Rita has dedicated her career to equipping Plan Sponsors with best practices in meeting their Fiduciary responsibilities. Her focus integrates plan design consulting, operational compliance, competitive market efficiencies and customizable employee education programs that exceed industry standards. Rita stays active in her local professional community through speaking engagements and conferences. She has spoken at events for the Chicago Bar Association, the Valley Industrial Association CFO Council, and the Midwest Great Lakes conference. Her active involvement in the 401(k) community in addition to her industry experience has earned her recognition from 401(k) Wire as one of the industry’s Top 300 Most Influential Advisers in the defined contribution marketplace. Rita was named as one of the Top 5 Plan Advisers in the country by PLANSPONSOR and PLANADVISER magazine in 2010 and was just recently named Retirement Plan Adviser of the Year for 2015 by PLANSPONSOR and PLANADVISER Magazine. In addition to Series 7, 65, and 66 securities licenses, Rita holds many professional certifications as an expert in employee benefits. She is both a Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist (CRPS) and an Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF), an accreditation on investment fiduciary standard of care ranging from employee education to investment due diligence, asset allocation vendor reviews and overall cost management for plan. Additionally, Rita is a Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA), which is exclusively available to investment consultants with at least three years of professional experience. The certification focuses on asset allocation, ethics, due diligence, risk measurement, investment policy, and performance measurement. Rita has earned her Bachelor of Arts degree with a concentration in finance from the University of South Florida and her Master of Science degree in Business Administration from the Illinois Institute of Technology Stuart School of Business in Chicago

  • James Fleckner

    Partner, Goodwin Procter LLP,
    Jamie Fleckner is a partner in Goodwin Procter’s Litigation Department and Chair of its ERISA Litigation Practice. Mr. Fleckner represents clients in a wide array of complex commercial litigation, with a focus on financial services and products, including investment management. He regularly litigates class and derivative actions under ERISA, the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and related federal and state laws. His practice also focuses on regulatory investigations and governmental proceedings, and has represented clients before the U.S. Department of Labor, Securities and Exchange Commission, Department of Justice, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation and state authorities. Mr. Fleckner’s work in successfully defending his clients in litigation involving cutting edge legal issues has been profiled in The American Lawyer, Big Suits. According to The Legal 500 United States, Mr. Fleckner “is particularly strong, and is fast becoming a leader in ERISA fiduciary litigation involving financial products.” He has also been selected for inclusion in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business and named a New England Super Lawyer by Law & Politics and Boston magazine.

  • Peter Gordon

    Chief Executive Officer, John Hancock Retirement Plan Services,
    Peter Gordon is Chief Executive Officer, John Hancock Retirement Plan Services, part of John Hancock Financial, the U.S. division of Toronto-based Manulife Financial Corporation. John Hancock Retirement Plan Services (JHRPS) is an industry leader1 in helping individuals realize the retirement futures they have promised themselves. JHRPS offers retirement plans to organizations ranging from start-ups to providing total retirement outsourced solutions to very large businesses around the United States. Before taking on his current position in 2011, Mr. Gordon was the president of John Hancock Financial Network, the company’s national network of independent firms, and its broker-dealer, Signator Investors, Inc. Mr Gordon has spent the majority of his 30 years with the company in the retirement plan business, first joining Manulife in 1985 as a Pension Sales Representative in Los Angeles. In 1991, he became the Southeast Regional Sales Manager and later the National Sales Manager responsible for overall retirement plan sales in the U.S. Mr. Gordon graduated from the University of California at Los Angeles with a B.A. in Economics.1 PLANSPONSOR 2014 Defined Contribution Recordkeeping Survey © June 2014 Asset International Inc.

  • David Gray

    Vice President, Retirement Plan Services, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc,
    Dave Gray is vice president of client experience. He has more than 13 years of diverse experience in the retirement services industry. Under his leadership, the client experience and product management team operates with an outside-in perspective that aims to design solutions to meet client needs. Mr. Gray has held leadership positions in plan sponsor services, relationship management, institutional sales, business development, and general management. Prior to joining Schwab, Mr. Gray was vice president of client service for The Standard, leading the national relationship management and education teams. Prior to that, he was vice president and regional director for Invesmart, Inc, where he managed all facets of retirement service for four offices within that firm. Mr. Gray holds a bachelor’s degree from Tennessee Temple University. He has also earned a Certified Pension Consultant (CPC) designation from the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA). Mr. Gray is a frequent speaker at industry conferences. He also holds Series 7, 24, and 66 registrations.

  • Richard Hartman

    Corporate Benefits Manager - Retirement Plans, American Woodmark Corporation,
    Richard Hartman II is the corporate benefits manager for American Woodmark Corporation, a manufacturer of kitchen and bath cabinetry.  He is responsible for the overall management, administration and communication of the company’s retirement programs.  These plans include a defined contribution plan, a non-qualified plan and defined benefit plans.  As a member of the pension committee, he shares responsibility for the strategic plan design and portfolio management for these programs.  Prior to joining American Woodmark Corporation, Richard was a financial advisor for a firm servicing individual investors.  He earned his bachelor’s degree from the college of Human Resources and Education from West Virginia University, and he holds the Certified Benefits Professional (CBP) designation.

