Title: Partner & Chief Strategy Officer
Company: Greenspring Advisors
Length of time you/your company has been a FEI sponsor: Less than 1 year
FEI leadership involvement (past and present): Joined the FEI Board in 2020.
Work email: [email protected]
Work phone number: 443-564-4600
Tell us a little bit about your career, educational/professional background and how you got to where you are today.
I am a Co-Founder and Partner at Greenspring Advisors. We started the firm over 15 years ago and have grown it from two employees to 25. Prior to that, I worked for Morgan Stanley, spent some time in the technology industry, and played minor league baseball for a few years right out of college. I recently transitioned from running our corporate retirement practice to Chief Strategy Officer, focused on guiding our mid- and long-term strategy and being an ambassador for Greenspring.
What do you love most about working in the finance profession?
Our core purpose at Greenspring Advisors is to improve lives by helping people make better decisions for themselves and those who depend on them. This is why we exist. In our corporate retirement practice, we manage the fiduciary process for more than 120 companies around the country. Across those companies, our advice directly impacts the financial futures of roughly 50,000 employees. That’s an awesome, far-reaching responsibility. I love the fact that by doing our job well, we can influence and contribute to the success of so many people.
Do you think it takes a certain kind of personality to thrive in your field? What traits are most important?
I think success in any field requires the combination of three factors: curiosity, consistency, and confidence. Curiosity requires you to ask questions, learn from others, and look for ways to do your job better. Consistency is reflected in your habits, behaviors, and follow-thru. You can have the best strategy in the world, but it won’t matter if you don’t execute it consistently. And confidence comes from developing mastery in your area of expertise, which is a result of the first two factors.
What is your best networking tip?
One of our core values is what we call “love your neighbor.” It means to be others-focused. In life, you have net-givers and net-takers. When it comes to networking, I find that most people are net-takers and most concerned with how others can help them. People feel that. My best advice is to be a net-giver and focused on ways you can help others as your primary goal. I’ve always found that when you put the needs of others first, you experience the joy of serving people and your needs wind up being met too.
What are some activities you participate in to advance the profession or your career?
I believe that ideas have the power to transform the world by shaping and influencing what we believe and how we act. One of my strengths is the ability to make complex things simple. I’ve written two books in my career to help companies manage their corporate retirement plans better.
Fixing the 401(k): What Fiduciaries Must Know (And Do) To Help Employees Retire Successfully was released in 2008 and became one of the retirement industry’s most well-known books on fiduciary responsibility. My next book,
The Fiduciary Formula: 6 Essential Elements to Create the Perfect Corporate Retirement Plan, is scheduled for release in August 2020 along with a new podcast called Fiduciary U™. I’m excited to use both these resources to teach, coach, empower, and inspire retirement decision-makers like CFOs and finance executives whose employees depend on them for retirement security.