People Moves: Steward Hires COO; William Blair Taps Strategist
Steward Partners, a Stamford, Conn.-based independent financial services firm with more than $53 billion in client assets, has named Joseph Glick as chief operating officer.
Glick joins Steward from Sequoia Financial Group, where he served as both chief operating officer and chief financial officer, overseeing the firm’s operational and financial infrastructure, as well as M&A integration and an organic growth strategy, according to the announcement.
He will report directly to Steward leadership and oversee finance, operations and technology as it builds infrastructure to support growth.
“Steward Partners is at a genuine inflection point,” Glick said in a statement. “Having surpassed $53 billion in client assets, the firm is ready to build the kind of standardized, scalable infrastructure that supports the next leg of growth—whether that’s reaching the next AUM milestone, expanding margins, or developing a more powerful growth engine in partnership with advisors across the firm.”
In the last 12 months, Steward has added advisors overseeing nearly $8 billion in client assets.
Prior to Sequoia, Glick spent 14 years at Deutsche Bank in senior operational leadership roles across London, continental Europe and New York.
William Blair Promotes Olga Bitel to Chief Investment Strategist
William Blair Investment Management, a Chicago-based investment manager, promoted Olga Bitel as chief investment strategist, the firm announced.
In the newly established role, Bitel will help shape and articulate the firm’s investment perspectives on global economic conditions, monetary and fiscal policy, financial markets, public policy and geopolitical developments, the firm said.
She joined William Blair Investment Management in 2009 and most recently served as global strategist.
“For years, we have benefited from Olga’s deep investment knowledge, global perspective and ability to connect macroeconomic developments to portfolio outcomes,” Bob Kendall, global head of investment management at William Blair, said in a statement. “We are pleased to formally appoint her as our chief investment strategist, as she is uniquely qualified for this role.”
Kestra Adds Two Business Development Consultants
Kestra Financial, an Austin, Texas-based independent broker/dealer, added Austen Karr as business development consultant and promoted Jack Roller to the same role, the firm announced.
The appointments extend Kestra’s recruiting coverage across the western U.S. as the firm focuses on growth across both Kestra Financial and its breakaway-advisor channel, Kestra Private Wealth Services.
Karr comes to Kestra from Raymond James, where he served as vice president for nearly 11 years and will cover Southern California, Colorado, Nevada and Hawaii. He has worked in business development, recruiting and distribution roles, including with LPL Financial and MetLife.
Roller was promoted by Kestra from within, having joined the firm in 2022 as a financial planning analyst and working his way up on the business development team.
Roller will lead recruiting across Washington, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota and Alaska.
Allocate Appoints Matt Dunn Chief Revenue Officer
Allocate, a San Francisco-based private markets operating system for wealth advisory firms and fund managers, has hired Matt Dunn from advisory firm RevFolio Partners as its chief revenue officer, the company announced.
Prior to taking on the role of chief revenue officer, Dunn served as an advisor to Allocate, where he helped shape the company’s growth strategy and go-to-market approach, according to an announcement. He held previous positions at PIMCO, Morgan Stanley and Opto Investments, in which he specialized in helping companies scale advisor-focused businesses and navigate transformation.
The appointment follows a series of senior hires as Allocate scales to meet demand for private markets infrastructure, which includes $4.8 billion in platform assets, the firm said. Allocate currently works with 375 wealth advisory firms and has relationships with more than 1,500 private asset managers.
“We’re seeing a fundamental shift in how advisors access and manage private markets, and the demand for modern infrastructure continues to accelerate,” said Samir Kaji, CEO and co-founder of Allocate, in a statement. “Matt’s appointment reflects both the scale of the opportunity ahead and the caliber of team we’re building to pursue it.”
The company also appointed early founding team member and senior engineering leader Jon Gaudette as head of artificial intelligence.
Diversified Trust Names Atlanta Leaders as Part of Succession Plan
Diversified Trust, an Atlanta-based, employee-owned advisory firm, has made leadership appointments in its Atlanta office that will be part of its long-term succession plan, the firm announced.
As part of the moves, Laurel Lawrence was promoted to managing principal of the Atlanta office, up from her role as that office’s chief operating officer, where she helped grow the office.
In addition, Ryan Cain was promoted to her role as COO of the office, where he will coordinate across teams and support execution. He was previously a relationship and portfolio manager.
As the firm announced earlier this year, Michael Gragnani will become the firm’s CEO effective Jan. 1, 2027. For over six years, Gragnani had been the Atlanta managing principal. He will continue to serve the Atlanta market, clients and colleagues, while also leading the firm’s strategic direction and growth.
“Collectively, these promotions reflect years of intentional investment in our people and our culture,” said Sam Graham, current chairman and CEO of Diversified Trust, in a statement. “The result is a strong, talented bench of leaders who know our clients well, embody the way we collaborate with one another and are well positioned to guide our teams and contribute to the firm’s continued growth.”
