Callan Associates

Clifford G. Axelson, Jr., Senior VP & Manager

Clifford G. Axelson, Jr., CFA, Senior Vice President and Manager of Callan's New Jersey Consulting office. Cliff joined Callan's New Jersey Office consulting staff in 1989 and has more then twenty years of experience in the pension consulting community. Cliff is the Chairman of Callan's Client Policy Review Committee and is a shareholder of the firm.

Prior to joining Callan, Cliff was a Vice President of the consulting firm, Dahab Associates, Inc. He also was a Portfolio Analyst in the Capital Markets Group of Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc.

Cliff received his degree in Economics cum laude from Allegheny College and earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. He is also a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts and the CFA Institute.

Claudia Bartek, Consulting Associate & Admin Manager

Claudia Bartek, Consulting Associate & Administrative Manager. Claudia joined Callan's New Jersey consulting staff in July of 1996.  As a Consulting Associate, Claudia currently is responsible for consulting support in the areas of performance measurement, strategic planning, and the coordination of special projects.  In addition, Claudia assists in the marketing and prospecting for new business opportunities.  Claudia also manages the administrative functions of the New Jersey office and is responsible for supervising the support staff.

Greg Bauer, Consultant

Greg Bauer, CFA is a Consultant in Callan's Atlanta consulting office. Greg works with a variety of plan sponsor clients across the southeastern region, including corporate and public defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans, endowments and foundations. His responsibilities include performance reporting, strategic planning, and coordination of special client proposals and requests.

Prior to joining Callan, Greg worked as an Investment Banking Analyst for Prudential Securities and as a proprietary trader for Heartland Securities.

Greg holds a B.A. in Economics from Brown University and an M.B.A. in Finance from the Business School at Georgia Tech. Greg earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the Atlanta Society of Financial Analysts.

Matthew A. Beck, Senior Vice President

Matthew A. Beck, CFA, Senior Vice President, San Francisco Consulting Office. Matt works with corporate retirement plans, public retirement plans and foundations and endowments.   He is a member of the Client Policy Review Committee and the DC Committee.  Matt is experienced in assisting a wide variety of clients with strategic planning, manager evaluation, and performance monitoring.

Matt joined Callan in 1997 as an analyst in the Client Report Services group working on the production of comprehensive performance measurement reports and the implementation and testing of new products. Before coming to Callan, Matt worked at Mana, Allison & Associates as a Product Development Manager. He was responsible for the costing, research, writing and design of sales proposals for Mana, Allison, a leading destination management firm.

Matt has a B.A. in Economics and Spanish from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. He spent a year in Valencia, Spain while in college studying Spanish history, economy, culture and language. Matt earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.  He is a member of the CFA Society of San Francisco and the CFA Institute.  Matt is also a shareholder.

Janet C. Becker-Wold, Senior Vice President

Janet C. Becker-Wold, CFA, Senior Vice President, Denver Consulting office. Janet joined the investment management business in 1991.  Her experience at Callan includes all facets of investment consulting including investment policy analysis, asset and liability studies as well as manager search and structure.  She has a particular expertise in international investing and currency management.  Her clients include corporate, public and non-U.S. based funds.

Janet joined the firm in 1994 from Qwest's (formerly U S WEST) pension fund where she worked in the international equity, fixed income and real estate areas.  While at Callan, she has authored white papers on a variety of international investing issues and is a speaker at industry forums.  Janet was named Money Management Letter's 2003 Consultant of the Year.

Janet received an M.B.A. in Finance from the University of Colorado and a B.S. in Biology from the University of Texas.  She earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. Janet is a shareholder of the firm.

