Simon Baker is the founder of Baker Avenue Asset Management and chairman of the investment committee. He oversees the investment process and leads the development of Baker Avenue’s strategies and services. Simon is also president and partner of Great Gable Partners, Baker Avenue’s alternative investment manager.

Before launching Baker Avenue in 2004, Simon was a managing director at Banc of America Securities, where he was responsible for managing wealth and risk with the private bank’s high-net-worth clients and family offices. Prior to that, he served as a director first at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ), then at Credit Suisse First Boston. It was during his tenure at DLJ that he co-developed Baker Avenue’s All Cap Core investment strategy. Simon began his wealth management career at Morgan Stanley in San Francisco in 1994.

Simon graduated cum laude with a B.A. in economics from Hartwick College.

Jerry Luff is a 15-year veteran of the wealth management industry, with experience in both the institutional and retail markets. As managing director of investment management and financial planning at Baker Avenue, he is responsible for the firm’s integrated wealth management strategies. His areas of expertise include asset protection, retirement planning, tax minimization, and trust and estate planning.

Prior to joining Baker Avenue, Jerry served as vice president in the Global Wealth Management group at Banc of America Investments. He was also an institutional advisor at both Bear Stearns and Morgan Stanley, where he provided fixed-income analysis and portfolio strategies to endowments, corporations, and municipalities such as General Motors, U.S. Steel, and the Regents of the University of California.

Jerry holds a B.A. in finance from The University of Texas at Arlington and an M.B.A. in finance from Fordham University. He is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP).

Rick Mordesovich has 17 years of experience serving and securing the long-term financial needs of affluent private investors. As managing director, he advises high-net-worth clients on strategic issues including portfolio construction and diversification, income tax strategies, and trust and estate planning.

Previously, Rick was senior vice president at Neuberger Berman, where he advised individuals, families, and their foundations on asset management, asset protection, philanthropic initiatives, risk budgeting, and wealth transfer strategies. Prior to that, he was a managing director at Banc of America Securities, where he and CEO Simon Baker met and first worked together. He launched his career at Dean Witter Reynolds in 1993.

Rick is a Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) and a member of the Investment Management Consulting Association. He earned his B.A. from DePaul University and his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago, Graduate School of Business.

Scott Stephens has 13 years of private wealth management experience. His emphasis is customized portfolio management, with specialties in risk management, retirement income planning, and trust services. Scott oversees Baker Avenue’s Dallas office, working with high-net-worth clients in the southwest territory.

Before joining Baker Avenue, Scott served as vice president at Fidelity Investments’ Institutional Wealth Services unit, where he advised Fidelity account executives, retail branch representatives, and independent registered advisory firms. Prior to that, Scott advised high-net-worth clients as a senior investment consultant for Fidelity Private Portfolio Services. He began his wealth management career in 1996 as a brokerage trader and retirement specialist with Fidelity Investments in Boston.

Scott holds a B.A. in marketing from Assumption College. He is currently pursuing the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation and expects to complete his certification in 2010.

Ellen O’Connell joined Baker Avenue in 2009 as managing director of the Boston office, bringing along the invaluable experience she gained during her 16 years with Fidelity Investments. As a wealth manager, Ellen provides clients with customized portfolio solutions. Her areas of expertise include portfolio diversification, tax strategies, trust and estate management, and retirement planning.

Ellen began her career at Fidelity in 1992, originally working with high-net-worth individuals and later transitioning to the institutional side. Most recently, she was a vice president at Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services where she advised registered investment advisors, trust institutions, and third-party administrators. Prior to that, Ellen worked as a national account manager for Fidelity Charitable Services, helping clients integrate their philanthropic goals with their overarching financial plan. During her 5 years in that position, she conducted frequent seminars across the U.S. on charitable planning and wealth management strategies.

Ellen earned her B.A. in marketing from Merrimack College.

Brent Johnson brings over a decade of wealth management experience to his position as managing director at Baker Avenue. He specializes in creating comprehensive, customized wealth management strategies for the individual portfolios of high-net-worth clients. He also has extensive experience in equity block trades, 10b5-1 restricted stock plans, private placements, and venture capital stock distributions. Brent’s clients include Fortune 500 executives, wealthy families, technology entrepreneurs, and senior partners in venture capital and private equity firms.

Before joining Baker Avenue, Brent spent 9 years with Credit Suisse as vice president in their private client group. Prior to that, he was with Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ) in New York City before moving within the firm to San Francisco. He joined Credit Suisse in the fall of 2000 when the bank purchased DLJ. Earlier in his career, Brent was a senior financial auditor for Philip Morris Management Company in New York City. In addition to performing audits at the company's headquarters, he worked on projects for Philip Morris subsidiaries in Germany, Hong Kong, and Richmond, Virginia.

