Vector News Archive

Across the nation, the financial industry has reached a crossroad, as the Baby Boomer generation of financial advisors are themselves reaching retirement age. According to a survey from J.D. Power, half of all financial advisors are 57 or older, and 20% are already over the age of 65. To better serve our community of aging advisors, Vector is excited to announce that Joshua Jordan is being promoted into a new role for 2022 as the VWS Vice President of Business Development. Joshua’s entire career has been preparing him for this opportunity. His previous experience as a financial advisor, regional manager and regional wholesaler has helped him develop a unique combination of skills in communication, networking and thought leadership. Then in 2019, he joined Vector as a Senior Partner and an integral part of developing a Succession Plan for Wesley Platt. Wesley, an existing advisor at Commonwealth and the owner of Financial Works, was ready to transition into his own second half. Joshua led the team at Vector, as we developed relationships with the new clients from Financial Works and helped them become a part of the Vector family. Joshua’s new role will allow Vector to further expand our services in business continuity and succession planning for the aging financial advisor community. It will lead to future mergers and succession plans that will allow Vector to continue bringing in talented new advisors like Nick and Marshall. These well-planned, seamless partnerships will allow more fun, generous individuals like Wesley to transition from success in their careers to significance in their second halves. Join us as we congratulate Joshua on this next phase of his career at Vector.

It was almost 10 years ago when Josh and Jay made a deal over a hamburger and fries at Five Guys. Jay had recently lost an assistant, and Josh had left his position as a youth minister and was unsure of what was next. Jay figured he needed some help and Josh needed a temporary job while he checked into possibly going back to school to continue his education. Little did they know where that lunch meeting would take them. Closing in on a decade of service in a variety of roles from his early time at MetLife with Jay and Kelly to Vector today, Josh’s hands-on experience has allowed him to learn about every aspect of client care. He has handled a variety of jobs in the office — from the Keurig to the professional service contracts and from opening new client accounts to holding clients’ hands following the difficult loss of a spouse, as they file the claims on their life savings. If you’ve ever received service in an area Josh was managing, you know first-hand of his calm demeanor and patience. His years as a youth minister and a fitness coach also have developed a strong ability to train and develop others. This combination of talents made it an easy decision when the Vector leadership decided to promote one of our Lead Relationship Managers to a Senior Relationship Manager. Josh’s new role will build on these strengths. As our company grows, he will lead our RM team, training and developing new Relationship Managers to ensure that our responses to you and other clients are timely and effective. In 2022, Josh will also be working toward his securities and insurance licensing; this will allow him to even better support the advisors in serving you with excellence and be another important achievement in his leadership path. Please join us in congratulating Josh on this important step in his career at Vector.

Since his initial interview in 2018, Vector recognized that Nick Jackson was a star in the making. Despite his baby face, he was an old soul. From a standout performance as one of our first ever VectorNext Interns to his maturity and leadership in his first year — which happened to include the early pandemic chaos that was March 2020 — Nick has consistently exceeded expectations.  During his time as an associate advisor, Nick has impressed the leadership at Vector with his ability to quickly develop rapport with existing clients and recent referrals alike. In line with Vector’s mission, Nick has crafted dozens of financial plans to help clients work toward their financial goals and vision for their retirement lifestyles. He also had made deep impacts in our community by helping clients connect their philanthropy to their personal missions. His research into the topics and grasp of the financial concepts that affect retirees the most would be considered top of the class by even the highest standards. And it is not just the team at Vector who can attest to this. This past November, Nick achieved his CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification at a younger age than many of his peers. In fact, the CFP Board reports that there are currently more CFPs over the age of 70 than there are under the age of 30. To reflect his achievements and advanced abilities, Vector is pleased to announce Nick’s promotion to VWS Lead Advisor. His path at Vector has reflected his intelligence and talent, as he has grown from a VectorNext Intern to Associate Advisor to Lead Advisor, and we have no doubt that his future is even brighter.  

