Dan joined the Dakotas organization in January of 2020. He brings more than two decades of experience to the team. Dan enjoys helping financial professionals launch, operate and build their practices to be efficient and advanced in the financial services industry. He graduated from the University of South Dakota with a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance. Outside of work, Dan is an active outdoorsman who is also a freelance flyfishing author, photographer, trip host and speaker. Dan lives in Sioux Falls with his daughter.
Ryan joined Principal® in 2023 and brought almost 20 years of experience with him. He has a passion for helping people and is dedicated to working with our financial professionals to grow their individual practices. He works out of the Sioux Falls, SD office, where he also resides with his family.
Sarah drives operational excellence in partnership with the regional and territory leaders. Through leadership of and in partnership with a team of territorial support staff she strives to deliver solutions to help financial professionals cultivate compliant and best in class practices.
Mark leads a team of new business consultants and works closely with corporate partners to develop processes which enable the team to provide a high level of service to the representatives in the territory.
Cassidy works with the management team and financial representatives to implement strategies to expand their marketing, branding, and business development efforts at both the representative and regional office level.
Nicholas is responsible for consulting and managing new business case design and submission. He partners with financial professionals and their teams, along with our corporate product partners, to ensure cases are submitted accurately so they can be processed on time and in alignment with product area processes.
Whitney plays a crucial role in ensuring our offices operate efficiently. Working closely with the entire team, she serves as a skilled troubleshooter who addresses challenges head-on. Whitney takes pride in making sure inquiries are handled promptly. With her proactive approach and attention to detail, Whitney contributes to a supportive environment where client needs are prioritized.
Ellen Brill partners with the management team to provide comprehensive support to all new financial representative candidates through the onboarding and initial marketing launch processes. This includes scheduling of exams, ordering background checks, and preparing contracting and registration paperwork.
Shannon assists the management team with their supervisory and regulatory responsibilities. She is crucial to maintaining the integrity of the firm by ensuring activities comply with regulatory requirements, laws, and firm policies.
For over two decades, Jane has specialized in building and leading entrepreneurial teams and helping individuals from diverse backgrounds grow and succeed in their careers. Her expertise is in recruiting, with a focus on identifying, hiring, and retaining top talent with strong business acumen and strategic problem-solving skills. Jane is passionate about fostering collaboration while upholding the values of client service, operational excellence, and market growth. Her goal is to help create high-performing offices that offer meaningful opportunities and long-term support for professionals in our industry. If you are interested in joining our nationwide network of leaders and financial professionals, she would love to connect.
Lisa has decades of experience in the financial services industry with a career that started managing credit union relationships on the West Coast. She joined Principal® in 2008 to focus on sourcing registered financial professional and leader talent. She finds great satisfaction in this role as she lives out the company’s values and mission, bringing new talent from across the country into our culture of inclusion and diversity, where both specific and holistic practices thrive.
Melville is an experienced financial services leader with a strong background in wealth management sales and a commitment to servant leadership. Skilled in managing, coaching, and mentoring teams of over 1,000 professionals, including sales coaches, financial and wealth advisors, client relationship consultants, and senior managers, both directly and indirectly. Proven success in guiding advisor teams to integrate key principles of practice management, business planning, insights discovery, advisor technology resources, and the consultative sales process into their operations. He holds an MBA and a Bachelor of Science in Business and is a proud lifetime member of the Delta Mu Delta International Honor Society in business administration and The National Society of Leadership and Success.