Episode No. 326 | January 12, 2022
Starting an Equally-Owned Firm with Friends & Transitioning Away from Broker-Dealer
A Conversation with David Harpool, Jack Arnold, and Kevin Stevens
Today we hear from the three founders and owners of AVID Planning—a fee-only firm out of St. Petersburg, FL, that opened its doors in 2016. Right out of the gate, Jack, David, and Kevin experienced how much fun running a business can be when you do it alongside friends. The three of t …
January 01, 2020
Ep #236: Audits: The Do’s and Don’ts According to a Former Regulator: An Interview with Kingston Hollman
Kingston Hollman is one of XYPN’s compliance consultants and a former regulator with the state of Minnesota. Having been a financial advisor and firm owner himself in the past, Kingston now provides firm owners with expert advice on how to embrace a culture of compliance and what to e …
December 25, 2019
Ep #235: Merging Firms To Better Serve Clients: The Rapid Growth Of FDS
Today we are joined by the team from Financial Design Studio (FDS), a fee-only firm in Deer Park, Illinois. Husband and wife duo Michelle and Stephen Smalenberger started FDS three years ago with the intention of eventually growing their team, while Trevore Meyer and Rob Stoll each st …
December 18, 2019
Ep #234: A Successful Succession Plan: An Interview with David Shotwell
Today we have XYPN member David Shotwell on the show! Now the owner of Shotwell Rutter Baer, David says he feels like he is just getting started—despite beginning his career in the brokerage world over 20 years ago. He is a great example of a successful succession plan and how you nev …
December 11, 2019
Ep #233: Embracing a Psychographic Niche and Keeping Your Planning Firm Personal: The Career of Alex Yeager
Alex Yeager started his career out of college at Vanguard, gaining valuable experience working with clients and their investments. After feeling as though he would like to work more intimately with clients in a comprehensive way, Alex moved to Texas and started working at an independe …
December 04, 2019
Ep #232: Breaking Free From Broker-Dealers: The Careers of Craig Joncas and Jim Bradley
XYPN member Craig Joncas and his partner, Jim Bradley, join the show to share their experience building Penobscot Financial Advisors. As Jim reveals how the practice originally got started and Craig discusses what it was like beginning his career interning for Jim, you'll hear about t …
December 26, 2018
Ep #184: Navigating the Broker-Dealer and Insurance World - The Career of Malcolm Thomas, XYPN's Director of Advisor Success
Malcolm Thomas became XYPN’s Director of Advisor Success about six months ago, and he brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience. Having had the unique experience of being on both the buy-side and sell-side of mergers, as well as various roles throughout his career, Malcolm …