Toni L. Brown, Executive VP & Manager

Toni L. Brown, CFA, Executive Vice President, Manager of the San Francisco Consulting office. She also has senior oversight responsibility for Callan's Defined Contribution Practice.   Toni is an experienced consultant who works primarily with corporate retirement plans. She works on all types of projects for her clients, including strategic planning, asset allocation and liability studies, plan investment structure, manager/mutual fund searches, development of customized performance evaluation reports, and investment policy statements. Toni is a member of Callan's Management Committee, Manager Search Committee, and Client Policy Review Committee. She is a shareholder of the firm.

Toni joined Callan Associates in January of 1990 and, prior to joining the San Francisco consulting office, was a manager for Callan's Client Report Services Group. In addition to supervising a staff of senior analysts, she was responsible for developing and implementing new performance evaluation products.

Toni earned a B.S. in General Business from the University of Denver and a M.B.A. from Arizona State University. She earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. Toni belongs to the CFA Society of San Francisco and the CFA Institute. Toni serves on the Board of Directors for the Pathways Hospice Foundation.

Kenneth E. Brunke, Jr., Senior Vice President

Kenneth E. Brunke, Jr., Senior Vice President, Chicago Consulting office. Ken joined Callan Associates in 1979 and has more than thirty years of experience in pensions and investments. He has client consulting responsibilities in the Chicago Office and serves as Executive Director of the Callan Investments Institute, which he founded in 1980. Ken is a member of Callan's Manager Search committee and is a shareholder of the firm.

Previously, he was Senior Vice President of an investment counseling firm, headed his own management consulting firm, served as Executive Director of the Wiesenberger Corp. Pension Executives Institute, and was Manager of Pensions and Investments for the Inland Steel Co.

Ken earned an M.B.A. from Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration and graduated with honors in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University. He has written many articles for business publications and is a frequent speaker at business conferences. Ken was recognized by Institutional Investor in their 25th Anniversary Issue as being responsible for formally establishing the manager search questionnaire process utilized in the tax-exempt fund industry today.

James A. Callahan, Executive VP & Manager

James A. Callahan, CFA, Executive Vice President, Manager of Callan Associates' Fund Sponsor Consulting Group.  In this role, Jim oversees all of Callan's fund sponsor consulting offices.  His clients include public, corporate, and Taft-Hartley pension plans, foundations, and endowments. Jim works directly with his clients in the development of strategic planning including asset allocation and investment policy development, investment manager research and selection, and performance evaluation.  In addition to being a member of Callan's Management Committee, Jim serves on Callan's Manager Search Committee, Client Policy Review Committee and is a shareholder of the firm.

Jim joined Callan in January 1993 and, prior to joining San Francisco Consulting, was a senior analyst in Callan's Report Services Group. His responsibilities included performance measurement, trading cost analysis, development and testing of new products, and special projects.  Prior to joining Callan, Jim was an analyst/trader with Bankers Trust Company in New York.

Jim earned a B.A. in Economics from Boston College and earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

John M. Carr, Senior VP & Manager

John M. Carr, Senior Vice President and Manager of the Atlanta Consulting office.  He is a member of Callan's Client Policy Review Committee and Management Committee.  John advises institutional clients on the development of strategic investment solutions in the areas of asset allocation and policy statements, manager research and selection, and performance evaluation.

Prior to joining Callan, John was an Associate Partner and Product Specialist with the Global Asset Allocation group of INVESCO Institutional (N.A.), Inc.  He joined the firm in 2000 and was responsible for product development, client communication, and implementation of the investment decisions for some of the largest corporate and public pension funds in North America.

Prior to INVESCO, John was Vice President and Portfolio Manager at Trusco Capital Management.  He managed U.S. large-cap growth portfolios utilizing a team-oriented investment process.  As a member of the Asset Allocation Committee, John also collectively managed three lifecycle mutual funds.

He began his investment career in 1993 as an Investment Consultant with Watson Wyatt.  The majority of his five years were spent in Atlanta working with pension funds and eleemosynary organizations.  He also worked in the Hong Kong office advising clients on retirement plan and investment manager structure.

He received his BBA with a concentration in Finance from Emory University, and is a member of the Atlanta Society of Financial Analysts.

