This month I am excited to share with you some insights from KerberRose Shareholder and Director of Wealth Management, Dan Wotruba! Dan has more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry providing financial planning, portfolio construction, and estate and trust analysis services designed to help clients achieve personal and family goals. With a seemingly unlimited array of financial solutions available in today’s marketplace, Dan has tremendous experience in assisting clients and determining which solutions will create the best opportunity for them to achieve financial success. Through fundamental portfolio analysis, with a focus on portfolio structure, managing risk, and controlling costs, Dan provides excellent guidance for our wealth management clients. Learn about Dan’s wisdom and successes through the following Q&A session.
What made you interested in becoming a Financial Advisor?
“It really happened by happenstance. My first job out of college, I was working for a financial services company and I was visiting with a client for a presentation. Afterward, they offered to send me to school to be a broker. They asked me to quit my job and come work for them. So, that’s what happened. 30 years later, this line of work is still the perfect fit for me.”
Did you find it difficult to start your career and build a clientele?
“Yes, it can be the most difficult challenge in my opinion. In many cases, you are competing against many other talented people. What I believe leads to high levels of long-term success overall is showing empathy —actually caring about the client you are sitting down with and not putting yourself in a position where you feel you need to be rewarded for it. This is why I have always enjoyed working on the fiduciary side of our business. As professionals, my belief is we owe it to our clients and coworkers to help where we can.”
What do you believe sets KerberRose apart from other advisors?
“Throughout my career, I and others on my team have sought opportunities to improve myself for the betterment of our clients. I have a solid estate planning background, have worked on the commission-based brokerage side, managed a 401(k) division for a large national bank, and now, for the last 20 years, have found my ‘home’ in the fiduciary side of the business. My diverse understanding of financial solutions and tools is far more than just a base level. I was able to learn from each one of those positions and use the knowledge I gained to help clients reach their goals. Experience matters, and the team at KerberRose has the collective experience and knowledge that sets us apart!”
What does fiduciary responsibility mean to you?
“The unwavering desire to put the client first. There are so many things in our industry that want to pull you in directions to benefit yourself over the client. This has never been me, or KerberRose’s way.”
What is the one piece of advice you have for someone interested in this career?
“The client comes first. I have always done what was in the best interest of the client whether I was rewarded for it or not. Always. If you do that, you will succeed in this field and help change the lives of so many people.”
Doing this for now more than 25 years, what were the hardest years, if any?
“The hardest year for me was 1998. That was the year my father passed and my son was born. Life can get in the way in both positive and negative ways. When you care about the people you work with at a very high level, it can be difficult to focus with everything going on in your own life.”
What will retirement look like for you?
“Many of the clients I serve, I have worked for 20 years or more. I have developed and maintained very strong relationships with many of them. Part of my fiduciary duty, I feel, is to fade out in accordance with whatever makes my clients comfortable, because I love what I do and have been blessed to work with each one of them. In addition, I would really like an opportunity to circle back to where it all started at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. Having graduated from UWGB, I would love the opportunity to work with students by sharing how I navigated the waters of the real world as an associate professor. An opportunity to give back would be very rewarding. Teaching a class or two and leading the next generation of young professionals by example is my ultimate desire.”
If someone reading this blog was interested in contacting you to look at their particular financial situation or ask for some assistance, how could they do that? They can reach me through my email daniel.wotruba@kerberose.com or by scheduling a meeting athttps://www.kerberrosewealth.com/schedule-a-meeting. We are very responsive and always happy to help.
About Alex
Alex is one of our financial wellness advocates on our Wealth Management team. She is a mom of four, and her passion is sharing her own personal finance journey from living paycheck to paycheck and drowning in debt to finding financial peace. Alex's unique experience has given her the ability to help families take control of their own personal finances - all while still enjoying what life has to offer.
Contact: alex.miller@kerberrose.com