We have an exciting line-up of speakers and topics!
8:30 am to 9:45 am: Registration/Visit with Partners
8:50 am to 9:30 am: Optional Pre-Conference Sessions
- The Evolving Relationship with Real Estate, a 1031 Exchange Discussion presented by Ares Wealth Management Solutions
- Evolving Solutions in Long-Term Care Planning presented by Comprehensive Planning, Inc.
9:45 am: Welcome/Opening Remarks
10:00 am to 11:00 am: Opening Keynote
Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Wealth Management & Financial Planning
Craig Lemoine | Director of Financial Planning Program
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
The University of Illinois hosted a survey class on AI in Wealth Management and Financial Planning last year. Our class saw twenty experts talking about AI, tools, behavior, psychology and philosophy. The class changed my understanding of AI and Fintech tools. We will dive into what we are calling AI, what AI can do, the power of machine learning and changes to the world around us. Our conversation will conclude diving into the compression of the financial planning process, importance of economic assumptions and how AI challenges might change onboarding and fiduciary landscapes.
11:00 am to 11:20 am: Networking Break with Partners
11:20 am to 12:20 am: General Session
Value of Advice: Articulating Your Unique Proposition
Apollo Lupescu | Vice President
Dimensional Fund Advisors
Join Apollo Lupescu, Vice President of Dimensional Fund Advisors, as he demonstrates the importance of communicating the value of advice to end clients. Attendees will come away with extensive strategy and communication techniques. This session is both about the financial advice profession as well as associated strategies.
The main focus will be on how to effectively communicate your value proposition to end clients, including extensive discussion on the Value of Advice, that goes above and beyond a rate of return.
12:20 pm to 1:00 pm: Lunch
1:00 pm to 2:00 pm: Breakout Sessions (2 choices)
Breakout Option 1: Learning Strategies for Buying or Selling a Practice
Jeff Concepcion, CHFC | Founder and CEO
Stratos Wealth Partners
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
With the increasing number of financial advisors retiring or exiting the business in the next 10 years, succession planning has become as crucial for advisors as retirement planning is for clients. In a similar respect, when acquiring a practice, the preparation to understand a business's value and the deal structure is just as important, if not more so. Hear from Stratos CEO Jeff Concepcion on how to ensure your plan is on solid ground.
Breakout Option 2: Technology RoundTable an interactive session
Craig Lemoine | Director of Financial Planning Program
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
Explore the Intersection of AI and Wealth Management with Craig Lemoine. Get Your Questions Answered! Register for the conference and have the opportunity to pose your questions for Dr. Lemoine. Engage in a stimulating discussion during the breakout session, delving into both pre-submitted questions and those sparked by his keynote address.
2:00 pm to 3:00 pm: General Session
Estate Planning in the Current Tax Environment
Derek Archey, CFP®, ALMI, AALU | President
Comprehensive Planning, Inc.
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
If you haven’t talked to your clients about their estate plans yet, there is a ticking clock on some of the opportunities that exist today that may not be around much longer.
One of the marquee provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act increased the federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax exemptions to an all-time high. However, these historically high exemptions are scheduled to be significantly cut on 1/1/2026, meaning there is a deadline for clients to leverage them in their estate planning. The time really is now to plan, to gift, and to insure.
3:00 pm to 3:30 pm: Networking Break with Partners
3:30 pm to 4:30 pm: General Session
Table Topics: Round Table Discussions
Interactive Session
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
We have so much experience together in one room. It would be terrible if we did not leverage that experience and learn from one another. The purpose of Table Topics is to pose fun and engaging questions to the group that are relevant to our industry, clients, and practice management. A moderator will pose a question to the room. Over a few minutes, each table will discuss the topic and appoint someone to share the table’s “best practice” to the room. The goal is to create one on one communication with the table while also learning best practices from every table in the room. We will cover as many topics as possible during the allotted time so we may learn from one another.
4:30 pm to 5:15 pm: Keynote Speaker
Darren McCarty
Former Detroit Red Wing and 4-time Stanley Cup Champion
Darren McCarty is a four-time Stanley Cup Champion with the Detroit Red Wings. In 2013, Darren released his autobiography "My Last Fight: The True Story of a Hockey Rock Star. In the early-to-mid 2000's, Darren was the founder and frontman for the Detroit-based rock band Grinder. Darren wrote, recorded and toured with the band for several years.