Gordon E. Dickinson, Senior Vice President

Gordon E. Dickinson, Senior Vice President and Senior Consultant. Gordon joined Callan Associates in 1987 and has twenty years of experience in investment consulting. Gordon serves on Callan's Management Committee, as well the Manager Search and Client Policy Review Committees, and is a shareholder of the firm. He has consulting responsibilities for both defined benefit and defined contribution plans for public retirement systems and large multi-national corporations.

Prior to joining Callan Associates in 1987, Gordon served as an Investment Consultant to public and corporate pension funds for Wilshire Associates. He was previously a Senior Consultant with Arthur D. Little, Inc. where he was involved with valuing privately held corporations for acquisition and divestiture purposes.

Gordon graduated from the University of Wisconsin with a B.A. in English. He earned an M.A. in English from the University of California at Santa Barbara, and an M.B.A. in Finance from the University of California at Los Angeles' Anderson School of Management.

Kevin M. Dolsen, Senior VP & Manager

Kevin M. Dolsen, CFA, is a Senior Vice President and Manager of Callan's Chicago Fund Sponsor Consulting office.  He is a member of Callan's Management Committee and is a shareholder of the firm.

In addition to managing the Chicago fund sponsor office, Kevin works with defined benefit and defined contribution clients in the public and corporate sectors. He advises them on the development of strategic investment solutions in the areas of asset allocation and policy statements, manager research and selection and performance evaluation.

Kevin most recently spent two years in Callan's Global Manager Research Group, were he was responsible for research and analysis of domestic equity investment managers and manager searches. Prior to that, he spent five years in Callan's Chicago Plan Sponsor Consulting Group, working with a wide variety of clients. He joined Callan Associates in 1999.

Kevin earned a B.A. in History with a minor in Finance from The University of Dayton. He received his MBA in Finance and Strategy at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management in 2004. Kevin earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

Paul M. Erlendson, Senior Vice President

Paul M. Erlendson is a Senior Vice President and a senior consultant in our Denver consulting office. He is a member of Callan's Client Policy Review and Manager Search Committees, and is a shareholder of the firm.   Paul has assisted a variety of institutional investors with a broad array of investment policy formulation, implementation, and evaluation decisions.

Prior to joining Callan Associates in 1986, Paul served on the staff of a state pension system. His background also includes work in the insurance industry, and a stint as a college instructor. His commitment to education extends to participating in speaking roles at various investment forums.  Paul earned a B.A. and an M.A. from North Dakota State University.

Diana R. Greenstone, Vice President

Diana R. Greenstone, Vice President, San Francisco Consulting Office. Diana works with a variety of plan sponsor clients across the western region, including corporate and public defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans, endowments and foundations.  Her client service responsibilities include strategic planning, plan implementation, coordination of special client requests and customized performance reporting. 

Diana originally joined Callan in 2002 as an Investment Analyst in the Global Manager Research Group. Prior to Callan, Diana spent two years at Thomas Weisel Partners LLC, a San Francisco based merchant bank where she was most recently a research associate in the equity research department.

Diana attended the University of Virginia where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology.  She is a Level II CFA candidate.  Diana is a shareholder of the firm..

William C. Howard, Vice President

William C. Howard, CFA, Vice President, Fund Sponsor Consulting Group. Based in Callan's Denver office, Bill works with a variety of fund sponsor clients, including foundations, public defined benefit plans, and corporate defined contribution plans. His responsibilities include strategic planning, implementation, performance evaluation, and continuing education. Bill is a shareholder of the firm and a member of Callan's Manager Search Committee.

Prior to joining Callan in 2001, Bill was a research analyst for Pritchard Investment Management, a registered investment advisor specializing in enhanced index strategies. He began his investment career as a portfolio analyst tracking the performance of investment advisory newsletters at Hulbert Financial Digest

Bill holds an MBA from the University of Denver and a BA from Vanderbilt University.  He has earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.  Bill is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society of Colorado.

