Independent Financial Advisors
Protecting Your Family and Your Business

Karl Bareither, CLU
Wealth Transfer Specialist, Independent Financial Advisor

In his thirty-year practice as a successful Wealth Transfer Specialist, Karl Bareither has helped over 300 business owners and families with wealth transfer planning. In 1981 he conducted a client survey and discovered that poor family communication was standing in the way of successful business wealth transfers. He saw that wealth transfer advice was fragmented in terms of financial, legal and tax concerns-and the tragic results were misinformation, mistrust and overall failure to meet the objectives of all involved.

As a result, Bareither made a decision to shift the focus of his private wealth transfer planning practice from owner-centered planning to family-centered planning. He set out to create a different model that would draw all stakeholders into open communication and promise an outcome good for both business and family. This approach evolved into the Family & Business Renewal (FBR) System.

Karl is the President and Founder of FBR System, Inc. He graduated from Northern State University, South Dakota with BS degree in business and communication. Karl is also a graduate of Purdue University's Estate Planning Program and is a Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU).

Bareither with Tom Reischl have written two books. Becoming a Wealth Transfer Specialist helps financial, tax and legal advisors working with family owned businesses establish new wealth transfer planning skills. The other book, Planning a Family & Business Legacy, is a guide to transferring family business wealth. This book assists family members with closely-held businesses to move beyond traditional wealth transfer planning.

Karl and his wife Lillian live in Avila Beach, CA.

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Supporting Team Members

Thomas C. Reischl, CLU, ChFC, LUTCF, MSFS
Independent Financial Advisor, Wealth Management Consultant

Tom has almost 30 years experience in the financial service industry. He began his career as an agent and registered representative for a major life insurance company before entering the home office of a large mid-western financial services organization. During his 19 years in the home office, he served as director of agent training and director of sales to small businesses.

Tom entered the financial services business as a sales representative in 1973. He received his Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) designation in 1982, Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) designation in 1984, Life Underwriter Training Council Fellow (LUTCF) designation in 1986. He earned a Master of Science in Financial Services (MSFS) degree from the American College in Bryn Mawr, PA in 1990. Tom also has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Management and Communication from Concordia University of Wisconsin. He has been a registered representative since 1974. Tom has had numerous articles on business insurance and other topics published in Life Insurance Selling, Life Association News, The Fraternal Monitor, Advisor Today and Training and Development magazines. He has written two books, Ethics and the Sale, and Ethics and Customer Service, both published by The National Underwriter Company.

Notice of death: Tom a long time friend and talented FBR System contributor died of cancer July 5, 2007.

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Kristen Armstrong, PhD

Kristen Armstrong, PhD, is a clinical and consulting psychologist with 21 years of private practice in family systems and dynamics, and over ten years in wealth, business and leadership coaching. She has developed expertise in helping families reach positive decisions relating to shared assets and business ventures, developing next generation leaders and creating family governance structures that ensure successful collaboration among family members.

By background a psychologist, Kristen made a career change over a decade ago into life and business coaching, and became certified as Master Professional Executive Coach. She began to serve executives in a variety of corporations, from Fortune 500 companies to closely-held businesses and start-ups, as these sought her services for individual and executive team coaching. Her consulting work brought her full-circle back to families and their interesting dynamics, so Kristen joined the Family Firm Institute and obtained its certification as a Family Advisor in order to better understand and serve the family enterprises which comprised the bulk of her clientele.

Today, Kristen combines a deep understanding of the complex interpersonal dynamics at play in wealthy families with their interaction with business, investment, and philanthropic endeavors. Her passions include helping families communicate effectively across the generations, make collaborative decisions, and to discover their purposes and how to best support one another in fulfilling them. She enables her family clients to understand the differing needs of the individuals and generations, and to uncover--with the help of their other trusted advisors--creative means to meet these disparate issues. Kristen knows the value of collaboration with other advisors involved in serving her client families, and looks for ways to bring them together to work as a team whenever possible.

Kristen holds a PhD in clinical psychology from Fuller Graduate School of Psychology, an M.A. in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, an MPEC from the College of Executive Coaching, and is a member of the American Psychological Association, the Society of Consulting Psychologists, and the Family Firm Institute. She lives with her two sons in California.

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Chuck Hirsch

Before launching Hirsch Communications Consulting, Chuck Hirsch spent nearly 27 years in business-to-business media. He entered the business by joining Commerce Publishing Company (CPC) as an assistant editor on Life Insurance Selling magazine in September 1981. CPC published magazines in other industries as well, and shortly Chuck was selling advertising space in the property/casualty market, the art and framing market, and the club management market, in addition to continuing his editorial and sales duties on Life Insurance Selling.

As Chuck became more involved in covering the life and health insurance business, he earned his Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) designation. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, he worked his way up through the editorial ranks of the magazine. During these years, reading Chuck's monthly column, What's Going On in the Life Insurance Business, helped many of the nation's top producers keep their fingers on the pulse of the business.