7:30 am to 8:30 am: Continental Breakfast/Visit with Partners
7:30 am to 8:10 am: Optional Pre-Conference Sessions:
- Unraveling the Market's Political Dance presented by Dimensional Fund Advisors
- Presentation with First Trust - more information to come
8:30 am to 9:30 am: General Session
The Great Wealth Transfer
Carlin Calcaterra | Managing Director
Co-Head of Ares' Financial Advisor Solutions Team
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
Details of presentation coming soon!
9:30 am to 10:30 am: General Session
The Soul of Wealth: Where Money Meets Meaning
Dr. Daniel Crosby
Psychologist and Behavioral Finance Expert
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
Join Dr. Daniel Crosby for an enlightening one-hour presentation based on his latest book, The Soul of Wealth. In this engaging session, you'll explore the true essence of wealth, discovering how it extends far beyond mere financial gain. Dr. Crosby will guide you through principles of spending, saving, investing, and giving that enrich your life holistically. Learn how to maximize both returns and life satisfaction, using money as a powerful tool for positive impact. This presentation is a must-attend for anyone seeking to align their financial decisions with their deepest values and aspirations. Don't miss this opportunity to transform your relationship with wealth and unlock a richer, more meaningful life.
10:30 am to 10:45 am: Networking Break with Partners
10:45 am to 11:45 am: Breakout Sessions
Breakout Option 1: Cost Containment Strategies and the Future of Employee Benefits
Spencer Olson | Benefits Consultant
BHS Insurance
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
Employee Benefits are a significant expense and investment for employers across the country. Learn about cost containment strategies to help combat the rise of healthcare costs along with understanding the future of Employee Benefits. The benefits marketplace rapidly changes so we will be reviewing the latest trends and updates.
Breakout Option 2: Planning for our Rising Special Needs Population
Sarah Kirkpatrick
Chalgian & Tripp
Daniel Blauw
Chalgian & Tripp
Did you know 15% of students receive special education? Or that an estimated 27% of all adults have some type of disability? Join attorneys Dan Blauw and Sarah Kirkpatrick to learn legal and financial planning strategies for Michigan families affected by disability. Dan and Sarah have counseled hundreds of clients on maximizing private resources for enhanced quality of life, without jeopardizing public benefits crucial to thoe with disabilities. This session will provide an introduction to those benefits and the establishment and funding of special needs trusts, equipping you to best serve any client with a special needs loved one.
11:45 am to 12:15 pm: Lunch
12:15 pm to 1:15 pm: Breakout Sessions (2 choices)
Breakout Option 1: Aligning Your Practice With Your Authentic Self
Justin Castelli | RLS Wealth
Life Planner, Advisor and Creator
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
If you’re like most financial advisors, you’ve navigated your way through your career following a blueprint designed by someone else. While you have a great business, it doesn’t reflect the most authentic version of your Self and you’ve reached a stage in life where you want to realign your practice with the best version of YOU.
OR, are you early in your career and you want to be intentional with how you grow your business to avoid having to realign your practice with the best version of YOU later in your career—you want to grow in alignment with your authentic Self.
In this session, we will explore what it means to be the authentic version of your Self, how you can bring it to your practice, the benefits of realigning your practice with your authentic Self, and how life planning the process that brings it all together.
Breakout Option 2: Advanced Charitable Planning Best Practices
Ruby Pediangco | Senior Manager, Tax, Trust & Estate
Schwab Charitable
Chris Boyce | Senior Manager | Charitable Consulting
Schwab Charitable
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
Please join Schwab Charitable to learn about the latest key trends impacting philanthropic giving, better understand how to engage with clients to serve their tax-smart giving needs along with help donors understand the unique benefits of donating appreciated non-cash assets.
1:15 pm to 2:15 pm: General Session
Economic Update
Strider Elass | Senior Economist
First Trust
1 CFP CE Pending Approval
Details of presentation coming soon!
2:15 pm to 2:30 pm: Closing Remarks/BIG GIVE AWAY!