  • Jeffrey Hemker

    National Sales Manager - Retirement Division, Invesco,
    Jeffrey Hemker is a National Sales Director for the Retirement Division of Invesco.Mr. Hemker has been in the industry since 1980. Prior to joining Invesco in 2004, he was a managing director of retirement outsourcing services for WySTAR Global Retirement Solutions and a senior vice president at both CIGNA Retirement & Investment Services and Van Kampen American Capital Funds. He has been a featured speaker at advisor meetings, training and education seminars, and industry events throughout his career. Mr. Hemker graduated from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and Roosevelt University. He holds the Series 7, 63 and 66 registrations and is a Certified Investment Management AnalystSM (CIMA®) professional.

  • Jeremy Hersch

    National Sales Manager - Retirement Division, Invesco,
    Jeffrey Hemker is a National Sales Director for the Retirement Division of Invesco.Mr. Hemker has been in the industry since 1980. Prior to joining Invesco in 2004, he was a managing director of retirement outsourcing services for WySTAR Global Retirement Solutions and a senior vice president at both CIGNA Retirement & Investment Services and Van Kampen American Capital Funds. He has been a featured speaker at advisor meetings, training and education seminars, and industry events throughout his career. Mr. Hemker graduated from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and Roosevelt University. He holds the Series 7, 63 and 66 registrations and is a Certified Investment Management AnalystSM (CIMA®) professional.

  • Jeremy Hersch

    Vice President, Investment Solutions, Transamerica,
    Mr. Hersch is Head of Asset Allocation Services and New Product Development at Transamerica Retirement Solutions. He oversees the firm’s asset allocation services and products for retirement plan participants and plan sponsors, including advice and managed account solutions, custom target date and risk-based portfolio offerings, and the firm’s retirement planning and guidance tools. Mr. Hersch has spent his entire career in the retirement services industry. Prior to joining Transamerica, he worked for the Trinsum Group and Integrated Finance Ltd., where he helped develop and operate a next-generation managed account pension solution. He also supported those firms’ pension risk management services for Fortune 500 companies. Mr. Hersch holds a BA in Economics from Princeton University. He is a CFA charterholder and a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts. He is also FINRA Series 7 and 63 licensed.

  • Gene Huxhold

    Senior Managing Director, Investment Only Retirement Plans, John Hancock Investments,
    Gene is responsible for consultant and plan sponsor relations in the investment-only retirement plans market, serving employers offering qualified retirement plans. Prior to joining John Hancock in 2005, he served as a senior vice president at Allstate Financial Services, where he managed a large retail organization. He also worked at CNA Financial and Kemper Financial Investments (predecessor to DWS), and has held a variety of positions, including retirement plan wholesaler and senior vice president/national sales manager for both mutual fund and retirement plan wholesalers. Gene received a B.S. in Finance/Personnel Management and an M.B.A. in Economics from DePaul University, and holds the Certified Financial Planner and Accredited Investment Fiduciary designations. He is also a founding member of the Retirement Advisor Council, and he has testified before a U.S. House Ways and Means subcommittee on matters concerning nonprofit retirement plans.

  • Brock Johnson

    President, Retirement Solutions, Morningstar, Inc.,
    Brock Johnson leads the efforts around Morningstar’s global retirement strategy and initiatives. In this role Johnson is responsible for setting the direction both domestically and overseas for the retirement solutions Morningstar offers to the market. Some of his key responsibilities include strategic positioning, solution development, marketing, account management, and product development/oversight for Morningstar’s institutional investment products and services. Prior to the latest expansion of his role, Johnson led the retirement solutions group of Morningstar’s Investment Management division. He has held various positions across Morningstar including the institutional investment consulting group, the Advice business unit, and the Institutional Service Group. Before joining Morningstar in 2000, he was director of consultative products for Key Asset Management in Cleveland, OH. Johnson holds a bachelor’s degree in business and economics from Wheaton College and a master’s degree in business administration with a dual concentration in finance and policy management from Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management

  • Peter Kapinos

    Head of Client Engagement , Empower Retirement,
    Peter Kapinos is Head of Acquisition and Retention Marketing at Empower Retirement. In his role, Peter is responsible for developing engagement strategies for Empower Retirement’s 401(k), non-profit, and government markets clients, including advisor, consultant, and plan sponsor programs. Prior to his current role, he held a number of management responsibilities within the organization, including relationship management, rollover and brokerage services. Earlier in his career, Peter held a number of sales and marketing roles at Putnam Investments, and joined the organization in 1989. Peter graduated Magna Cum Laude earning Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees from Boston University. Peter is a member of the Research Committee of the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association, and serves on the agenda committee for the National Association of Plan Advisors 401(k) Summit. He is a frequent speaker at industry and professional conferences, and has appeared in numerous financial publications including The Wall Street Journal, Pensions & Investments, and Investment News.

  • Robert A. Kieckhefer

    Managing Partner, The Kieckhefer Group,
    Rob has focused his securities career on both qualified retirement and nonqualified deferred compensation plans. He works closely with business owners, management teams, and investment policy committees assisting them with their deferred compensation plans whether they are 401(k), 403(b), cash balance, money purchase pension or nonqualified deferred compensation plans. Rob manages cash and investable assets for corporations, individuals and trust accounts. Acting as a fiduciary on over a billion dollars in retirement assets and corporate cash, Rob provides a unique insight into the market and the economy that has come from decades of experience. The Kieckhefer Group is in the process of rapidly expanding their team and base of operations. Rob has obtained the Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) designation and PLANSPONSOR Retirement Professional (PRP) designations. Although not required to hold these designations, the additional skills and expertise gained will ultimately benefit our clients. Rob is a member of the Retirement Leadership Council as recognized by the Organization of Retirement Leaders. Rob currently serves on the $3.5 billion EdVest 529 College Saving Plan Board as an appointee of the Wisconsin State Department of the Treasury and the Governor. Rob earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Arts from the University of Pennsylvania in 1972. Rob received a Master’s of Science degree in Environmental Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1974. Rob was a member of the Hexagon Engineering Honor Society, a National Science Foundation Scholar and an EPA Trainee while attending the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1974. Rob has been associated with a number of conservation organizations and received the Chevron Time Mirror conservation award for his work with the Wisconsin Waterfowl Association. Rob and his wife Maryglen, have three grown children and reside in Mequon, Wisconsin.