Michael J. Joecken, Consultant

Michael J. Joecken, Consultant, Chicago Consulting Office. Mike works with a variety of plan sponsor clients across the Midwest region, including corporate and public defined benefit plans, corporate defined contribution plans, and foundations. His client responsibilities include strategic planning and implementation, investment manager review, continuing education and the coordination of special projects.

Mike joined Callan in 2000 as a member of Callan's Institutional Consulting Group, and was responsible for supporting investment manager clients in the East, Southeast, and Midwest.

Mike received his MBA in Finance and Management from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. He earned a B.S. in Finance from the University of Dayton. While attending Dayton, he co-managed the University's Center for Portfolio Management. His prior work experience also includes positions at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and Ameritech.

Mark A. Kline, Executive Vice President

Mark A. Kline, Executive Vice President of the New Jersey Consulting Office. Mark joined Callan Associates in 1993 and has more than twenty-five years of experience working with institutional investment funds of all types. Mark is a member of Callan's Management, Manager Search, and Alternative Investments Review Committees, and is a shareholder of the firm.

Prior to joining Callan, Mark was Vice President of The Common Fund where he managed the investment relationship with a number of major endowment funds. He was also responsible for the monitoring and evaluation of many of the investment management firms employed by The Common Fund. Previous to that, he was a Director at Prudential Asset Management Company where he was responsible for representing a broad array of independent investment managers primarily to the pension community.

Mark earned a B.A. in Political Science from St. Michael's College in Winooski, Vermont.

John Krimmel, Senior Vice President

John Krimmel, CPA, CFA, is a Senior Vice President and Consultant in Callan's Atlanta office.  John works with defined benefit and defined contribution pension plans, endowments and foundations.  He advises them on the development strategic investment solutions in the areas of asset allocation and policy statements, manager research and selection, and performance evaluation.  John is a member of the firm's Alternative Investment Review Committee.

Prior to joining Callan in 2006, John spent 14 years at two large public retirement systems, the last seven of which he was the Chief Investment Officer. As the senior investment professional at these two funds, he was responsible for all facets of the investment program including asset allocation, strategy development for the internally managed equity and fixed income portfolios, and oversight responsibility for externally managed portfolios.

John earned a B.S. in Accounting from Millikin University and a Masters of Accounting Science from the University of Illinois. He is a Certified Public Accountant and earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

Eileen L. Kwei, Vice President

Eileen L. Kwei, CFA, Vice President, San Francisco Consulting Office. Eileen works with a variety of plan sponsor clients across the western region, including corporate and public defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans, endowments and foundations. Her client service responsibilities include strategic planning, plan implementation, coordination of special client requests and customized performance reporting.

Prior to joining the San Francisco Consulting team, Eileen spent five years in Callan's Global Manager Research group. As an International Investment Consultant, Eileen was responsible for research and analysis in the international and global asset classes including developed and emerging equity, fixed income, and issues surrounding currency management. She oversaw manager searches, conducts on-site visits, and attends finalist interviews.

Eileen earned a B.A. in Economics at the University of California at Berkeley. She earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.  Eileen belongs to the CFA Society of San Francisco and the CFA Institute.  Eileen is a shareholder of the firm.

Charles Lytle, Associate Consultant

Charles Lytle, Associate Consultant, Chicago Plan Sponsor Consulting.  Charles joined Callan in February 2006 through Client Report Services, Callan's performance measurement group. Charles is currently responsible for supporting senior consultants in the areas of client servicing, investment manager review, business development and the coordination of special projects

Prior to joining Callan, Charles worked as a Regional Sales Coordinator for the Rite Hite Corporation, Milwaukee, WI, and as an AmericorpsVISTA Community Organizer for Mercy Housing California, Folsom, CA.

