Michael Binger

President
 Gradient Investments, LLC

Mr. Binger is the President of Gradient Investments. He has been with Gradient Investments since 2012 and has more than 30 years of total investment management experience. Mr. Binger’s prior roles include managing multi-billion dollar investment products for a large institutional asset manager. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and is a CFA® charterholder. We believe that he brings a depth of market experience that is rare within the industry and has been a featured contributor with several media outlets including CNBC, Fox Business, Barron’s, and The Wall Street Journal.

Mariann Montagne, CFA®

Portfolio Manager Gradient Investments, LLC

Ms. Montagne is a Portfolio Manager for Gradient Investments. She has been with Gradient Investments since 2014 and has more than 25 years of total investment management experience. Ms. Montagne’s prior roles include equity analysis for institutional fund managers as well as a senior investment analyst position for a $500M registered investment advisor. She is a frequent contributor to media outlets, including CNBC, Fox Business, Bloomberg, and Barron’s. Ms. Montagne graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Detroit and is a CFA® charterholder.

Nick Stovall, CPA /PFSSM, CGMA, MBA

Owner, president and chief tax strategist of Stovall and Associates, Ltd.

Nick Stovall is at the forefront in accounting; strategic financial planning; business, IRA and technical taxation; tax law and policy; and investing. With extensive knowledge of the financial services industry and a solid understanding of the complex demands of diverse business settings, his experience provides invaluable perspective into the intricate relationship between tax and business issues.

During his tenure in the private industry sector, Stovall served as the chief financial officer for Glenn Corporation, E Energy Adams and Gradient Financial Group, LLC. He has also consulted in the public sector serving individuals and businesses in the areas of financial and tax planning. Stovall was an instructor with National American University, teaching upper division accounting courses and remains a mentor for aspiring accountants in the Twin Cities area.

Stovall founded what is now Stovall and Associates, Ltd., an independent certified public accounting firm located in Minnesota. As owner, president, and chief tax strategist for the company, Stovall provides an invaluable perspective on the intricate relationships between tax and business issues to clients across the United States and Europe.

He earned the Masters of Business Administration in Accounting and a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of St. Thomas where he graduated with distinction. In addition, he attended Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota for the Masters of Business Taxation. Nick also holds his series 27, 7 and 66, as well as his life and health license. In addition, Stovall recently just published his first book: “Retirement Income an Owner’s Manual.”

Stovall remains active in the accounting industry and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), Minnesota Society of Certified Public Accountants (MnCPA) and the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA). He is a member of Ed Slott’s Elite IRA Advisor Group.

Stephen J. Orzynski

Attorney

Steve is a trust and estate attorney who has prepared over 500 trusts and probated or settled scores of estates. After 15 years as a Professional Engineer managing multi-million dollar civil and environmental engineering projects, Steve commenced his law career in 1992 as an environmental lawyer. In the mid-1990’s he had several clients who were bequested contaminated properties with liabilities often exceeding or nearing appraised values. His efforts in ameliorating these situations led to him developing expertise in the probate and estate arenas.

Over the past 10 years, Steve has drafted and funded revocable living trusts, specialty trusts, complex wills, Powers of Attorney, living wills, litigated probate contests, commenced and administered conservator and guardianship proceedings, and settled probate and trust estates. As ·an adjunct to this estate practice, Steve has formed numerous Limited Liability Companies (LLCs), Corporations and Limited Partnerships to provide liability/asset protection and reduce taxes. He has successfully advocated cases involving denial of medical and disability pensions, wrongful discharge and EEO discrimination as well as condemnation, annexation, tax protests, and zoning issues with cities and counties. Steve prides himself on communicating with his clients and developing estate plans that meet what they want in order to minimize estate taxes and accomplish family planning goals.

This endorsement of Gradient Investments, LLC is provided by an investment advisor who refers clients to Gradient Investments, LLC.  A conflict of interest exists because this investment advisor receives a portion of the annual management fee charged by Gradient Investments, LLC, based on the assets under management of this investment advisor’s clients. This endorsement could assist in the investment advisor increasing the assets placed with Gradient Investments, LLC, and therefore their compensation. These investment advisors are not affiliated with or supervised by Gradient Investments, LLC.