  • Phyllis Klein

    Senior Director Consulting Research Group, CAPTRUST Financial Advisors,
    As a Senior Director in the Consulting Research Group of CAPTRUST Financial Advisors Phyllis and has overall responsibility for fiduciary issues, ERISA technical and regulatory issues and Participant Advice Services. Phyllis has a Bachelor of Science from the University of Wisconsin-Lacrosse and has over 30 years of retirement plan industry experience, including plan design consulting, investment advisory support and fiduciary expertise.  Phyllis is certified as an Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) by the Center for Fiduciary Studies in association with the University of Pittsburgh Katz Graduate School of Business and the PRP (PLANSPONSOR Retirement Plan Specialist). Phyllis has served as an expert witness for the Department of Labor on fiduciary matters. CAPTRUST has over 20 offices nationwide providing services to over 1400 retirement plan clients representing over $160 billion in plan assets.

  • Mark Koeppen

    Vice President, Rollover Solutions Group, Millennium Trust Company,
    Mark Koeppen is a 25 year veteran of the retirement industry with extensive knowledge of the Healthcare, Government and Corporate markets. His expertise in consulting, plan management, cost analysis, and administration brings a unique, “insider” perspective to Millennium Trust’s Rollover Solutions Group and its clients. Prior to joining Millennium Trust, Mr. Koeppen worked for two of the nation’s top financial services firms, where he made a career building successful, enduring relationships. At MetLife he consulted on and managed large retirement plans in the healthcare and government markets. While at Great-West Financial Services, he developed and managed four institutional partner relationships while building and directing, implementation and account management teams to ensure proper execution of Plan procedures and asset transfers.

  • Shale Latter

    Retirement Plan Consultant, CapTrust Advisors, LLC,
    Shale is a graduate of the University of South Florida where he received his Bachelor of Science in Finance with a minor in Management Information Systems. Shale also holds a Master’s Degree in Theology from Liberty University. Shale has over 12 years of investment industry experience. Prior to joining CapTrust, Shale worked for Raymond James Financial Services on a high level management team specifically designed to handle finance-related projects. This team worked with members of the executive team’s office to create analytical tools that were used to assist consultants in servicing their clients. Shale began his time with CapTrust in 2003 and was placed in charge of all quarterly reporting as well as research and analysis for the retirement plan practice. This role also involved assisting with plan design, employee education and mutual fund due diligence. Shale spent quite a bit of time on the road meeting with mutual fund managers and plan providers to ensure their investment mandates and retirement operations were in-line with client objectives. Shale’s current role involves working directly with clients assisting them with all aspects of their retirement plan and offering recommendations as to where they can make improvements. In addition to his role servicing clients he also remains involved in employee education as well as fund and provider due diligence.

  • Judi Leccese

    Retirement and Non-Qualified Plans Manager, Cabot Corporation,
    Judi Leccese is the Retirement Plans Manager for Cabot Corporation and a well versed expert on work place savings and benefit strategies. Cabot Corporation is a leading global specialty chemicals and performance materials company headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, USA and provides benefits to 1500 US-based employees. An accountant by trade, this 26 year Cabot employee has a unique perspective on retirement benefits, saving strategies and building partnerships with Cabot’s vendors. She is responsible for operating the Cabot’s 401(k), frozen DB/Cash Balance, non-qualified and ESOP plans and is member of the Investment Committee. In the past 5 years, she and her colleagues froze their DB plan, retired their ESOP, conducted Non Qualified DB and DC record-keeper RFPs, managed a liquidation of one of their investment funds and rolled out a totally re-designed 401(k) plan that has 94% participation with an average savings rate greater than 9%. When she is not helping her colleagues save for retirement, she can be found at one of her favorite golf courses or karaoke bars.

  • David Levine

    Principal, Groom Law Group, Chartered,
    David N. Levine is a principal at Groom Law Group, Chartered.  He advises plan sponsors, advisors, and other service providers on a wide range of employee benefits matters, from retirement and executive compensation to health and welfare plan matters. Mr. Levine’s areas of service include: the redesign of complex retirement, executive, and health and welfare plans; ongoing, day-to-day counseling of plan sponsors; in-depth compliance reviews of corporate and governmental benefit programs; and representation of tax-exempt organizations with respect to issues involving corporate governance, executive compensation, and unrelated business income tax liability. Mr. Levine was previously the Chair of the IRS Advisory Committee on Tax Exempt and Government Entities (2011-2013) and is currently a member of the Executive Committee of the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association and serves in a number of leadership roles in the American Bar Association Tax Section’s Employee Benefits Committee.  Mr. Levine regularly speaks on plan design, fiduciary governance, and legislative issues and contributes a recurring column to NAPA Net — The Magazine.  He is recognized in The Legal 500 and USA Chambers guide for Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation.  Mr. Levine received his J.D., from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and his B.A., with general and departmental honors, from Johns Hopkins University.

