Retirement Industry People Moves

DWC – The 401(k) Experts has continued its expansion by hiring Ali Bechtel to the firm’s newly created marketing director position.

DWC created this position to expand the investment adviser experience and the brand’s presence in the industry. Bechtel will play a key role in planning and executing regional and national DWC conferences and events, to be announced later this year.

“Ali’s talent, creativity and innovative marketing approach is an ideal fit for our culture and philosophy here at DWC,” says Keith Clark, co-founder and managing partner at DWC. “Our brand, along with our firm as a whole, has grown remarkably over the past three years through our service experience and key talent acquisitions, and the addition of Ali to our team is a major step in maintaining that upward trajectory thus allowing us to continue to invest in our talent and systems.”

Bechtel has been in marketing and freelance writing for over six years and has previously worked as the marketing manager for Meduit, a national leader in health care revenue cycle solutions. There, Bechtel built Meduit’s digital brand from the ground up. During the company’s first year, she established the company’s brand standards, developed a marketing strategy and implemented a comprehensive marketing platform, including the implementation of HubSpot.

Account Executive Joins Voya

Voya Retirement hired Danny Carr as an account executive for the company’s Large Corporate Markets business. 

In this role, Carr will be responsible for generating new business and building key distribution relationships in the Western United States. He will be working through all channels within the Corporate 401(k) Market that service employers with plans $75 million up to $1 billion in assets and will continue to be based out of Orange County, California.

Carr comes to Voya with a tremendous amount of sales experience in the retirement plan industry. Most recently, he held the position of regional vice president—Retirement Plan Sales at Transamerica, where he was consistently recognized as a top activity leader. 

“Danny’s extensive background and deep experience allow him to develop ideas and solutions in a consultative way, helping build successful retirement plans for both plan sponsors and their participants,” says Steve Keating, senior vice president of Sales for Voya’s Large Corporate Market.  “At Voya, we are dedicated to improving retirement outcomes and advancing the financial well-being of our clients and their participants and we look forward to Danny supporting us in this mission.” 

Carr graduated from Weber State University with a bachelor’s in Business Administration.

Hancock Whitney Chooses Envestnet for Broker-Dealer Lines

Envestnet announced that Hancock Whitney Bank selected Envestnet’s platform to power both its broker-dealer (b/d) and trust business lines, allowing investment professionals across the bank to leverage integrated One Wealth technology without disrupting their current back office infrastructure.

As part of the new integration, Hancock Whitney Bank plans to leverage Envestnet’s automated compliance workflow for investment reviews, as well as enhanced fixed income portfolio management within a unified managed account structure. Hancock Whitney’s investment professionals also have access to the integrated client portal that integrates goals-based planning, Yodlee-powered data aggregation, and financial wellness solutions.

“Having a more unified platform across business lines improves the client experience, adviser productivity, and allows us to efficiently deploy common portfolio management solutions across all client segments from mass affluent to ultra-high-net-worth and institutional,” says Hancock Whitney’s Chief Wealth Management Officer Miles Milton. “With Envestnet as a strategic partner, we can devote more time to promoting a more consistent and goal-based client experience across our business segments and support enhanced advice-based client engagement. This move further advances our progress towards becoming more of an Essential Advisor—fostering a deeper relationship with clients to better understand and anticipate their evolving needs and offering guidance and solutions to life transitions that can be impactful.”

Hancock Whitney Bank began making Envestnet’s services available to its advisers in late August 2017 and has since completed the initial implementation of the platform to both the bank’s brokerage and trust divisions.

Fi360 Acquires CFFM

Fi360 has acquired the Center for Fiduciary Management (CFFM), an investment management technology provider for retirement plan advisers.

The acquisition adds CFFM’s four adviser-focused tools to Fi360’s suite of solutions, which includes the Fiduciary Focus Toolkit and Fi360 Fiduciary Score offerings, as well as its Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF), Accredited Investment Fiduciary Analyst (AIFA) and Professional Plan Consultant (PPC) designations.

“The current regulatory environment is evolving, but there are steady and significant market forces supporting advisers and firms who have embraced fiduciary standards to elevate themselves in the marketplace,” says Bill Mueller, AIF, chief executive offer at Fi360. “We are enabling advisers’ success by providing a wider and deeper suite of fintech solutions to help them scale their practice, maintain compliance, and better serve their clients.”

