Callan Associates

Ryan Ball, Vice President

R. Ryan Ball, CFA is a Vice President in Callan's Chicago Fund Sponsor Consulting office. Ryan works with a variety of plan sponsor clients in the Midwest region including defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans, multi-employer plans, endowments and foundations. His responsibilities include strategic planning, implementation, performance evaluation, and continuing education.

Prior to joining Callan in 2009, Ryan worked at Stratford Advisory Group in Chicago. During his eight years at Stratford, Ryan served as a lead consultant to the firm's institutional clients, led the firm's fixed income research effort and was a member of their Investment Committee. He most recently served as a Managing Director tasked with developing and marketing a hedge fund of funds strategy for Stratford's parent company. Prior to Stratford, Ryan served as a fixed income analyst at Lincoln Capital Management. His work experience also includes serving as an analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

Ryan earned a B.B.A. in Finance from The University of Iowa and received his MBA in Finance from DePaul University's Kellstadt Graduate School of Business. Ryan earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

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.

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.

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, Defined Contribution and Management Committees, he is also a shareholder of the firm.  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.

Gregory F. DeForrest, Senior Vice President

Gregory F. DeForrest, CFA, is a Senior Vice President and Consultant in Callan's San Francisco Consulting Office. Greg works with a variety of fund sponsor clients, including corporate and public defined benefit plans, corporate defined contribution plans, and endowments and foundations. His client responsibilities include strategic planning and implementation, investment manager review, performance evaluation, continuing education and the coordination of special projects.  Greg is a shareholder of the firm and a member of Callan's Management, Manager Search and Defined Contribution Committees.

Previously Greg was Senior Vice President and Manager of Callan's Global Manager Research Department which provides fundamental and statistical research on investment managers. Greg was responsible for overseeing the quantitative and qualitative analysis of investment managers and the production of research and client reports. Greg joined Callan's Global Manager Research as a fixed income specialty consultant in 2001 and became the manager of the group in 2007.  Greg originally joined Callan Associates in 1998 as a member of the Client Report Services Group. As a Senior Analyst, he was responsible for streamlining investment measurement production, handling special client requests, integrating customized performance analysis, and monitoring new investment developments and their implications on the investment measurement service.

Greg earned a B.A. from Villanova University, and has earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

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 foundation, 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 sits on Callan's Manager Search and Alternatives Committees.

Kevin spent two years in Callan's Global Manager Research Group, where 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.

Kevin Dunne, Vice President

Kevin W. Dunne, CFA,is a Vice President and Consultant in Callan's San Francisco Consulting Office. Kevin works with a variety of fund sponsor clients, including corporate and defined benefit plans and defined contribution plans, public plans, multi-employer plans, endowments and foundations. His client responsibilities include strategic planning and implementation, investment manager review, performance evaluation, continuing education and the coordination of special projects.

Previously Kevin was a consultant with Alan Biller & Associates where he was responsible for providing investment consulting expertise to large defined benefit, defined contribution, 401k and health and welfare plans.  There he was responsible for all facets of the client relationship including: asset allocation, education, portfolio and manager oversight, manager due diligence, rebalancing, developing investment guidelines and recommending changes where required.  Prior to that Kevin was a senior management consultant at BearingPoint and served as a U.S. Naval Officer where he specialized in financial and logistics management.

Kevin earned a B.S. from Villanova University, an MBA from Cameron University and has 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. Paul has twenty-six years of industry experience and has been with Callan for twenty-three years.

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.  He is a member of the Pitzer College Parent Leadership Council. Paul earned a B.A. and an M.A. from North Dakota State University.

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, Vice President

Michael J. Joecken, is a Vice President in Callan's Chicago Fund Sponsor 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.  Michael is a shareholder of the firm.

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.  His 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.

Katy Lewis, Associate Consultant

Katy Lewis is an Associate Consultant in Callan's San Francisco Consulting office. Katy joined Callan Associates in 2009. She is responsible for supporting consultants in the areas of client service, investment manager reviews, performance measurement, business development, and other special projects.

Prior to joining Callan, Katy was an Analyst in the Consumer Investment Banking group at Cowen and Company. In that role, she focused on corporate finance transactions for companies in the consumer universe including the retail, footwear & apparel, restaurant and eCommerce sectors.

Katy earned a B.A. in Economics with a concentration in Finance and a B.A. in Sociology from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Katy is a Level II CFA Candidate.

Weston Lewis, Consultant

Weston Lewis, CFA, is a Consultant in Callan's Atlanta Consulting office.  Weston joined Callan Associates in 2008.  He is responsible for supporting consultants in the areas of client service, investment manager review, performance measurement and other special projects.

Prior to his work with Callan Associates, Weston was the Senior Research Analyst at Montford Associates, where he was responsible for performing manager searches and due-diligence, developing investment strategy, performance analysis, and other special research projects.  His background also includes serving as a financial representative with Washington Mutual Bank.

Weston received a B.A. in Economics from Wake Forest University and has earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

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.

