Strategic Alliance Partners

Michael McClary is the Chief Investment Officer of Valmark Advisers, Inc. and Valmark Financial Group, LLC. His primary responsibility is coordinating all investment management solutions for Valmark Advisers and Valmark Institutional, including TOPS^®, TOPS^® Strategic Allocation Portfolios, TOPS^® Managed Risk ETF Portfolios and Valmark ACCESS™, and ACCESS™ Plus solutions. Mr. McClary was named by EFT Report as one of “10 Rising Stars” in 2012 and one of “10 All Stars” in 2014. He is nationally recognized as one of the first three members of the IMN/Research Magazine “ETF Advisors Hall of Fame” in 2007 and is regularly published on ETF.com. In addition, he has collaborated with the Wall Street Journal, Kiplinger’s, Financial Advisor, and Research Magazine, to name a few, on ETF-related topics and has been a featured speaker for organizations such as the S&P and the Financial Planning Association. Mr. McClary holds FINRA series 7, 24 and 66 securities registrations, is a Member of the Cleveland Society of Chartered Financial Analysts^®, and is a Registered Investment Advisor. He earned an MBA in Financial Management and a BBA in Finance in Financial Services, Magna Cum Laude, both from the University of Akron.

Tyler Denholm is the Vice President of Investment Management and Research for our partner, ValMark Financial Group.  His primary responsibility is overseeing the investment management process and conducting research for TOPS^®, TOPS^® Strategic Allocation Portfolios, and TOPS^® Variable Insurance Trust.  In addition to his FINRA series 7 and 24 securities licenses, Mr. Denholm has earned the elite distinction of Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

Chris Finefrock is the Vice President of Financial Planning for our partner, Valmark Financial Group. In his role, he oversees and is a resource for the team responsible for all aspects of design and implementation of various brokerage, insurance, and advisory solutions intended to assist investors with risk management and reaching their accumulation and/or distribution goals. In addition to his FINRA series 7, 24 and 66 securities registrations and his Ohio Life, Health and Variable licenses, Mr. Finefrock holds a bachelor’s degree in Financial Services and an MBA in Finance from the University of Akron. He is also a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™.

Judson Forner is the Vice President of Investment Marketing for our partner, ValMark Financial Group.  In his role, he is responsible for all annuity product lines including research, case analysis and design, product recommendations, and advanced sales concepts. In addition to his FINRA series 6, 7, 24, 53 and 66 securities licenses, Mr. Forner is also a Certified Financial Planner and a Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor.

Caleb Nitz is the Vice President of Business Development for our partner, ValMark Financial Group. His primary responsibility is working with existing and potential Member Firms to integrate ValMark’s unique tools, resources and people to help them grow. Previously, Mr. Nitz led ValMark’s Insurance Marketing team, enhancing Member Firm services and delivering on key insurance offerings such as Life Assurance 360™. In addition to his FINRA series 7, 24 and 66 securities registrations, Mr. Nitz is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and carries Ohio Life, Health and Variable Insurance licenses. He earned his BBA in Finance and Financial Planning from the University of Akron, Magna Cum Laude, with a Minor in Business Entrepreneurship. Mr. Nitz is a graduate of the Focus Leadership Institute [2008] and is a member of the Association of Advances Life Underwriting. In his free time, he enjoys skiing, bicycling and volunteering with his wife, Hannah.

Tom Love is the Vice President of Insurance Analytics for our partner, ValMark Financial Group. In his role, he is responsible for advanced life insurance case design, carrier and product analysis, product sales and marketing, development of analytical and educational tools, agent training and agency business development. Mr. Love brings extensive experience in the life insurance space from Canada Life, Prudential, M Financial group and most recently Insuralytics Group. In addition to his FINRA Series 6, 63 and 65 securities registrations and Ohio Life, Health and Variable licenses, Mr. Love is a Chartered Life Underwriter^®. He has been published in industry publications such as Worth Magazine, Journal of Financial Services Professionals, and is a two-time Editor’s Choice Award Winner in Journal of Practical Estate Planning, and is a national presenter on topics ranging from Life Insurance Due Diligence to Reviewing and Evaluating the Family’s Life Insurance Holdings. In addition, Mr. Love is co-author of ValMark’s Love Notes and author of several ValMark white papers. He earned his BBA in Risk Management & Insurance from the University of Georgia.

Kristen Finefrock is the Manager of Marketing and Education for our partner, ValMark Financial Group. In her role, she assists in the analysis of estate, business and retirement planning strategies, specializing in life insurance. In addition to her FINRA Series 7 and 24 securities licenses, Mrs. Finefrock graduated with a degree in Corporate Finance from the University of Akron and is a Certified Financial Planner^®.

Eric Johnson is the Vice President of Underwriting for our partner, ValMark Financial Group.  In his role, he is responsible for the risk assessment appraisal, consultation, and negotiation of underwriting offers on behalf of ValMark member offices, such as Harvest Wealth Advisors.  He has over 25 years of experience in the underwriting industry and is a nationally-recognized speaker on topics such as challenging underwriting impairments and jumbo business.

As a Senior Underwriter for our partner, ValMark Financial Group, Michael Noss is responsible for the technical assessment and negotiation of underwriting offers and serves as a contact for any new business or underwriting issues. He is a national presenter for the ValMark School of Excellence in addition to various industry conferences. Mr. Noss earned his BA in Philosophy and Communication from Saint John’s University. He is a member of the Association of Home Office Underwriters (AHOU) and a Fellow of the Academy of Life Underwriting (FALU).

As a New Business Specialist for our partner, ValMark Financial Group’s Underwriting team, Mindy Shaffer provides excellent customer service while shepherding new life insurance cases through the application process. She has more than 20 years of experience in the financial services industry, including 12 years in life insurance. Ms. Shaffer previously worked for a core life insurance carrier giving her invaluable insight into the intricacies of the process. In her spare time, she enjoys camping, hiking and fishing with her husband and son.

As the VP of In Force Insurance Solutions for our partner, Valmark Financial Group, Michael Michlitsch is responsible for integrating strategies and solutions for in force life insurance business. Michael is responsible for the Valmark Policy Management Company and Valmark’s Life Settlement division. Previously, he was Manager of Practice Management at Securian Financial Services, Inc., a Senior Training Manager for Woodbury Financial Services, Inc., and Sales Manager for Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc. Mr. Michlitsch earned his MBA from the Opus College of Business at the University of St. Thomas and his BA in Management and Marketing from Bethany Lutheran College. He is a Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor℠ and carries the following Financial Services Designations: CFS, CIS, CES, CAS and CTS. In addition, he holds FINRA Series 7, 24 and 66 securities registrations as well as Ohio Life, Health, Variable Life and Annuity licenses.

Chris Bottaro is the Vice President of Insurance Services for our partner, ValMark Financial Group. He is responsible for the vision, strategy and execution of life insurance underwriting and new business initiatives. Formerly, Mr. Bottaro was an Underwriting Account Executive at Lincoln Financial Group where he led a team of 25 underwriters and new business associates through strategic initiatives aimed at making the life insurance process simpler and more efficient for advisors and their clients. He has an MBA from the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts and holds FINRA Series 6 and 26 securities registrations.