Charles received a M.A. in International Policy Studies, with Certificates in Conflict Resolution and Commercial Diplomacy, from the Monterey Institute of International Studies and a B.A. in English from the University of Florida.  Charles is a Level I CFA Candidate.

Chad Myhre, Investment Analyst

Chad Myhre, Investment Analyst, Denver Consulting Office. Chad joined Callan Associates in September 2007. He provides analytical support to the general consultants in the Denver office in a variety of areas including performance evaluation, manager research, and client projects. Prior to joining Callan, Chad worked as an Insurance Regulator for the state of North Dakota. His responsibilities included auditing and financial statement analysis.

Chad graduated from the University of North Dakota with a B.A. in Finance and a minor in Economics. He is currently a Level III candidate in the CFA program.

Michael J. O'Leary, Jr., Executive VP & Manager

Michael J. O'Leary, Jr., CFA, is an Executive Vice President and Manager of the Denver Consulting Office. Michael is a member of Callan's Client Policy Review and Management committees. He is Chairman of Callan's Manager Search Committee and is a shareholder of the firm.

Michael joined Callan in 1984 in the firm's Chicago office as a senior consultant. He established the firm's Denver office in 1990. Prior to joining Callan, Michael worked for 13 years for major Trust companies in Chicago and Hartford, Connecticut.

While with the Trust companies, he worked as a research analyst, Director of Research, and head of institutional portfolio management. He also served as director of defined contribution services for one trust company and manager of the employee plan services department for another. Throughout his career as an investment professional, he has worked extensively with a broad range of institutional clients including public and corporate retirement plans, foundations, and charitable organizations.

Michael works directly with a number of the firm's major public and private accounts in providing a complete range of investment consulting services. He has extensive personal experience in asset allocation analysis, manager structure analysis, manager selection, performance evaluation, securities lending, and defined contribution plan design and evaluation. He speaks frequently at client conferences, and to professional groups Michael earned a bachelor's degree from Fordham University and earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

Lisa K. Pickelsimer, Senior Analyst & Operations Manager

Lisa K. Pickelsimer is Senior Investment Analyst and Operations Manager of Callan's Atlanta office.  Lisa joined Callan in 2000 and manages the day-to-day operations of the office while providing fund sponsor client and consultant support.  Areas of concentration include performance measurement, investment manager review, research and the coordination of special client projects. 

Lisa began her investment career with the Private Client Group of Merrill Lynch where she served as a Registered Sales Associate for more than 10 years.  In this position, she gained significant exposure to the retail financial sector working with high net worth individuals and small businesses.  Her background also includes experience in sales and marketing with Equifax.

Lisa earned her BS from Kennesaw State University.

Matthew J. Shirilla, Consultant

Matthew J. Shirilla, Consultant, Chicago Consulting Office.  Matt is responsible for supporting the senior consultants in the areas of client servicing, investment manager review, business development and the coordination of special projects.  Matt acts as primary backup consultant on a number of fund sponsor accounts in the Midwest region.

Prior to joining Callan in 2007, Matt worked as a Consultant at Stratford Advisory Group, Chicago Il., where he was actively involved in day-to-day consulting for clients in a lead and supporting role, and led the Non-U.S. Equity Research Team.

Matt received a B.A. in Economics from Hobart College (Geneva, NY) where he was also a member of the varsity sailing team.

Kristin L. Stellingwerf, Consulting Associate

Kristin L. Stellingwerf, Consulting Associate. Kristin joined Callan's New Jersey consulting staff in July 1994. She currently is responsible for consulting support in the areas of performance measurement, investment manager review, and the coordination of special projects.

Kristin earned a B.S. in Actuarial Science with a minor in Mathematics from Pennsylvania State University.

Michael H. Tadlock, Consultant

Michael H. Tadlock, CFA, Consultant, San Francisco Consulting office.  Michael works with a variety of plan sponsor clients across the western region, including corporate and public defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans, endowments and foundations.  His client service responsibilities include strategic planning, plan implementation, coordination of special client requests and customized performance reporting.