CFFM, led by Scott Revare since its founding in 2003, provides solutions for retirement plan advisers and financial services professionals.

The combined firms will service 55,000 investment professionals and over 120,000 retirement plans and amplifies Fi360’s reach among institutions, including multiple wirehouses and some of the nation’s other largest broker-dealers.

Russell Investment Hires Former Investment Executive

Russell Investments announced that Robert Hostetter has joined the firm in a new position as Global head of product. With 20 years of experience driving product strategy in the investment management industry as both an executive and a consultant, Hostetter will lead the development and honing of investment solutions that draw from strategies across Russell Investments’ global operations. The ultimate goal is to achieve better outcomes for the firm’s clients, addressing challenges common to many institutional investors and financial intermediaries. Hostetter reports directly to chairman and CEO Michelle Seitz.

“At Russell Investments, we have spent decades developing innovative investment solutions to help our clients achieve the outcomes they expect,” says Seitz. “In creating this enhanced global product framework, we’ll be better positioned to take solutions perfected in one region and apply them on behalf of clients in other parts of the world. Bob and the new Global Product team will work to ensure that we fully leverage our best ideas and insights on a global scale.”

Hostetter’s previous industry experience includes AllianceBernstein, where he served as managing director and Global head of product strategy. He was responsible for directing the firm’s overall product lineup across equities, fixed income, multi-asset and alternatives in North America, EMEA, and Pan-Asian markets. Earlier in his career, Hostetter was a consultant to asset management and private equity firms for McKinsey & Company.

FIA Hires Consultant and Research Analyst Focusing on DC Plans

Fiduciary Investment Advisors, LLC (FIA) hired Carol McShera as a consultant and research analyst. McShera will be based in FIA’s Boston office and will focus on defined contribution (DC) plan sponsors and their participants. She has extensive experience in retirement plan design, plan fee disclosure and benchmarking, vendor searches and selection, and investment analysis.

“We are excited to welcome Carol to the Massachusetts-based FIA team. Carol is an experienced and knowledgeable consultant who will be an integral part of our Massachusetts growth plans as we expand to meet our growing client base.  She embodies our focus on delivering superior advice and the highest level of client service,” notes Mark Wetzel, president of FIA.

Prior to joining FIA, Carol worked at Sapers & Wallack as a retirement plan consultant. She was also previously employed by Wells Fargo Asset Management in Consultant Relations, where she began her investment industry career.

P-Solve Appoints U.S. Leadership Team Members

P-Solve announced the appointments of Tom Cassara and David Rosenblum as managing directors and members of the U.S. Leadership Team. These hires will open an office in New York City as part of the expansion of the firm.

“The addition of Tom and Dave to our U.S. team further solidifies River and Mercantile’s position in the marketplace as we rebrand from P-Solve and expand our leadership as an actuarial and investment solutions consulting firm,” says Ryan McGlothlin, global head of Strategic Relationships. “Their expertise and leadership will accelerate our growth in the retirement plan consulting space.”

Cassara was most recently a senior partner, investment consultant and business leader with Mercer where he worked since 1989. He is a graduate of Wake Forest University with a degree in mathematics, a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, and an Enrolled Actuary. He is also a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

Rosenblum was also a senior partner, consulting actuary and business leader with Mercer where he has over 30 years of experience. He is a graduate of Colgate University with a degree in economics, a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, and an Enrolled Actuary.

“To be a part of an organization like the River and Mercantile Group with their highly effective solutions and products is exciting. I am enthusiastic to be able to help implement effective and innovative solutions, like derivatives, for example, to solve complex retirement plan problems,” added Cassara.

Ascensus Acquires Firms That Service ESOPs 

Ascensus has acquired Swerdlin & Company and SES Advisors. Both firms will become part of Ascensus’ TPA Solutions division. Swerdlin & Company will also add defined contribution (DC) and defined benefit expertise (DB), according to Ascensus.

Swerdlin & Company provides actuarial, consulting, administrative, and recordkeeping services for all types of retirement, health, and cafeteria plans to clients nationwide. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the firm services benefit plans—including 401(k), cash balance, employee stock ownership (ESOP) and health reimbursement accounts.

Swerdlin & Company works with plans of any size, from sole proprietorships to companies with thousands of employees. 

“For almost 40 years, we at Swerdlin & Company have held ourselves accountable for the services we provide and the work we produce,” says Lee Swerdlin, president and chief operating officer for Swerdlin & Company. “We’ll continue this tradition as part of Ascensus, continuously improving client experiences and building long-lasting relationships based on honesty, trust, and mutual respect.” 