  • Dave Liebrock

    Retirement Industry Consultant and former executive , Fidelity Investments and CapTrust Advisors,
    For 30 years, Dave Liebrock has enjoyed a successful career as one of the industry’s leading retirement plan executives, with prominent positions at Fidelity Investments and most recently with CAPTRUST as a member of their Advisory Board. Mr. Liebrock advised 401(k), 403(b) and Defined Benefit plans totaling more than $2.5 billion in assets. He acted as a fiduciary advisor with regard to plan investments, record keeping, participant advice and overall cost of the plan. Today, he is active in the field as an expert advisor helping Custodia Financial introduce the company’s groundbreaking Retirement Loan Eraser™ program.

  • Scott Liggett

    Director, ERISA Oversight, Lawing Financial Inc. Qualified Plan Advisors,
    Scott Liggett is an attorney with Lawing Financial’s Qualified Plan Advisors Division. Scott’s experience includes preparing and presenting quarterly/annual retirement plans reviews together with plan modification studies and recommendations; negotiating and preparing plan documentation; reviewing nondiscrimination testing results and making applicable recommendations to plan sponsors; researching and interpreting IRS, DOL and ERISA statues, regulations and precedent and presenting annual actuarial valuation study results; His areas of experience are not limited to retirement programs, but also include business continuity issues such as corporate structure, succession plans and mergers and acquisitions. Scott currently holds FINRA Series 6, 63 and 65 registrations and is a member of the Kansas Bar. He is a registered representative with Cambridge Investment Research, Member FINRA/SIPC. Scott holds a B.A. in Business and is a graduate from the University of Nebraska College of Law, Lincoln, Nebraska (JD).

  • Robert A. Massa

    Director, Retirement, Ascende,
    Robert Massa is a retirement professional with more than twenty years of retirement industry experience. His primary responsibilities with Ascende, Inc. and Ascende Wealth Advisers, Inc. (AWAI) include management and SEC compliance, strategic investment direction, retirement consulting standards and practices, employee education and development and oversight of client relationships and engagements. His career has been focused in the investment management and administration of qualified retirement plans in a diverse series of roles including investment advice, trust administration, recordkeeping, compliance testing, product management, legal, FINRA securities compliance and client consultation. Prior to joining Ascende, Mr. Massa spent 10 years as a vice president and principal at MBM Advisors, Inc. where he was also a shareholder of the company. Mr. Massa has a Bachelor of Arts in public administration and a minor in mathematics from the College of New Jersey. He is a licensed life/health representative, has passed the Series 7, 24, 63 and 65 securities exams, is a Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC), a Certified Employee Benefits Specialist (CEBS), an Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) and Cash Balance Consultant (CBC). Rob taught employee benefits at St. Thomas University for the Certified Financial Planner© program. He has also been interviewed for various articles in The Motley Fool, Houston Business Journal, Institutional Investor, the Fiduciary News and TheStreet.com as well as having spoken at several regional and national conferences.

  • Laraine McKinnon

    Managing Director, BlackRock,
    Laraine McKinnon, Managing Director, is a member of the US & Canada Defined Contribution Group at BlackRock. Laraine is a retirement readiness expert who helps senior finance, human resource and business executives optimize their participant-directed retirement savings plans to help improve participant outcomes, drive employee engagement, and strengthen their organizations. Her work with Fortune 500 firms, state pension plans and other major employers includes consultation on plan design features and investment strategies that fit the culture of the organization and meet the needs of employees. Laraine helps develop and promote BlackRock’s thought leadership on retirement, including breakthrough research on retirement engagement and new tools to help quantify the implications of participants’ savings and investment decisions and project future outcomes. She also works with key stakeholders and partners including advisors, consultants and recordkeepers. Laraine’s service with the firm dates back to 1994, including her years with Barclays Global Investors (BGI), which merged with BlackRock in 2009. At BGI, she was a client relationship officer in the Americas Institutional Business, with responsibility for sales across a diverse product suite to a book of multi-billion dollar corporate and public pension and savings plans, endowments and foundations. Previously, she managed relationships with sovereign wealth funds and pension plan sponsors in the Asia/Pacific region, served as a liaison with investment consultants, and began her career in the Global Index and Markets Group where she supported index and asset allocation portfolios, including LifePath®, the industry’s first target date fund. Laraine participates in a variety of industry groups and is a frequent speaker at client and industry conferences. She earned a BA degree, cum laude, in political science and women’s studies from Wellesley College.

  • Sean McLaughlin

    Senior Vice President, Client Relations & Business Development, Prudential,
    Sean S. McLaughlin is head of Client Relations & Business Development for Prudential Retirement. In this role, McLaughlin oversees relationship management, key account management, actuarial consulting, and retail and rollover sales and support. He is responsible for driving strategies to optimize Prudential Retirement’s relationships with its existing clients, increasing the company’s market share and positioning it as a leader in transforming the U.S. retirement landscape. Prior to leading the Client Relations & Business Development organization, McLaughlin was head of Strategy, Planning, Communication & Risk Management for Prudential Retirement. In this role, he oversaw enterprise-wide strategy, planning and risk management across all business lines, and managed Prudential Retirement’s strategic communication efforts, including legislative and regulatory initiatives. McLaughlin joined Prudential from the strategy consultancy McKinsey & Company, where he served as an engagement manager in McKinsey’s New York-based financial institutions group. In this capacity, he helped insurance companies, private equity firms and other financial institutions overcome critical strategic and organizational challenges. Earlier, McLaughlin spent seven years in the logistics industry, where he had profit-and-loss responsibility for sales and operations, leading a team of more than sixty associates. McLaughlin earned an AB in Psychology from Harvard College and holds an MBA from Harvard Business School. He is based in Hartford, CT.