As we continue our mission to offer leadership development opportunities for college students interested in financial planning, we are excited to welcome our first round of spring interns this year.  For the next four months Matthew Goldstine will be our in-office intern. He is a senior finance major at The University of Alabama in Huntsville. We are excited for you to get to know more about Matthew as he settles into his new role. When asked what sparked his interest in financial planning, Matthew credits his father’s longevity in the field.  “When I was young, I would pick out my father’s ties in the morning before he left for work,” he said. “He’s been a financial advisor for 30 years, and my deep respect and love for my father, along with my passion for helping people, has led me to this point.” In addition to his inspirational father, Matthew realized his outgoing nature and drive to serve people and to help them achieve their goals, whether personal or financial, was also a good match for the financial planning field.  “I have years worth of experience working on teams and leading small groups, including three years working on a student investment team,” said Matthew, who is also minoring in sociology.   As a VWS financial planning intern, Matthew will be working on projects with a fellow intern, Thomas, as well as a few solo assignments.  “I’m excited to gain experience in the personal finance field, meet clients, work on teams, and gain this practical experience,” he said. “Last year I was searching for an internship and when I came across Vector’s, I called my parents and told them I’d found the perfect fit!”  

As we continue our mission to offer leadership development opportunities for college students interested in financial planning, we are excited to welcome our first round of spring interns this year.  For the next four months Matthew Goldstine will be our in-office intern while Thomas Mirth will spend eight weeks as our virtual intern. Matthew is a senior finance major at The University of Alabama in Huntsville, and Thomas is a junior finance major at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.  We invite you to get to know more about Thomas as he settles into his new role. As our virtual intern, Thomas will learn about the financial planning field while studying finance at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Thomas learned early on that he wanted to learn more about financial planning, which was a departure from his family’s mechanical engineering background.  “I knew I wanted to be in a very dynamic industry when I began watching my grandfather trade some of his retirement assets,” said Thomas, who is minoring in personal wealth management and American Studies. “I saw how helping someone before they get older can allow them a higher level of comfort later in life.”  Thomas believes his experiences traveling abroad and relating to different people will be an asset as he settles in at Vector.  “I have been blessed to travel a lot, and it allows me to connect with a variety of people and understand different perspectives,” he said. He hopes his time at Vector will improve his understanding of how to serve clients with their financial goals.  “I am very excited to be working with the close-knit Vector team and help people in more than just their finances,” Thomas said.   

At Vector Wealth Strategies, we continue to offer leadership development opportunities for college students interested in financial planning. This fall, we welcomed two new virtual interns, Jacksen Eddy and Anna Zondervan. During the next several months, our clients will meet Jacksen and Anna as they learn from our team and sit in on meetings. Jacksen and Anna have hit the ground running, and we invite you to get to know more about them as they settle into their new roles. Anna Zondervan   Anna is a junior earning her bachelor’s and master’s in business administration at Freed-Hardeman University. A finance and accounting major, Anna is hoping her internship will help her solidify her career aspirations.  While in her first few weeks with us, Anna said she’s learned the difference between various investment accounts as well as the communication skills needed when advising clients. “Through shadowing the Vector team, I hope to grow in my technical and my interpersonal skills,” Anna said. “I’m also looking forward to learning more about financial planning from the team.” On FHU’s campus Anna is a member of the Xi Chi Delta social club and is serving as an analyst on the First Bank Investment Team this fall semester.  When she’s not studying, Anna is a traveler, hiker and reader of C.S. Lewis and Jane Austen novels. An avid baker, Anna makes a mean chocolate peanut butter cupcake!

At Vector Wealth Strategies, we continue to offer leadership development opportunities for college students interested in financial planning. This fall, we welcomed two new virtual interns, Jacksen Eddy and Anna Zondervan. During the next several months, our clients will meet Jacksen and Anna as they learn from our team and sit in on meetings. Jacksen and Anna have hit the ground running, and we invite you to get to know more about them as they settle into their new roles.  Jacksen Eddy  Freed-Hardeman University junior Jacksen Eddy’s interest in accounting began at an early age, and his goal has been to learn all he can about finance and accounting. He is earning his bachelor’s in business administration and master’s in business administration with a focus in accounting. “I hope to gain an understanding of the financial planning market. I think this will help me with future career choices,” said Jacksen. While in his first few weeks of his internship, Jacksen said he’s honed his communication skills. “Sitting in on the client meetings has been the most valuable experience so far,” Jacksen said. “I’m enjoying working with them because they ask what I want to learn and they want us to get something out of it.” In his free time, Jacksen enjoys playing soccer, reading and watching movies. He currently is a member of the Xi Chi Delta social club where he serves as the treasurer. “I am extremely excited about this opportunity with Vector,” Jacksen said. “I believe it will be eye-opening, and I’m ready to help them in the best way I can.”

