The 20 Rising Stars of Retirement Plan Advisory 2008

While the job of participant education is always challenging, it has become increasingly so recently because of fears over the market and the economy at large, according to Ballin, who holds the PlanSponsor Retirement Professional designation. Like she did after the September 11th attacks, she is being proactive in trying to prevent plan participants from making bad choices because of short-term worries. “The more participants know, they better off they are,” she said. “I like to be proactive and get to clients before they do anything irrational.” “I would like people to remember that I held a level of integrity that guided me to make the right decisions and that I stayed disciplined in those actions and decisions,” said Bryson, who holds Certified Financial Planner and Accredited Investment Fiduciary designations. “I feel like I truly care and celebrate the successes of those around me.” 3. 4. 3. TRENT BRYSON apples in our industry…I don’t buy a pair of sunglasses and need to know how they were made, who got paid along the way and how much. I buy the sunglasses because I need to protect my eyes,” he explained. “Unfortunately, the industry has shifted so far into how much the manufacturer and the retail salesperson are being paid that we have forgotten to educate people on why they need to wear sunglasses.” Teaching basic finance to employees throughout the country and influencing individuals’ lifestyles currently and in the future are Bryson’s passion. “This profession allows me to grow and protect assets and lifestyles of those I trust, care for and want to help,” he said. A track star in college, Bryson now focuses his energy on the industry. He is a past president of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors in Long Beach, currently serves on the state board and serves as a National Taskforce leader for the 70,000-member trade association. “The various leadership positions I have held have allowed me to make a difference and give back to an industry that has been so good to my family,” he said. JEREMY CHAMBERS Senior Planner, Corporate Retirement Plans Plante Moran Financial Advisors, Southfield, Mich. Age: 38 Education: Eastern Michigan University (B.B.A. in Human Resource Management) Mentors: Mark Dixon, Partner, Plante Moran Financial Advisors; Joe Rankin, Partner, Plante & Moran; Susan Shoemaker, Partner, Plante Moran Financial Advisors Chambers has spent his whole career at Plante & Moran, having joined in April 1996 as a retirement plan administrator working mostly with quarterly balance-forward 401(k) plans. After five years, the firm exited the administration business and Chambers moved over to the employee benefit consulting practice, where he worked with 401(k) plans, employee stock option plans, welfare plans, healthcare arrangements and other benefit plans. In 2003, he was promoted to associate and, in late 2005, was given the opportunity to become a corporate retirement plan investment consultant with Plante Moran Financial Advisors, the position he currently holds. “Along with my partner, Susan Shoemaker, and the rest of our team, I am seeing tremendous growth in our practice,” Chambers said, noting that his team services nearly 100 institutional clients. “I love meeting with TRENT BRYSON Chief Executive Officer Bryson Financial Group, Long Beach, Calif. Age: 31 Education: University of California at Santa Barbara (B.S. in Business Economics) Mentor: Richard Bryson, President, Bryson Financial Group; Janeen Freije, Chief Operating Officer, B&B Benefits Administration Bryson began working in the retirement arena in 2001 when he rejoined his father’s firm after three years in the wealth management division of Merrill Lynch. Before Merrill, he had spent a short time working in Bryson Financial’s benefits insurance department. “I specifically chose the employee benefits business because it gave me an opportunity to educate and create wealth for a class of citizens in our country that is underserved,” he said. Bryson Financial is a National Retirement Partners member firm. Bryson said he believes the service he and Bryson Financial provide for clients is invaluable, and he predicted that the industry will need to take a step back in order to get back to basics. “We are so focused on things like fees and disclosure today because of a few bad 24 RETIREMENT PLAN ADVISORY RISING STARS SEPTEMBER 2008

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The 20 Rising Stars of Retirement Plan Advisory 2008 Contents Doing Well By Doing Good The Post-PPA Bounce Automatic Enrollment vs. Managed Account Unfair Advantage? You Bet The New World Order 20 Rising Stars of Retirement Plan Advisory Mentors’ Page

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