  • Marty Menin

    Director - Retirement Solutions Division, Pacific Life Insurance Company,
    Marty joined Pacific Life in 2012 as a Director in thMarty joined Pacific Life in 2012 as a Director in the Retirement Solutions Division. He is responsible for consulting with companies to customize solutions that solve the financial risk inherent in their pension plans through the Pacific Life suite of pension risk products. Marty also works with companies who have defined contribution plans, such as 401(k) or 403(b) plans, to provide guaranteed lifetime income options for plan participants. Marty has been working in the insurance and employee benefits industry for more than 25 years. Prior to joining Pacific Life, Marty held a variety of consulting positions for firms such as Prudential, Mullin/TBG, Marsh & McLennan, Merrill Lynch and MetLife. Marty earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics from UCLA.

  • James Nichols

    Head of Advice and Strategy Service, Voya Financial,
    James Nichols is head of Retirement Income and Advice Strategy for Voya U.S. Retirement Solutions, one of the country’s largest retirement platforms, product and service providers. In this role, James is responsible for overseeing the quality and consistency of Voya U.S.’s advice and guidance platform to meet the evolving needs of approximately 48,000 institutional clients and more than five million individual customers. He is also responsible for developing and executing the Voya U.S. retirement income strategy, which seeks to provide retirement income and advice solutions for all Americans. James joined Voya U.S. in 2013 with 20 years of industry experience. Previously, he served as senior managing director, head of Advice & Planning for TIAA-CREF, where he led a team responsible for designing, building and implementing the advice platform for the firm. In addition to TIAA-CREF, James held leadership roles at Accenture, as part of the Capital Markets practice, where he worked for a variety of financial service firms worldwide and led the Global Wealth Management product strategy. James received a B.A. in economics from Duke University and holds Series 7, 24, 63 and 65 licenses.

  • Dan Peluse

    Director Corporate Plan Services, Wintrust Wealth Management,
    Daniel J. Peluse joined Wintrust Wealth Management as Director of Corporate Plan Services in June 2013. Dan has 13 years of experience in the retirement plan services industry. He began his career in 2002 at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, specializing in retirement plans, and specifically in the areas of Defined Contribution and Defined Benefit plans. Dan graduated from Elmhurst College with a degree in Finance and has earned the designation of Certified 401(k) Professional (C(k)P) from The Retirement Advisor University and the Anderson School of Management at UCLA, Chartered Retirement Plan Specialist (CRPS) from the College of Financial Planning, Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) from the Center for Fiduciary Studies, and Certified Behavioral Finance Analyst through Allianz Investments and Professor Shlomo Benartzi of the Anderson School of Management at UCLA. Dan was recognized by PLANSPONSOR Magazine as one of five finalists for the magazine’s ‘Retirement Plan Adviser Teams of the Year’ in 2011 and named one of PLANADVISER Magazine’s ‘Top 100 Advisers’ for 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 & 2015. Dan is a member of the National Association of Plan Advisers (NAPA) and in 2013 & 2014, joined a group of colleagues from around the country for their inaugural Washington D.C. Fly-In Meeting. Meeting with members of Congress on Capitol Hill, Dan participated in support of the Retirement Plan industry and the Plan Participants that Wintrust Corporate Plan Services represents. He was also a 2014 finalist for the PLANADVISER Retirement Plan Adviser of the Year and was named to the National Association of Plan Advisers ‘s Top 50 Under 40 list. Dan holds FINRA Series 7, 63, and 65 Licenses, as well as Life and Health Insurance Licenses. He resides in Winfield, Illinois with his wife Ashley.

  • Stephen Popper

    Managing Director , SageView Advisory Group,
    Stephen Popper is based in SageView’s Boston office. Entrusted with more than $4 billion in participant’s savings, he leads the Boston team in the mission to help plan sponsors and their participants “See where they’re going.” Stephen is a plan sponsor-focused retirement plan specialist with over 20 years of industry experience in retirement plan administration, plan design analysis and risk management. He is an advocate and facilitator for industry excellence, forging strong relationships across the retirement plan services industry through transparency and inspiring service providers to deliver client-focused results. A regular speaker at Mid Size Pension Conferences and at the New England Employee Benefits Council, he focuses on educating plan sponsors to help them recruit, retain and reward their employees. Stephen is a graduate of Marist College with a Bachelor’s in Business Administration, Finance. He is an Accredited Investment Fiduciary® through the Center for Fiduciary Studies and holds multiple securities registrations. On the weekends and vacations, Stephen heads to the outdoors with his wife, Georgia children, Braden and Isabel, to hike, golf, ski and search for sand dollars at the beach.