Anthony M. Pellecchia, Senior Vice President

Anthony "Bud" Pellecchia, Senior Vice President and Fund Sponsor Consultant in Callan's New Jersey office. Bud re-joined Callan in September 2009 after two years as Executive Vice President and Chief Trust Officer of Amalgamated Bank of New York. While at Amalgamated Bank, Bud had overall responsibility for the Bank's Institutional Asset Management & Custody Department. Bud served on the Bank's Private Equity Investment Committee and was also the Chair of the Bank's 401(K) Plan Investment Committee.

From 1999 to mid-2007 Bud spent eight years at Callan as a Senior Consultant in the New Jersey office. He worked with a diverse group of clients, which included public and corporate plans as well as several endowments in the northeast. Prior to Callan, Bud spent 12 years with Prudential Investments in a number of sales and management roles within their asset management and consulting divisions. Bud is a graduate of Hamilton College with a B.A. in Economics.

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, Vice President

Matthew J. Shirilla is a Vice President in Callan's Chicago Fund Sponsor Consulting Office.  Matt works with a variety of fund sponsor clients in the Midwest region including defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans, multi-employer plans, endowments and foundations.  His responsibilities include strategic planning, implementation, performance evaluation and continuing education.  Matt is also a member of Callan's Defined Contribution Committee.

Prior to joining Callan in 2007, Matt worked as a Consultant at Stratford Advisory Group, Chicago Il., where he was a consultant for institutional clients in a lead and supporting role, and led the Non-U.S./Global Equity Research Team.  He also worked as a FX Options Broker Assistant at Cantor Fitzgerald.

Matt received a B.A. in Economics from Hobart College (Geneva, NY) and is currently pursuing his MBA at DePaul University's Kellstadt Graduate School of Business.

Kudzai Sihlangu, Consulting Associate

Kudzai Sihlangu, Consulting Associate. Kudzai joined Callan's Florham Park, New Jersey consulting staff in November 2009. He is responsible for consulting support in the areas of performance measurement, strategic planning, and the coordination of special projects.In addition, Kudzai assists in the marketing and prospecting for new business opportunities.

Before joining Callan, Kudzai was an investment analyst within Prudential Financial's Strategic Investment Research Group. He also served as an investment analyst at Merrill Lynch & Co., within that firm's Global Wealth Management Group.

Kudzai graduated with honors and distinction from Howard University with a Bachelor in Business Administration (Finance). He is a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts, the CFA Institute, the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association, and the Global Association of Risk Professionals.

Bryan Summers, Investment Analyst

Bryan M. Summers, CPA, Investment Analyst. Bryan joined Callan in December, 2009. 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, Bryan worked at UDR, Inc., a large residential REIT. Before joining UDR he worked as a tax consultant at Deloitte, focusing on the financial services industry.He also served in the Air Force as a budget analyst supporting military's weather satellite program.

Bryan graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy with a BS in Economics and a minor in Russian. He also holds a MS in Finance from the University of Utah. Bryan has passed all 3 levels of the CFA exam and is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society of Colorado. He is also a Certified Public Accountant and member of the AICPA.

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.

Uvan Tseng, Associate Consultant

Uvan Tseng, Associate Consultant, San Francisco Consulting office. Uvan joined Callan Associates in 2008.  He is responsible for supporting consultants in the areas of client service, investment manager reviews, performance measurement, business development, and other special projects. 

Prior to joining Callan, Uvan held positions as a Research Analyst/Associate Portfolio Manager at Armory Advisors, a hedge fund with a focus on distressed investments, and as an Associate Portfolio Manager at Fan Asset Management, an institutional investment management firm catering primarily to fund sponsor clients.  He began his investment career at Franklin Templeton in the corporate management training program.

Uvan earned a B.A. in Business Economics with a concentration in Accounting from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a M.B.A. in Finance from Santa Clara University.  Uvan is a Level II CFA Candidate.

Greg T. Ungerman, Senior Vice President

Greg T. Ungerman, CFA, is a Senior Vice President in Callan's San Francisco Consulting Office. Greg works with a variety of plan sponsor clients across the western region, including corporate defined benefit and defined contribution plans 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 a 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 B.S. degree in Managerial Economics. 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 VP & Manager

Millie Viqueira is a Senior Vice President and Manager of Callan's New Jersey Fund Sponsor Consulting Office. Millie joined Callan Associates in 1991 and has more than twenty years of experience in investments and pension consulting. She is a member of Callan's Management, Manager Search and Defined Contribution Committees 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, Senior Investment Analyst

Gordon M. Weightman, Senior Investment Analyst, Denver Fund Sponsor Consulting Office. Gordie joined Callan in 2006. He works directly with several defined contribution and defined benefit plans, providing consulting services in strategic planning, implementation, performance evaluation, education and research.  In addition to his client duties, Gordie also provides analytical support to the general consultants in the Denver office in these same areas.

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, and is a CFA Level II candidate.

Annoesjka T. West, Vice President

Annoesjka T. West, Vice President.  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 Senior 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.