Vector wanted to recognize the one-year anniversary of our Associate Advisor, Marshall Dearing! Marshall began his Vector journey as the summer intern in 2019 and again during the spring of 2020 while he finished his MBA and BBA in Finance: Financial Planning from Freed-Hardman University. He officially joined as an Advisor in June of 2020 and has immediately provided outstanding value to many aspects of our team. We are delighted to have him!  In celebrating his anniversary, we wanted to share his Vector journey with you. Congratulations Marshall!

Vector Wealth Strategies continues to offer leadership development opportunities for college students interested in financial planning. With everything we learned through the global pandemic regarding working remotely, we are excited to expand our intern program this semester to include a virtual offering and welcome two new participants.  While this may be new territory for Vector and the interns, they have already hit the ground running and are enjoying new learning experiences. VWS spring interns this year are Freed-Hardeman University students Bradley Covert and Ben Painter. Although they are always just a face on the screen, they have been sitting in on client meetings, conducting research and assisting the Vector team this spring. The VWS team invites you to read more about Ben! Ben Painter Ben is a junior with a double major in business analytics and finance, while also earning his MBA. Throughout this semester he has sat in on client meetings and gained valuable insight in the field.  “When I’m not being paid to learn (how awesome is that?), I do some administrative tasks and work on various data-focused projects for the advisors,” Ben said. “We recently have been evaluating whether one of their investment strategies is the most efficient/effective method and researching alternatives.” Ben has held three internships before working at Vector. When he graduates, he hopes to find a position where he is involved in research and answer difficult questions in the investment field. “This internship is fully virtual; we’re called ‘Zoomterns.’ As I spend time with the team, I’ve learned that financial advising is a special sub-field in that it allows an advisor to deal with complex financial topics, but make them actionable and meaningful for real people,” Ben said Ben’s love of learning began as a homeschooler, he was homeschooled from kindergarten through 12th grade. Fun fact about Ben is that he admits to having an unhealthy obsession with Siberian huskies. He credits his education and work experience for giving him a strong curiosity to ask questions and use practical data skills to analyze and answer them. “I’ve greatly enjoyed getting the chance to exercise those skills and hopefully have offered the Vector team some value!” Ben said.

Vector Wealth Strategies continues to offer leadership development opportunities for college students interested in financial planning. With everything we learned through the global pandemic regarding working remotely, we are excited to expand our intern program this semester to include a virtual offering and welcome two new participants.  While this may be new territory for Vector and the interns, they have already hit the ground running and are enjoying new learning experiences. VWS spring interns this year are Freed-Hardeman University students Bradley Covert and Ben Painter. Although they are always just a face on the screen, they have been sitting in on client meetings, conducting research and assisting the Vector team this spring.  Bradley Covert Bradley is a senior earning three degrees simultaneously — a dual enrolled business major earning a BBA/MBA as well as a BS in Bible Studies. His priorities this spring are to learn all he can during his Vector internship and in his role as Fund Manager of FHU’s First Bank Investment Team. “I’ve had preaching internships before, but this is my first business internship,” Bradley said. “I’m learning so much especially about asset management and strategy and how to tailor the decisions on an individual level.” Meeting clients virtually has been one of the main highlights of his internship experience. “I’ve learned so much from client meetings while listening to their questions, working on projects with Jay and really seeing what goes on behind the scenes in financial planning.” Bradley says the experience with the Vector internship has helped him realize his strengths. “Having strong interpersonal skills is something I’ve been building since I’ve been in ministry and that’s important when interacting with clients,” he said. “I’m learning how to look at a whole retirement plan using research as a guide.”  When he is not juggling schoolwork, the investment team or his internship duties, Bradley is spending time with his friends, watching movies and making pizzas in his family’s pizzeria, Viola’s Pizza Company. “Working for Viola’s has given me good hands-on experience working in a business,” he said. “And Vector is such a phenomenal environment and has shown me what a real job in the business world looks like and they have set a high bar for my expectations of the real world.”