  • Roberta Rafaloff

    Vice President, Institutional Income Annuities, MetLife,
    Roberta Rafaloff is Vice President of Corporate Benefit Funding’s Life and Income Funding Solutions. Roberta is currently the head of MetLife’s Institutional Income Annuities business. In this role, Roberta is responsible for Sales Support, Client Management, Product Development and Management. This business, which focuses on income annuities purchased by plan sponsors and their participants, has annual sales in excess of $450 million. Roberta is committed to educating plan sponsors, brokers and employees on the financial risks that people face in retirement. MetLife’s suite of income products are designed for employees to ensure that they do not outlive their income, and they are designed to remove liabilities from employer-sponsored retirement plans. In her 25 years of service with MetLife, Roberta has held a variety of sales, client service and management positions all in the Retirement & Savings business. Roberta has a B.A. degree from Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio where she majored in English and Sociology.

  • Joe Ready

    Executive Vice President and Director, Wells Fargo Institutional Retirement and Trust,
    Joe Ready is executive vice president and director of Wells Fargo Institutional Retirement and Trust. In this role, Joe has responsibility for products and services for more than 4,900 employer-sponsored retirement plans and custody accounts with 3.7 million employees, supported by more than 2,200 team members with a mission to help America’s diverse workforce prepare for a better retirement. Joe has more than 25 years of leadership experience in relationship management, sales, investments, trust administration, operations and systems. He has served in a variety of leadership roles in the institutional and investment areas including the mutual funds business, pension and employee benefits and institutional custody division. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Franklin and Marshall College. Joe is active in the retirement industry as a speaker and participates in several executive industry trade groups and boards. He is currently president and board member of The SPARK Institute, Inc. Joe volunteers in the Charlotte, N.C. area with various charitable functions and was most recently an active board member on the Charlotte Catholic Foundation. Over the last several years, Joe has been named one of the 401(k) industry’s top 100 most influential people by 401(k)Wire.

  • Michael Riak

    Principal, Head of US Defined Contribution, Pantheon Ventures,
    Michael is Head of U.S. Defined Contribution where he focuses on the DC Plans of plan sponsors. Michael was formerly Director of Savings & Affiliate Plans for Verizon Investment Management where he was responsible for overseeing investments and maintaining the integrity of the firm’s Savings Plans, Captive Insurance program, Foundation and VEBAs. Prior to Verizon, Michael worked as an auditor at Coopers & Lybrand. He holds a BA in economics from Duke University and an MBA in accounting from Hofstra University. He is a licensed CPA in New York State and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Michael is based in New York.

  • Jeff Roberts

    NQDC Product Consultant, ADP,
    Experience – Joined ADP Retirement Services, July 1998 – Over 25 years in the Retirement Services Industry – Over 15 years focused exclusively on Executive Deferred Compensation Education and Organizations – Certified Pension Consultant, American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA) – Membership Chair, ASPPA Benefits Council of the Northwest – Pacific Lutheran University, Bachelor of Arts, Economics/Mathematics Jeff serves as the national Executive Deferred Compensation product consultant for ADP. ADP Executive Deferred Compensation administers over 130 non-qualified plans with $8.5 billion in plan liabilities across 17,000 executive accounts. Jeff works with clients and prospects to develop, review and refine executive total rewards strategies which drive recruitment, retention and motivation of the key employees who drive business success.

  • Tod Ruble

    CEO, Custodia Financial,
    Tod Ruble’s career has spanned a broad array of financial services, including commercial real estate, investment banking, and insurance and benefits. His proven successes in identifying emerging trends, creating strategic vision, and building successful institutional platforms led to his appointment as Chief Executive Officer of Custodia Financial in 2010. Mr. Ruble and his team have created Retirement Loan Eraser, a comprehensive solution to the systemic problem caused by involuntary 401(k) loan defaults creating $6-10B of retirement leakage annually due to death, disability, and involuntary job loss. As a thought leader in the retirement and benefits industry, Mr. Ruble is a sought-after public speaker and press commentator. He has a deep understanding of America’s complex financial system and an equally intimate knowledge of policy, regulations and process.

  • Michael Sanders

    Principal, Cammack Retirement Group,
    Michael has over ten years of experience in the retirement industry. As head of operations, Michael Sanders oversees Cammack Retirement Group’s strategic projects and personnel. In addition, Michael is a senior consultant with various client responsibilities at Cammack Retirement Group. He serves the role of supporting Cammack Retirement Group’s clients as they update their documents, investments and processes. As a member of the Cammack Retirement Group investment team and the Investment Committee, he is also very involved in the investment services provided to our clients. Mike has an extensive background in the benefits arena. Prior to joining Cammack Retirement Group, he managed three national retirement teams, each working with recordkeeping partners, advisors, and defined contribution clients nationwide. Previously, he served retirement clients at a leading retirement and healthcare recordkeeper as a benefits wholesaler, client relationship manager, and a regional director. Mike received a Bachelor of Science from West Virginia University and a Master of Business Administration from Ramapo College. PROFESSIONAL DESIGNATIONS • Registered Representative and a Registered Principal with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) • Securities and investment licenses: Series 6, 26, 63 and 65 • Insurance licenses in multiple states • Certified Behavioral Finance Analyst PRESENTATIONS AND PUBLICATIONS • Contributing Author to Cammack Retirement’s “A Better Methodology for Monitoring Target Date Funds”