Michael joined Callan in August 2000 and, prior to joining San Francisco Consulting, was a Domestic Equity Investment Consultant in Callan's Global Manager Research Group. His responsibilities included research and analysis of domestic equity investment managers, conducting manager searches, on-site visits, finalist interviews and special projects.  Prior to joining Callan, Michael worked in the Trust Universe Comparison Group (TUCS) department of Wilshire Associates.

Michael earned a B.S. in Business Administration with an emphasis in Accounting from San Diego State University.  Michael earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.  He belongs to the CFA Society of San Francisco and the CFA Institute. Michael is a shareholder in the firm.

Paul V. Troup, Executive Vice President

Paul V. Troup, Executive Vice President, fund sponsor consulting from the Atlanta office. Paul is a member of Callan Associates' Manager Search and Management Committees and is a shareholder of the firm.

Prior to joining Callan Associates in 1989, Paul was a Principal at Mercer Asset Planning for eight years. His experience in investment consulting also includes a nine-year tenure with the Funds Evaluation Group at A. G. Becker.

Paul earned a B.S. in Chemistry from Purdue University, an M.S. in Chemistry from Emory University, and an M.S. in Industrial Management from the University of Tennessee.

Greg T. Ungerman, Vice President

Greg T. Ungerman, CFA, is Vice President in Callan's San Francisco Consulting Office. Greg works with a variety of plan sponsor clients across the western region, including corporate pension and 401(k) plans, foundations/ endowments, multi-employer and public plans.  His client service responsibilities include strategic planning, plan implementation, coordination of special client requests and customized performance reporting.  Greg is a shareholder.

Greg joined Callan in October of 1998. Before joining the Plan Sponsor consulting group in early 2001, Greg was Senior Analyst in the Client Report Services Group. In that role, Greg specialized in all aspects of performance measurement and analytics and was responsible for managing some of Callan's largest reporting relationships. Prior to joining Callan, he worked as an intern at IMG, organizing professional golf and tennis tournaments.

Greg graduated in 1998 from UC Davis with a degree in Business and Finance. Greg earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.  He belongs to the CFA Society of San Francisco and the CFA Institute.

Millie Viqueira, Senior Vice President

Millie Viqueira, Senior Vice President. Millie joined Callan Associates in 1991 and has more than fifteen years of experience in investments and pension consulting. She is a member of Callan's Manager Search Committee and is a shareholder of the firm.

Prior to joining the firm, Millie was an Assistant Vice President at Shearson Asset Management, responsible for coordinating institutional marketing efforts. Prior to that, Millie served as an Associate Consultant in the New York branch of SEI Corporation.

Millie received her B.A. in Political Science from Princeton University.

Gordon M. Weightman, Investment Analyst

Gordon M. Weightman, Investment Analyst, Denver Consulting Office. Gordie joined Callan in August, 2006. He provides analytical support to the general consultants in the Denver office in a variety of areas including performance evaluation, manager research, and client projects.

Prior to joining Callan, Gordie worked at State Street Corporation in Boston as a Senior Custody Specialist. He gained experience in the mutual fund division working closely with investment managers, and clients. Gordie earned his BA in Psychology from Middlebury College.

Annoesjka T. West, Consultant

Annoesjka T. West, Consultant.  Annoesjka joined Callan's Florham Park, New Jersey consulting staff in February 2001. Annoesjka works with a variety of fund sponsor clients, including corporate and public defined benefit plans, corporate defined contribution plans, and endowments and foundations.  Her client responsibilities include strategic planning, plan implementation and coordination of special client projects.

Prior to joining Callan, Annoesjka worked at New York Life Investment Management as a Sr. Actuarial Services Representative in the Stable Value group. 

Annoesjka graduated with honors and distinction from the Pennsylvania State University with a Bachelor of Science and earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Rutgers University.