Bob has over three decades of experience as an Equity and Fixed-Income Analyst and is Chief Market Strategist. 

Bob travels throughout the United States and Canada giving brokers and investors clear and concise analysis in understanding the markets, current trends and what he believes are opportunities today and beyond. As a guest on television and radio programs including Bloomberg TV, CNBC and Chicago’s WBBM Newsradio 780’s Noon Business Hour, Bob imparts his views to a large audience. He has also been quoted by several publications, including The Wall Street Journal, The Wall Street Reporter, Bloomberg News Service and Registered Rep. 

He is a recipient of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation, and is also a member of the CFA Society of Chicago and the CFA Institute. Bob is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana with a BS in Physics. 

Brian Wesbury is Chief Economist at First Trust Advisors L.P. Brian has been a member of the Academic Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. In 2012, he was named a Fellow of the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, TX, where he worked closely with its 4%-Growth Project. His writing appears in various magazines, newspapers, and blogs and he appears regularly on business TV, radio shows, and on podcasts talking about the economy and financial markets. 

Portfolios Manager at First Trust

Chris is a Senior Vice President and Chief of Advisor Consulting. For more than 20 years, Chris has been giving financial professionals the tools to develop an efficient business model focused on building long-term client trust and loyalty. He is dedicated to finding and investing his efforts in creative ways to help financial professionals grow their practices. Chris has coached a select group of financial professionals and collaborates with business development areas of firms with long-standing relationships with First Trust. 

Chris is also an industry author and has co-authored two books: The Advisor Playbook, and the recently released The Blue Square Method. These works are a culmination of his years of practice management in assisting financial professionals to achieve success through these proven methods and strategies. 

Dave is Chief Investment Officer, Chief Operating Officer and a Managing Director. As First Trust’s Chief Investment Officer, Dave consults with the other members of the Investment Committee on market conditions and First Trust’s general investment philosophy. As Chief Operating Officer, Dave is responsible for First Trust operations, including information systems, trust administration and First Trust administration. 

Dave has over 20 years of experience and is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame with a BS in Accounting. He is a member of the CFA Society of Chicago and the CFA Institute. Dave is also a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants 

The FLC Network. Top Motivational Speaker David Rutherford ignites audiences with his high energy, kinetic approach towards speaking, writing and coaching. As Navy SEAL and Behavioral Training Specialist David has created the Froglogic Concept to help people around the world forge their Self-Confidence and learn how to commit to living a Team Life. Check out more at www.teamfroglogic.com

Jackie Wilke is a highly requested and respected expert in practice management and business development. She studies the success of forward-thinking financial professionals and enterprises, then delivers those proven processes as a keynote speaker, coach, consultant, and content creator. 

Since joining the Advisor Consulting Group in 2015, Jackie has helped numerous financial professionals and firms build their ideal business with their ideal clients by focusing on Process, Planning, and People. Through discovery, she understands where individuals and teams currently stand, then leverages her passion, expertise, and innovative spirit to help them identify and achieve their goals with a tailored approach. 

Senior Market Strategist at Nasdaq Dorsey Wright.

Jeff Chang has over 20 years of experience in financial services and asset management, and is responsible for driving product strategy, research and positioning of the firm's product offerings across all distribution and marketing channels.

Prior to co-founding Vest in 2012, Mr. Chang worked at ProShares, where he was responsible for investment research and product management.

Previously, Mr. Chang worked at FBR & Co., a middle market investment bank. Mr. Chang’s primary focus was FBR’s trading platform, which included equity, high yield, convertible securities, listed options and mortgage trading. He has also worked at Freddie Mac and the World Bank.

Mr. Chang is a CFA charterholder, an instructor for the CFA review for Kaplan Schweser, and a CPA review instructor for Becker Professional Education. He has also held CPA and CFE certifications. Mr. Chang attended the United States Naval Academy and the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University.

Jim Bowen CEO of First Trust.

Professional Non-Cyclical Energy Infrastructure Investor.

John Gambla, co-head of Alternative Investment at First Trust.

Jon DiGiovanni, Managing Director of Direct Indexing and Separate Managed Accounts at First Trust.

 Leonardo Da Costa, portfolio manager at First Trust Global Portfolios

Richard Bernstein | CEO/CIO of Richard Bernstein Advisors

 Rob Biddinger, managing director at First Trust Capital Solutions

Bob is Deputy Chief Economist at First Trust Advisors, L.P., where he is responsible for forecasting the U.S. economy and writing economic commentaries. With Bob’s projections, First Trust has won numerous awards for its economic forecasts, including being ranked #1 in the world by Consensus Economics for accurately predicting GDP growth and Consumer Price Inflation in the United States in 2022. In addition, First Trust is consistently ranked in the top five by Bloomberg for forecasting economic indicators. Bob has also won several Crystal Ball Awards from Zillow for forecasting home prices.

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Head of new product development at First Trust.

Bill joined First Trust Advisors L.P. in June 2010 as the Senior Portfolio Manager for the Leveraged Finance Investment Team and has over 24 years of investment experience. Bill is a Managing Director of Fixed-Income and is also a member of the First Trust Strategic Model Investment Committee and the Fixed-Income Sub-Committee.