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Top program managers

We once again scoured the industry for the most successful managers of investment services programs at banks and credit unions.

To compile our list, we used multiple variables and combined them into a weighted average. Specifically, we used six criteria: the number of advisors they oversee, team assets under management, annual team production, percentage growth in AUM, percentage growth in production and production-per-advisor. (We calculate our own estimates for production-per-advisor based on other numbers submitted in our nomination process.)

The bios and number of years in the industry were not used as part of the ranking decision.

FULL TOP 25 PROGRAM MANAGERS CONTENT
Top program managers in the bank channel
Top program managers: Categorically the best
How a passion for coaching turned into a successful career in asset management
Program managers across the country discuss biggest challenges
Voices Nine questions every program manager should be asking

In doing it this way, we used variables that account for size, as well as metrics that capture growth and efficiency. We feel this recognizes well-rounded professionals, as opposed to those who excel in one area but fall short in others.

Scroll through to meet this year's top 25 program managers.

Alison Birrane helped edit this slideshow.
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25. Scott McCaw

Bank: American Heritage Federal Credit Union
Third-party marketer: CUNA
Location: Philadelphia
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 5
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 4
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $346.8 million
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $285.2 million
Team production in 2017: $3.4 million
Team production in 2016: $3.0 million
Production per advisor (est): $764,900

The credit union culture of “people helping people” is ingrained throughout our entire organization, says program manager Scott McCaw. “We attempt to promote from within the organization and develop our team from the ground up whenever possible. Our front-line staff listens to our membership and when appropriate, refers members to an advisor,” he says.
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24. Shane Boehm

Bank: Homestreet Bank
Third-party marketer: Cetera
Location: Seattle
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 6
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 6
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $265 million
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $205 million
Team production in 2017: $2.7 million
Team production in 2016: $2.0 million
Production per advisor (est): $441,833

Shane Boehm manages a book of his own clients, which keeps him aligned with his advisors. He says he hires advisors with the knowledge that branch trust trumps any top-down mandate. Referrals and success will come with the trust of the bank partners, he says. Foot traffic has slowed, so he says they are being more proactive with marketing and awareness campaigns.
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23. Kristen Vitale

Bank: First Midwest Bank
Third-party marketer: LPL Financial
Location: River Grove, Illinois
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 27
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 25
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $1.3 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $1.1 billion
Team production in 2017: $8.7 million
Team production in 2016: $7.9 million
Production per advisor (est): $334,600

Kristen Vitale says the mission of our bank is to become our client’s most trusted financial partner, help our clients achieve financial success and serve clients with integrity, personal responsibility and passion. “That’s how I view my role as program manager and by using these as guiding principles in the hiring and ongoing coaching of our advisors, I see success as inevitable.” She says the most important part of her job is making sure that advisors have the resources they need and remove any obstacles getting in their way.
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22. Terence Powell

Bank: Redwood Credit Union
Third-party marketer: CUSO Financial
Location: Santa Rosa, California
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 11
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 10
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $658.4 million
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $522.1 million
Team production in 2017: $4.1 million
Team production in 2016: $3.6 million
Production per advisor (est): $388,800

Terence Powell credits his people-focused and detail-oriented management style to the leadership training he received in the Army. His approach as a program manager is to define goals and remove obstacles that get in his advisors’ way so they can be successful. Powell says if he cares more about the people, the numbers will take care of themselves. “Yes, you still have to manage the data, but if you prioritize the people, the numbers will happen.”
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21. Chad Waddoups

Bank: Mountain American Credit Union
Third-party marketer: LPL Financial
Location: West Jordan, UT
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 27
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 21
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $982 million
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $786 million
Team production in 2017: $7.7 million
Team production in 2016: $7 million
Production per advisor (est): $320,800

Under Chad Waddoups' leadership, MACU is one of the leading institutions in terms of technology adoption and overall efficiency – which is not a top priority in many credit unions. Waddoups has been able to get the credit union executive leadership to buy in to what he is doing, which has helped to more resources, including staffing.
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20. John Quinn

Bank: Citibank
Third-party marketer: none
Location: New York
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 40
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 39
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $3.10 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $3.10 billion
Team production in 2017: $16.5 million
Team production in 2016: $14.6 million
Production per advisor (est): $418,200

