CAPTRUST, Alera Group Add New Advisers

Two more prominent retirement plan advisers will be ending the year at new firms.

Katie Colon

CAPTRUST has hired Katie Colon, formerly of OneDigital, as a vice president and financial adviser, based in Port St. Lucie, Florida.

Colon says she is joining the team with plans to further build her book of plan sponsor clients in the region and to “quarterback” CAPTRUST’s retirement plans, she says. She had been a retirement plan consultant with OneDigital for nearly two years and, prior to that role, was a plan adviser with the Mutual of America Financial Group.

“I’ve known CAPTRUST as a premium brand and a big name with a great reputation,” Colon says, noting that the firm aligns with her core values of integrity, excellence and accountability.

A former tennis player, Colon says being a plan fiduciary has similarities in that “you have to take responsibility for your own decisions. … It’s the highest duty of loyalty and care and requires you to be a vigilant steward [of the plan].”

Colon says three areas of focus for her work will be helping plan sponsors understand and meet their fiduciary responsibilities, maximizing the value of their plan for participants and guiding them on financial wellness programs and implementation.

Joe DeBello, also formerly of OneDigital, joined CAPTRUST in Tampa, Florida, earlier this year.

Marx Joins Alera Group

Jim Marx

Insurance and financial services firm Alera Group has hired New York-based retirement industry veteran Jim Marx as senior retirement plan services consultant.

Marx is taking the role from a position with Edelman Financial Engines, where he was retirement plans division director for more than 10 years. He will be joining Deerfield, Illinois-based Alera’s Waterford Group, based in Rochester, New York.

“I was drawn to Alera Group in part because it is built on genuine principles of collaboration, and I look forward to harnessing that collaborative spirit across the Alera Group team as well as externally to drive businesses toward holistic solutions for complex challenges,” Marx wrote on LinkedIn concerning the move. “This is an exciting time for the organization, and I am excited to be part of the momentum.”

Marx joins the firm with more than 20 years of experience in plan design, corporate tax deduction optimization and investment advisory strategies.

“As we continue to expand through strategic acquisitions and by attracting the industry’s top talent, I’m thrilled to welcome Jim to the Alera Group team,” Christian Mango, Alera’s executive vice president and national practice leader of retirement plan services, said in a statement. “Jim is an outstanding professional with a long history of innovative service, and his addition is another significant step forward for our national team.”