SES Advisors specializes in ESOP administration, consulting, and recordkeeping services. The firm, which is based Valparaiso, Indiana, helps companies administer ESOP plans by balancing the needs of owners and employees to create “successful, sustainable employee ownership outcomes.”

LDIntelligence Appoints 401(k) and Managed Account VP

LDIntelligence LLC (LDI) announced the appointment of Chip Moore to lead the company’s growth of its iJoin 401(k) enrollment and managed account solutions. He joins LDI as its vice president of Business Development responsible for expanding relationships within the FIS Relius client base and other industry partners.

Over the course of his career, Moore has held senior leadership positions in sales and business development with industry leaders SunGard Relius (now FIS Relius) and Innovest Systems.

“This is a key strategic hire for LDIntelligence,” says Steve McCoy, chief operating officer. “Chip has a deep understanding of the needs of recordkeepers, financial advisers, plan sponsors and participants. He’s witnessed the need for a better enrollment solution and better approach to helping participants succeed on their retirement savings path. He also enjoys a great rapport with our initial target audience of independent recordkeepers.”

Moore added, “I’m excited to join LDI and lead the effort to broadly introduce our enrollment and managed account solutions. We’re leveraging our deep FIS integration to deliver a quality of performance recordkeepers and advisers have not experienced before. I think it’s a game changer. On a personal note, I look forward to connecting with many friends in the retirement space.”

DCIO Managing Director Joins Nuveen

Nuveen appointed David Christopher as managing director, Defined Contribution Investment Only (DCIO) Institutional Sales. The new hire builds upon Nuveen’s continued growth in the DCIO space.

Christopher reports directly to Erin Donnelly, executive vice president and head of Nuveen’s DCIO business. He is based in Radnor, Pennsylvania. In this newly created role, Christopher will focus on expanding Nuveen’s presence in the mega plan market, cultivating relationships with defined contribution (DC) plan sponsors and bringing Nuveen’s broad investment capabilities to an expanded footprint.

Christopher joins Nuveen from the DC Institutional Sales team at J.P. Morgan, where he worked for 17 years building client relationships with some of the largest companies in the United States, growing assets from the ground up. He has wide-ranging experience working with plan sponsors and successfully partnering with both internal and external business teams to deliver positive results for clients. Specialist fixed income manager,

BlueBay Creates Global Structured Credit Role

BlueBay Asset Management LLP added Sid Chhabra to the newly created role of head of Structured Credit and CLOs (collateralized loan obligations).

Based in London, Chhabra will report to Mark Dowding and Stephen Thariyan, co-heads of Developed Markets, and will lead the initiative to establish and manage a new range of BlueBay global structured credit and asset-backed securities (ABS) strategies.

This new capability will be utilized in existing multi asset credit portfolios, as well as in new, stand-alone traditional and alternative strategies. Launches are expected to commence towards the end of the year and in 2019.

As part of the Developed Markets team, Chhabra will be working closely with colleagues in leveraged finance, utilizing global credit analyst resources, in a group which has invested in global leveraged loans for the past 15 years.  In addition, BlueBay plans to appoint other experienced individuals to support Chhabra in building out this capability.

He has over 15 years of structured credit and CLO experience; most recently he spent seven years as a London-based managing director, responsible for Structured Credit and CLOs at Anchorage Capital Europe. Prior to this, Chhabra was part of the Structured Credit/CDO Group, EMEA at J.P. Morgan, where he was involved in structuring, originating and investing in structured credit products.

CalSTRS Employs New Deputy CIO

The California State Teachers’ Retirement System announced the hiring of Scott Chan as the new deputy chief investment officer. Chan begins his tenure on August 1 and will report directly to CalSTRS chief investment officer Christopher Ailman.

Chan comes to CalSTRS from the University of California Regents where he was the senior managing director. Prior to his UC Regents tenure, Chan was the chief investment officer for the Sacramento County Employees’ Retirement System and a partner and portfolio manager for a number of hedge fund partnerships.

He has served on the investment committee for Lawrence Livermore and Los Alamos National Labs’ retirement plans, as well as on many investment advisory boards for real estate (international and domestic), public equity and alternative investments.

Chan has a master’s in business administration from Fuqua School of Business, Duke University and a bachelor’s in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).