John Quinn structures his job in a highly organized way, complete with color-coded calendars and spreadsheets with data for his team. He also does regular 30-minute coaching and follow-up sessions with his team. John has added many new advisors, and is currently forming new teams among them.
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19. Dwayne Craft

Bank: PNC
Third-party marketer: none
Location: Cleveland, Ohio
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 18
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 18
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $1.72 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $1.58 billion
Team production in 2017: $10.7 million
Team production in 2016: $9.2 million
Production per advisor (est): $591,800

With more than 26 years in the business, Dwayne Craft brings an energy to his role that shows up in everything that he does. One of Dwayne’s top advisors said that Craft is team-focused and plays a role in helping grow each of his advisors' practice. He added that Craft “helped me in ways that I did not know I even needed.”
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18. Jill Honeycomb

Bank: Liberty Bank
Third-party marketer: Raymond James
Location: Middletown, Connecticut
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 16
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 8
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $752.5 million
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $617.8 million
Team production in 2017: $5.7 million
Team production in 2016: $4.7 million
Production per advisor (est): $473,900

For the advisory team, Jill Honeycomb views her job as four-fold. First, communicate clear focus and priorities. Second, support advisors to be the best they each can be by focusing on what they do well. Third, remove obstacles that get in the way of success. And fourth, continue to raise the bar on expectations. As for the bank, she says her goal is to run the business prudently with an eye on continuous growth and expansion. To do so, developing trusting internal partnerships is crucial.
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17. Tim Sease

Bank: South State Bank
Third-party marketer: LPL Financial
Location: Charleston, SC
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 31
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 24
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $1.96 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $1.67 billion
Team production in 2017: $9.0 million
Team production in 2016: $7.8 million
Production per advisor (est): $325,600

Tim Sease has more than 25 years of financial services experience and has been involved in many charities and organizations including the South Carolina Make-A-Wish Foundation and Winthrop University’s Alumni Executive Board.
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16. John Olerio

Bank: Webster Bank
Third-party marketer: LPL Financial
Location: Waterbury, CT
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 53
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 53
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $3.38 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $2.98 billion
Team production in 2017: $22.6 million
Team production in 2016: $20.9 million
Production per advisor (est): $427,000

One of the most important aspects of John Olerio’s position is to balance present and future; that is, the complicated and diverse needs clients face today with enormous change they’ll face over the next three to five years. For the bank, the most critical objective over the next five years is to execute on its “omni channel” strategy which includes the growth of the traditional face-to-face model, as well as a “second story” model, a digital platform and a licensed phone advisor platform, among others.
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15. Brian Brewer

Bank: Bank of Springfield
Third-party marketer: LPL Financial
Location: Springfield, IL
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 8
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 7
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $870.5 million
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $689.3 million
Team production in 2017: $3.7 million
Team production in 2016: $3.0 million
Production per advisor (est): $496,800

When Brian Brewer wanted to hire several additional advisors in 2016 and even purchased two books of business, it took considerable work to gain buy-in from bank management for making an investment in the program (and to view the investment program like other business opportunity). He also helped each retail advisor develop and implement personalized business plans and shift focus towards growing recurring revenue and AUM. In the past two years they have moved over $300 million into advisory products and grown AUM by almost $200 million.
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14. Shannon Johnson

Bank: Fifth Third Bank
Third-party marketer: none
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 92
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 75
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $5.60 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $5.00 billion
Team production in 2017: $51 million
Team production in 2016: $49 million
Production per advisor (est): $610,000

Shannon Johnson's approach to her job is based on three overarching questions: 1) Are we taking care of the client; 2) Are we taking care of the employee; and 3) Are we taking care of the bank? Johnson coaches the team to dig deeper with the clients, understand their needs and help them achieve their goals. By putting a focus on clients' well-being, the team understands that this action will drive in the business needed to achieve results.
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13. Steve Kruchten

Bank: Bremer Bank
Third-party marketer: Raymond James
Location: St. Louis Park, Minnesota
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 33
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 23
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $2.24 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $2.00 billion
Team production in 2017: $16.6 million
Team production in 2016: $14.3 million
Production per advisor (est): $593,600

