Meet The Team Of Professionals At Menninger & Associates

Michael Menninger is an Investment Advisor Representative with Cetera Advisor Networks LLC who provides his clients with financial products and services, always with his client's individual needs foremost in his mind.

Michael helps his clients pursue their financial goals through a hardworking, common-sense and detail-oriented approach to financial planning. He provides personalized service, builds lasting relationships, and maintains a disciplined, long term outlook. He uses his experience and wide-ranging business and educational background as a basis for creating financial plans unique to each client's goals and aspirations. Mike focuses in various areas of financial planning including, but certainly not limited to: investment planning, retirement planning and estate planning strategies; all with an emphasis on providing tax-efficient strategies and solutions.

Mike attended both the United States Naval Academy and Long Island University where he studied engineering, chemistry, marine science, and mathematics. After graduating summa cum laude, Mike applied his talents to corporate financial planning and the management of environmental projects.

In 2000, Mike turned his focus toward financial planning for individuals and small businesses. In 2003, Mike made it his priority to earn the prestigious CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^TM certification from the American College in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania to further expand his knowledge in the field of financial planning. In January of 2007, Mike became an investment advisor representative with Voya, enabling him to provide financial products and services to his clients while maintaining the one-on-one relationships that he has developed and nurtured over the years. Mike is currently an Investment Advisor Representative with Cetera Advisor Networks LLC.

Since 2012, Mike has expanded his financial planning practice to include additional professionals. Subsequent to that, Mike established the new business entity called Menninger & Associates, which now includes a total of five employees, and is continuing to grow. 

Contact Michael:  Michael.Menninger@maaplanning.com

Thomas L. Balis founded Cornerstone Portfolio Research in 2020. With 20+ years of experience in the investment and financial services industry, investment management is truly his passion. Helping advisors and their clients achieve their goals and dreams is his motivation for getting out of bed every day, and his way of making the world a better place.

Thomas holds a Bachelor of Science in Business from Ohio State and has since earned the Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA®) designation as well as the Accredited Portfolio Management Advisor (APMA®) and Chartered Mutual Fund Counselor (CMFC®) certifications.

Thomas spent a decade helping investment reps grow their books at JPMorgan Chase and is a former member of the RIA Executive Advisory Council for PIMCO. He is also a member of the CFA Institute and CFA Society of Philadelphia.

Most recently, Thomas was the Chief Investment Officer at Hoover Financial Advisors. While there, he built an investment program that helped the firm skyrocket from $400 Million to $1.2 Billion in AUM in just 5 years.

Thomas and the Cornerstone team joined Menninger & Associates as the outsourced Chief Investment Officer (CIO) in April of 2022.

Thomas was born and raised in Ohio but has called Philly home since 2015. He has three wonderful kids, Simon, Chloe, and Zoe.

*(Thomas Balis) is not affiliated or registered with Cetera Advisor Networks LLC. Any information provided by (Thomas) is no way related to Cetera Advisor Networks LLC or its registered representatives.

Contact Thomas:  Thomas@cornerstoneportfolioresearch.com

Kyle graduated in 2019 from Temple University’s Fox School of Business with a concentration in Financial Planning. Before joining Menninger & Associates full-time in April 2019, Kyle completed a part-time internship where he learned to love the detail-oriented approach to financial planning solutions.

His primary responsibilities revolve around assisting with the preparation of client meetings and research material, as well as tracking investments and other performance metrics.

 Kyle has obtained his Series 7 & 66 securities registration as well as his Life, Accident & Health Insurance License in Pennsylvania. In December of 2020, Kyle earned the prestigious CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification.

Contact Kyle:  Kyle.Ryan@maaplanning.com

Ryan is a 2017 graduate of the University of Delaware Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics.  While pursuing his finance degree, Ryan interned for Northwestern Mutual gaining valuable first-hand experience networking and meeting with potential clients to discuss insurance and other planning strategies.

His primary responsibilities center around building financial plans for both clients and prospective clients, assisting clients in the use of our aggregation tool (E-Money), and other financial planning functions.

Ryan has obtained his Series 7 & 66 securities registration as well as his Life, Accident & Health Insurance License in Pennsylvania.

Contact Ryan:  Ryan.Keefe@maaplanning.com

leah.nester@maaplanning.com

Leah joined Menninger & Associates as the Operations Manager in early 2018., bringing over three years experience in the financial services industry. Leah's experience also includes over 20 years of Customer Service and Office Management to the firm.  Leah's expertise in client services, as well as her technical knowledge and organizational skills, will be an asset to the firm in this time of growth. 

As of December 2018, Leah became a Licensed Notary Public.

Contact Leah:  Leah.Nester@maaplanning.com

John earned a degree in Naval Architecture from the United States Naval Academy where he graduated 5th in his class of over 1,000. He subsequently earned a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Akron. John is a U.S. Navy veteran where he proudly served in the nation’s submarine force aboard USS Cincinnati (SSN-693).

John has devoted his career to solving difficult engineering problems within the automotive, marine, and defense industries, but he has always had a passion for personal finance, investing, and technical analysis. With a desire to have a greater impact on friends and family, John is taking his analytical problem-solving skills that have served him so well in his engineering career and is applying those skills to the complex financial landscape in people’s lives.

John will work closely with the Menninger & Associates team of experienced financial advisors as he serves in the role of assisting clients identifying and pursuing their financial goals and objectives. 

Contact John:  John.Denuto@maaplanning.com

Nick graduated in 2020 from Christopher Newport University with a degree in Economics. Before joining Menninger & Associates full-time in May 2021, Nick was a full-time manager at a micro-brewery where he was responsible for driving daily sales while working with financial data and reporting on the results.

His primary responsibilities revolve around assisting with the preparation of client meetings and research material, as well as tracking investments and other performance metrics.

Contact Nick:  Nicholas.Azzarita@maaplanning.com

nicholas.devito@MAAPLANNING.CO

Nick graduated in 2022 from Temple University’s Fox School of Business with a Finance and Financial Planning double major. Before joining Menninger & Associates full time in May 2022, he completed a part-time internship with our firm. The internship allowed Nick to gain valuable experience and familiarity with our firm, as well as gain an understanding of the wholistic financial planning approach we provide.

His primary responsibilities revolve around generating investment reports, assisting with the preparation of client meetings and research material, as well as tracking investments and other performance metrics.

*Not registered and cannot offer securities or investment advice.

Contact Nick:  Nicholas.Devito@maaplanning.com

Chris graduated magna cum laude from West Chester University's marketing program in 2009.

He joined Menninger & Associates in July of 2018. He brings over eight years of experience in brand management as well as customer and supplier relations. His experience in marketing and advertising will be important towards the growth of the company.

Chris oversees branding, advertising, and promotional campaigns. He is also responsible for establishing positioning, identifying target audiences, and developing marketing plans with specific objectives across different channels and segments. Chris is also pivotal in the execution of the Financial Planning: Explained television show and podcast.

Contact Chris:  Chris.Gonzalez@maaplanning.com