  • John C. Stiglich

    Principal, CliftonLarsonAllen,
    John Stiglich is a principal with CliftonLarsonAllen Wealth Advisors LLC and is responsible for managing the firm’s Employee Benefit Services Group. This group provides technical consulting, investment management and compliance services to a wide variety of employee benefit plans. John has been serving privately-held businesses for more than thirty-three years. He is passionate about providing clients and their employees with customized retirement plan designs and investments that will help them reach their retirement goals. The combination of his experience as a CPA, wealth advisor and plan consultant gives John the ability to offer a unique perspective on plan design, implementation, and administration. He also holds the Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) designation from the Center for Fiduciary Studies LLC which provides John the ability to consult with plan fiduciaries on how to fulfill their duties and obligations. John graduated magna cum laude from the College of St. Francis with a bachelor of business administration in accounting. He is a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Illinois and a Certified Financial Planner® John is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and is an AICPA Personal Financial Specialist (PFS). He is a member of the Illinois CPA Society (ICPAS) and past president of the ICPAS Fox Valley chapter. John also is a member of the National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA), American Society of Pension Administrators and Actuaries (ASPPA) and the National Institute of Pension Administrators (NIPA). He currently serves on the NIPA Membership Committee. John has his Series 7, 63 and 65 as well as his life and health insurance licenses. He looks forward to helping clients with all of their retirement plan needs. John resides in Shorewood, Illinois with his wife MaryJo. John enjoys golfing and attending the games of most Chicago professional sports teams.

  • Michael Swann

    Director, Defined Contribution Strategies, SEI,
    Michael Swann serves as a Director of Defined Contribution Strategy for SEI’s Defined Contribution Team. He works with defined contribution clients and is responsible for advising plan sponsors on goals-based retirement strategy through analysis of investment solutions, plan design best practices and market trends. Mike has experience in institutional multi-manager investments, investment menu simplification, custom white label funds and asset/liability analysis of proprietary and custom target date funds. Prior to his employment with SEI, Mike held positions at National Penn Investors Trust Company and Ascensus (formerly BISYS Retirement Services). Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Gettysburg College Member of the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association (DCIIA) Year started with SEI: 2011 Year started in investment industry: 2000

  • Gordon Tewell

    Principal/Consultant, Innovest Portfolio Solutions LLC,
    Gordon joined Innovest in 2007 and is a Principal, Consultant and member of Innovest’s Investment Committee. He leads Innovest’s Retirement Plan Practice Group, a specialized team that identifies best practices and implements process improvements to maximize efficiencies for our retirement plan clients. In September 2014, Innovest was named the Retirement Plan Adviser Team of the Year by PLANSPONSOR. The selection of our team for this prestigious award displays both our commitment to our clients and our proven expertise in implementing custom solutions to best meet their unique needs. At Innovest, Gordon provides institutional consulting services to committees and boards of various types of retirement plans, both corporate and public-sector. Due to his expertise in retirement plan design and management and in-depth understanding of IRS Code and DOL rules and regulations, his responsibilities include consulting on plan design and features, plan health and retirement readiness, fiduciary responsibilities and protection, plan benchmarking, vendor search analysis, and investment menu design and implementation. Gordon is an occasional speaker at industry conferences including the PlanAdviser National Conference, the Western Pension and Benefits/ASPPA Conference, the Colorado Public Plan Conference and the Rocky Mountain Benefits Plan Conference. Gordon has more than 19 years of retirement plan industry experience. During his retirement industry career Gordon has spent time as a plan sponsor and working with a recordkeeping and administration firm. Gordon is a graduate of Colorado State University, graduating with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Economics and a minor in mathematics. Gordon is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society of Colorado. Additionally, Gordon has received the Qualified 401(k) Administrator (QKA), Qualified Pension Administrator (QPA) and Certified Pension Consultant (CPC) designation from the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA).

  • Joseph Topp

    Vice President, Investment Consulting Services, Francis Investment Counsel LLC,
    Joe serves as the Vice President – Investment Consulting Services for Francis Investment Counsel a PLANSPONSOR “Top Retirement Plan Advisor” team since 2005. He leads the firm’s business development efforts, while also providing ongoing client services. Joe brings over 30 years of progressive financial management experience to the firm having previously served as Chief Financial Officer of a mid-sized Wisconsin corporation. A Certified Public Accountant since 1985, he is currently a member of the Wisconsin Institute of Certified Public Accountants and a contributing writer for the Wisconsin CPA monthly journal.  He is also an active member of the Human Resource Management Association of Southeastern Wisconsin (HRMA) and served on the Board of Directors of Wisconsin Retirement Plan Professionals, Ltd. (WRPPL).  Joe earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from Marquette University and has worked with Francis Investment Counsel for 15 years. He resides in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin with his wife and six children.

  • Attila Toth

    Partner, Co-Founder, Portfolio Evaluations Inc.,
    Attila is a Partner and Co-Founder of Portfolio Evaluations, Inc. He has over 26 years of consulting experience working with a broad range of clients. Attila’s responsibility is advising retirement plan committees of participant and trustee directed plans on all phases of their fiduciary responsibility. Attila is a member of the senior management team, which oversees the firm’s strategic initiatives. In 2004, Plan Sponsor Magazine awarded Attila the Most Successful Retirement Plan Advisor in the Mid-Atlantic. In 2010, Attila was once again nominated for PLANSPONSOR’s Retirement Plan Advisor of the Year. In 2008 and 2009, 401kwire recognized Attila as one of the 300 most influential advisors in defined contribution. In 2010, Attila spearheaded the implementation of a program directed to teach elementary school children the importance of fiscal responsibility and saving at an early age. He is a current member of the Saint Joseph’s School Educational Council where he continues these efforts. Attila is also active in PEI’s outreach activities. In 2013 and 2014, Attila was featured in PLANADVISER\’s list of Top 100 Retirement Plan Advisers. This list consists of advisers and adviser teams competing for the annual PLANSPONSOR Retirement Plan Adviser and Adviser Team of the Year Awards. Attila earned a BS in Business Administration from Saint Francis University. Attila is a member of the Profit Sharing Council of America and the Society for Human Resource Management.