Last year, Steve Kruchten's biggest initiative was to capture more market share within the bank’s mass-affluent client segment. With assets of $250,000 to $1 million, they represent 11% of all U.S. households, but control a large segment of today's wealth. His group actively tries to expand relationships with the mass-affluent bank customers who are not also wealth clients. By consistently holding joint client meetings with an FA and banker, his group has successfully deepened wallet share among this segment and has become a key thought leader within Bremer Bank.
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12. Karen Benedict

Bank: Northwest Federal Credit Union
Third-party marketer: LPL Financial
Location: Herndon, VA
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 11
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 10
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $1.363 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $1.145 billion
Team production in 2017: $11.27 million
Team production in 2016: $9.96 million
Production per advisor (est): $1.1 million

Northwest Financial Advisors has experienced tremendous growth over the last six years, doubling AUM and revenue. To keep up with client expectations in that type of environment, manager Karen Benedict has focused on ensuring a strong level of support staff to help advisors. As one example, she added a portfolio analyst, who has been instrumental in helping the firm create several of its own models. Succession planning has also been a major focus as she’s led the development of a firm-wide plan that will allow for a seamless transition for clients over time.
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11. Dave Renko

Bank: Woodforest National Bank
Third-party marketer: Raymond James
Location: The Woodlands, Texas
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 16
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 8
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $976.5 million
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $710.5 million
Team production in 2017: $5.5 million
Team production in 2016: $4.6 million
Production per advisor (est): $456,000

Dave Renko’s approach to his job has multiple levels includes addressing leadership challenges proactively; striving to actively listen to all points of view and thoughtfully respond; measuring success by how others in the organization succeed; actively demonstrating his belief that respect begets respect; and giving help while being willing to receive help as well.
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10. Michael George

Bank: Fulton Bank
Third-party marketer: Raymond James
Location: Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 53
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 39
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $3.51 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $3.09 billion
Team production in 2017: $24.7 million
Team production in 2016: $21.9 million
Production per advisor (est): $538,000

Michael George serves as president of Fulton Financial Advisors-Brokerage Division. He is responsible for revenue growth, operational efficiency, service standards and risk mitigation for the division. George joined Fulton in 2014 and has spent over 25 years in the securities and wealth industry. He previously held senior management positions at M&T Bank, Wilmington Trust, & Thrivent Financial.
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9. Mathew Dailey

Bank: BECU (formerly Boeing Employees Credit Union)
Third-party marketer: LPL Financial
Location: Tukwila, WA
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 23
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 19
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $1.70 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $1.40 billion
Team production in 2017: $8.8 million
Team production in 2016: $6.8 million
Production per advisor (est): $419,000

Matt Dailey is not afraid to make a change he feels will help his team grow. This enables him to generate buy-in from his team most of the time. He has made significant changes in team structure, the number of administrative support position and head count. He has also implemented a financial planning process, and in 2017 the team produced close to 600 financial plans.
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8. Scott Jenner

Bank: First Tech Federal Credit Union (Addison Avenue Investments)
Third-party marketer: Raymond james
Location: Rocklin, California
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 37
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 30
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $3.66 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $3.17 billion
Team production in 2017: $23.9 million
Team production in 2016: $21.0 million
Production per advisor (est): $713,000

Since taking the helm at Addison in 2006, Scott Jenner (who had the No. 1 slot in the Top Program Managers list last year), has built a team of professionals nationwide who are dedicated to delivering the highest caliber of service and personalized wealth management solutions. Jenner and his team focus on personalized client communications during times of volatility in an effort to reaffirm clients’ risk tolerance, goals, and time horizon. He also spends a lot of his energy on advisor retention.
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7. Joe Hage

Bank: Citibank
Third-party marketer: none
Location: Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 40
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 15
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $3.40 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $2.81 billion
Team production in 2017: $20.6 million
Team production in 2016: $18.7 million
Production per advisor (est): $749,361

Joe Hage’s 30 years in Florida enabled him to rebuild the Citi Personal Wealth Management’s South Florida market with only a short 24 months at the helm. He took over a region that was dead last in all metrics and by Q1 of 2018 was ranked number one in revenue growth, FA productivity, and partnership results. He aggressively recruited advisors from other successful banks and local firms and had the strongest headcount growth at CPWM. He also developed strong working relationships with the retail bank leaders for Florida, and conducted joint calls and visits to branches daily.
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6. David Chan