At the time that CPC was sold to a private-equity firm in 1999, Chuck had achieved both a well-recognized leadership role in the industry and within his company as well. The new owners asked him to step into a broader leadership role, and in so doing he moved on from his editorial position and became the group publisher of a number of magazines, and ultimately live events as well, in the company's Financial Services Group.

In late 2006, the firm was sold to yet another private-equity firm and Chuck's role expanded again. He took on additional responsibilities, including managing the newly acquired Agent Media group, which consisted of a large database of producers and a wide variety of products that served them, like journals, postcard packs, and Web sites.

Chuck continued in that managerial role until leaving the company to organize his own firm in 2008.

Chuck has a degree from Stanford University, and resides in a suburb of St. Louis, MO, with his wife Becky. They have four grown children.

Contact: charles.k.hirsch@gmail.com

Kenneth W. Kossoff, Attorney at Law

Ken advises high net worth individuals and families in their business and personal affairs, and estate and business planning. Ken acts as general counsel to businesses and families, helping them structure their ownership of assets, document their estate planning, and business and inter-family transactions, prevent and resolve business disputes, and manage legal work done by other lawyers.

The September/October 1999 issue of the Journal of Asset Protection (RIA/Warren, Gorham & Lamont) featured an article Ken wrote entitled "The Hobson's Choice of Asset Protection: Protecting Pocketbook or Posterior," concerning the impact on foreign and domestic asset protection trusts of certain federal court decisions.

Ken graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, with great distinction and high honors, and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. Ken earned his J.D. (with honors) from Duke University School of Law in 1983, where he was a published member of the Duke Law Journal.

Ken and his wife Donna and their 2 daughters live in Oak Park, CA.

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Fred Heyer, CLU, ChFC, MSFS

Fred Heyer started his career in the insurance industry upon graduating from Winona State University (MN) with a BA degree. He has over 35 years experience in sales, management, and executive marketing positions with the St. Paul Co.'s, CNA, and USLIFE. He has been affiliated with independent marketing companies since 1985, marketing insurance and financial products nationwide through a network of industry professionals. They currently represent over 40 major insurance companies. Fred is a Chartered Life Underwriter, a Chartered Financial Consultant, and has a Master of Science Degree in Financial Services. He also holds a securities license with JPSecurites Corporation.

Fred and his wife, Diann, reside in Newport Coast, California, and have one daughter and one grandaughter.

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Business Consultants

James T. Glover

Jim is founder and president of JTG Solutions, Inc., a consulting business offering mid-size manufacturing and distributing businesses advice on issues of strategic planning, market development and financial management.

Prior to owning his own company, Jim held a number of executive positions with manufacturing and technology businesses. Among his many career accomplishments, Jim provided the impetus to transform an automotive aftermarket part manufacturer to a leader in the production of gear drives for agricultural and industrial applications, provided the concept engineering for Volkswagen of America that allowed the traditional automotive engine to be modified for industrial applications and teamed with Martin-Marrietta and McDonald Douglas in the design and building of Solar I in California. He also led a team of technicians that developed a method for manufacturing gear boxes in large quantities within four hours of receiving an order, as opposed to the previous procedure which required 8-10 weeks. Jim also led a $30M buyout of a business from the public domain to private ownership and back to public within three years. His work on a new ferrous metal foundry saved one business several million dollars in the first two years of operation. Jim has also negotiated several material labor contracts with the IAM, UAW and others during his career as a business executive.

Jim holds a Bachelor of Science-Education, math & science emphasis, from Northern State University (South Dakota). He lives in Peoria, Arizona.

Don Dressler, Affinity Marketing

Don is an independent consultant on insurance, agricultural and employment relations issues. He formerly was CEO of Western Growers Insurance Services, which provided health and workers' compensation insurance for the fresh fruit and vegetable industry. He is an attorney, graduating from Stanford School of Law, obtained his MBA from Pepperdine University, and BA from Kansas State University. Don is a Certified Association Executive and former Board Member of the American Society of Association Executives.

Don is a native of Kansas and has farm interests there. He currently lives in Irvine, CA.

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Support

Ben Curren, Software Development

Ben has five years of experience developing software for the desktop and the web. He began his career as a consultant during the Silicon Valley "dot com" boom. He designed and developed custom software solutions for many companies including Sun Microsystems, Xerox, Charles Schwab, and numerous start-up companies. He then took up the challenge of leading a group of software engineers to develop a streaming media platform for a company named Eveo. The platform provided a turn-key solution that allowed Eveo's clients to easily stream video across the web.

Ben holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from the California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. He has also obtained the following certificates from Sun Microsystems: Java Programmer Certified (Nov. 1998), Java Developer Certified (June 2000). He has recently started his own company, Esomnie Software, which provides custom software solutions to small and medium size businesses.

Ben lives in San Jose, CA and is President and CEO of Esomnie Software.

Jack Jones, System Support

Jack has three years experience as an FBR System support resource for software and internet. Since 2002 he has continued to build his expertise in computer maintenance and support. Jack is currently a student at State Center Community College, Willow International. His passion is to improve his computer skills and knowledge. He is Karl's grandson and lives with his family in Clovis, CA.