  • Marcia Wagner

    President/Founder, The Wagner Law Group,
    MARCIA S. WAGNER is a specialist in pension and employee benefits law, and is the principal of The Wagner Law Group, one of the nation’s largest boutique law firms, specializing in ERISA, employee benefits and executive compensation, which she founded over 19 years ago. A summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Cornell University and a graduate of Harvard Law School, she has practiced law for over twenty-nine years. Ms. Wagner is recognized as an expert in a variety of employee benefits issues and executive compensation matters, including qualified and non-qualified retirement plans, fiduciary issues, all forms of deferred compensation, and welfare benefit arrangements. Ms. Wagner was appointed to the IRS Tax Exempt & Government Entities Advisory Committee and ended her three-year term as the Chair of its Employee Plans subcommittee, and received the IRS’ Commissioner’s Award. Ms. Wagner has also been inducted as a Fellow of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel. For the past seven years, 401k Wire has listed Ms. Wagner as one of its 100 Most Influential Persons in the 401(k) industry, and she has received the Top Women of Law Award in Massachusetts and is listed among the Top 25 Attorneys in New England. Ms. Wagner has written hundreds of articles and 14 books. Ms. Wagner is widely quoted in business publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Pension & Investments, and more, as well as being a frequent guest on FOX, CNN, Bloomberg, NBC and other televised media outlets.

  • Jeanette Wickoren

    Senior Retirement Analyst, Land O'Lakes,
    Jeanette has over 25 years of experience in plan record keeping, compliance, trust administration and new plan installations. Jeanette manages the daily operations of the Land O’Lakes 401(k) plan record keeping relationship with Aon Hewitt, and assists in the design and communication of all Land O’Lakes’ retirement plans. She’s responsible for the administration and compliance of the company’s non-qualified Executive Deferred Compensation plan. Jeanette has a B.A. in Business Administration from Augsburg College in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a member of the IFEBP and is pursuing the CEBS designation.

  • Eric H. Wietsma

    Senior Vice President, Retirement Services Sales & Worksite Education, MassMutual Retirement Services,
    Eric H. Wietsma, FSA, MAAA, is a Senior Vice President of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company. Mr. Wietsma joined MassMutual Retirement Services 2005 and has over 25 years of Financial Services experience. Since joining MassMutual he has led several major functions within RS including Investment Services, Product Management and the Retirement Specialist Group. He currently serves as the president of both the Premier and Select Funds and under his leadership, the performance of our mutual funds has been excellent, garnering five Lipper awards over the course of the last two years. On July 1, 2014, Eric transitioned to leading RS Sales and Worksite Education including Sales, Key Accounts, Sales Engineering, Sales Operations and Retirement Education Services and the current leaders of these groups. Eric has previously led distribution organizations and brings a wealth of experience and passion in the advisor, consultant, and TPA markets to which MassMutual is wholly committed. Eric is a fellow of the Society of Actuaries, member of the American Academy of Actuaries and holds the Series 3, 7 and 24 FINRA designations. He is a graduate of Calvin College (BS) and Purdue University (MS).

  • Greg Wilson

    Managing Director, Head of Platform Solution Group for North America, Goldman Sachs Asset Management,
    Greg is head of the North American Sub-Advisory & Platform Distribution Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM). The group is responsible for marketing the firm’s Sub-Advisory, Hedge Fund of Funds and Defined Contribution Investment Only (DCIO) products and services in the United States and Canada. Previously, he was responsible for business development and relationship management for Sub-Advisory and DCIO clients since 2001. Prior to joining the Sub-Advisory team, Greg served as the product manager for the Separately Managed Accounts Group. He joined Goldman Sachs in 1995 in the Finance Division supporting the Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Division. Greg was named managing director in 2010. Greg serves on the Board of Trustees for the Wyckoff Education Foundation. He earned a BS from Villanova University in 1995. Greg resides in Wyckoff, New Jersey, with his wife and four children.

  • Rennie Worsfold

    Vice President, National Sales, Financial Engines,
    Robert R. (“Rennie”) Worsfold  currently serves as Vice President and National Sales Manager for Financial Engines, Inc., the nation’s leading provider of investment advisory services for defined contribution plan participants. In this role, he oversees distribution of the firm’s services to employers, plan providers, and financial institutions. Rennie has been with Financial Engines since 2000, and has held several roles including involvement in developing new products and services, launching and managing strategic partnerships, and managing teams of client service professionals responsible for servicing and supporting some of the company’s largest plan sponsor clients (including nearly 150 of the Fortune 500 and over 550 companies in total, which offer our services to over 9 million participants). Prior to joining Financial Engines, Mr. Worsfold worked as a consultant at IPC Group (now CRA International) managing business/technology valuation and intellectual property litigation projects, and held several positions at Aon Corporation in sales, program and client management, and research. Mr. Worsfold received a master’s in business administration from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University and a bachelor’s degree from Kenyon College. Rennie is also currently serving on the Department of Labor’s ERISA Advisory Council.

Sponsorship Information

Katie Bacon | 203-595-3184 |

General Information

Carol Popkins | 203-461-0985 |