Bank: Citibank
Third-party marketer: none
Location: New York
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 40
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 25
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $5.95 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $5.34 billion
Team production in 2017: $27.5 million
Team production in 2016: $23.2 million
Production per advisor (est): $847,200

David Chan finished 2017 with annual growth of 19% (and 114% to plan), and was ranked second in the Citi Personal Wealth Management Regional Sales Manager scorecard. He collaborates with other leaders in Citi’s banking and brokerage businesses. By building trust and credibility, clients in turn use Citi's other businesses and products, such as mortgages and checking/savings accounts. This also helps Citi maintain solid retention of our best FA’s and their teams.
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5. John Zaia

Bank: Citibank
Third-party marketer: none
Location: Melville, New York
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 35
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 31
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $3.34 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $2.76 billion
Team production in 2017: $22.9 million
Team production in 2016: $19.5 million
Production per advisor (est): $694,000

John Zaia, who’s usually on his way to work by 6.a.m, has spent the past four years building a successful franchise for Citi in the affluent Westchester and Connecticut market. He leads the firm’s initiative in generating financial plans including for long-term care and succession planning, which has led to a greater than 20% penetration of sales. He recently helped an advisor build a successful practice dedicated to professional athletes and their agents.
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4. Ken Wren Jr.

Bank: TowneBank
Third-party marketer: Raymond James
Location: Suffolk, Virginia.
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 30
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 22
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $2.57 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $2.02 billion
Team production in 2017: $11.9 million
Team production in 2016: $8.9 million
Production per advisor (est): $459,000

Ken Wren Jr. (one of the perennial winners for the Top Program Managers) joined Townebank along with his father in 2004 and now oversees a blend of experienced traditional and fee-based advisors. He allows each of them the latitude to decide how best to attend to the comprehensive wealth management needs of their clients. Under Wren’s management, the program has grown to $11.9 million in production and $2.6 billion in AUM (the program’s production is 82% recurring revenue of which 59% is fee-based revenue.) His looks for advisors who have an entrepreneurial spirit and passion for the business, and treats the bankers who entrust his team with referrals with the utmost importance.
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3. Agnes Lew

Bank: EastWest Bank
Third-party marketer: Cetera
Location: Pasadena, California
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 32
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 30
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $1.7 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $1.2 billion
Team production in 2017: $14.3 million
Team production in 2016: $10.9 million
Production per advisor (est): $460,000

In a male-dominated field, Agnes Lew brings strong leadership to a diversified group of advisors with roughly equal number of men and women. Agnes has assembled a Private Banking team both in the U.S. and in Hong Kong to focus on the banking and investment needs of the high-net-worth clients. Under her leadership, East West Bank has the largest group of bi-lingual Chinese financial advisors in the U.S. to help the needs of immigrants from China.
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2. Will Desantis

Bank: Citibank
Third-party marketer: none
Location: New York
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 45
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 35
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $3.64 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $2.82 billion
Team production in 2017: $18.5 million
Team production in 2016: $15.4 million
Production per advisor (est): $463,000

Will Desantis, a former business owner, brings an entrepreneurial mindset to serving his affluent and high-net-worth clients. He shares Manhattan with two other managers, and in two short years has aggressively recruited and grown his sales teams to 45 advisors from 35. Outside of work, in support of the Wounded Warrior project, he will take part on the “Battle of Barristers” boxing match in April (he’s the only non-district attorney who will be boxing) and is the leading volunteer having raised almost $5,000.
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1. Gary Collier

Bank: Pinnacle Bank
Third-party marketer: Raymond James
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2017: 38
Series-7 advisors personally overseen as of year-end 2016: 21
Team AUM as of year-end 2017: $3.27 billion
Team AUM as of year-end 2016: $2 billion
Team production in 2017: $15.7 million
Team production in 2016: $12.7 million
Production per advisor (est): $531,000

Gary Collier has been a long-standing winner on the Top Program Managers ranking, but this is the first time he’s topped the list. The most important task of a program manager, he says, is hiring the right people. He looks for recruits that are self-motivated and can work with minimal oversight. They must also be highly recommended from other associates from Pinnacle. He says creating a work environment where high performing advisors want to practice is key. “A great work environment allows happy advisors to better serve clients and deepen relationships.” (See more about Gary in the profile article as the No. 1 program manager.)
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