Brent played on the junior varsity basketball team at the University of Kansas before transferring to Rockhurst College in Kansas City, where he graduated with a dual degree in economics and global studies. He received his M.B.A. from Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Michael Kane joined Baker Avenue in 2010, bringing 20 years of financial services experience with him. As associate managing director of the Dallas office, Mike oversees client service and business development across Texas and the Southeast.

Before joining Baker Avenue, Mike served as vice president of the Institutional Funds Group at American Beacon Advisors, where he was responsible for building relationships with independent registered investment advisors and bank wealth managers across a 12-state territory. Mike started his financial services career at Fidelity Investments where he spent over 18 years working with high-net-worth individuals and institutions. Mike has collaborated in various sales and relationship management roles with high-net-worth clients, retirement plan sponsors, registered investment advisors, third-party administrators, and investment consultants.

Mike is a graduate of Texas Tech University with a B.B.A in marketing. He is currently pursuing his Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation and expects to complete it in 2011.

King Lip is chief investment officer (CIO) at Baker Avenue and serves on the investment policy committee. As CIO, King is responsible for developing innovative new investment strategies, acting as liaison to the greater investment community, and overseeing the performance of the firm’s portfolios. He also advises Baker Avenue’s family offices, drawing on over 12 years of market and wealth management experience to provide them with guidance and specialized strategies.

Prior to joining Baker Avenue, King was a portfolio manager at Bingham, Osborn & Scarborough, LLC. He also served as the lead portfolio manager at the family office of a Forbes List ultra-high-net-worth individual. As an analyst at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and at Credit Suisse, King worked closely with CEO Simon Baker managing the firm’s All Cap Core strategy. King has been nominated as a Top 100 Independent Wealth Advisor in Barron’s magazine and the San Francisco Business Times. His analysis has been featured in leading financial publications such as Better Investing, Consumer Reports, and Registered Rep. King is also a regular commentator on CNBC.

King graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, Haas School of Business with a B.A. in economics and a B.S. in business administration. He also earned an M.S. in banking and financial services management from Boston University. King is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder, one of less than 1,200 professionals in the U.S. who holds both designations.

Eric Jardine is a portfolio manager at Baker Avenue, as well as our head trader and hedging strategist. He serves on the investment committee and is co-manager of the All Cap Core strategy.

Prior to joining Baker Avenue, Eric was a proprietary derivatives trader at Wells Fargo Bank in the Capital Markets group. While at Wells Fargo, he was responsible for the risk management of a 500-million-dollar derivatives portfolio with products tied to the equity, interest rate, and foreign exchange markets. In addition to investing the bank’s capital in a proprietary options portfolio, Eric structured hedging solutions and equity-linked notes for individuals and institutions.

Eric graduated from the University of Colorado with a B.S. in business administration. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder and a member of the CFA Society of San Francisco.

Hans Hartvickson brings 8 years of public equity investing experience to his position as senior research analyst at Baker Avenue. He covers the financial services and consulting sectors, as well as related industries. He began working with the firm in 2006.

From 2002 to 2006, Hans served as vice president of institutional sales for Merriman Curhan Ford, a small-cap-focused investment bank. Previously, Hans worked with litigation consulting firms Navigant Consulting and LECG, with an emphasis on business analysis and forensic accounting. While in business school, Hans co-founded and served as president of Philadelphian Press, Inc., a technology-focused publishing company.

Hans earned an M.B.A from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School with a double major in finance and marketing. While attending Wharton, Hans was selected as a student “Fund Fellow” (portfolio manager) for the Wharton Investment Management Fund and also served as president of Wharton Toastmasters. Hans earned a B.A. from Stanford University, where he majored in economics, earned a secondary major in public policy, and served as president of Stanford’s chapter of the SAE fraternity.

Jacques Soenens is the chief investment officer and managing partner of Great Gable Partners LP, Baker Avenue’s alternative asset manager. Jacques leads the alternative investment strategy for the firm.

Jacques has spent 14 years in the public equity investing arena. Prior to managing Baker Avenue’s alternative portfolios, he co-founded Osmium Partners, a small-cap value hedge fund that he also co-managed. Before that, he was a private investor and consulting analyst. Jacques also worked as a research analyst at Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette, where he focused on information technology services and business process outsourcing. He began his career at Prudential Securities as part of a top-ranked research team covering imaging technology companies.

Jacques earned a B.S.M. in 1993 from Tulane University’s A.B. Freeman School of Business. In September 2004, PLANSPONSOR Magazine recognized him as one of the best emerging managers.

Kevin Goldstein is the director of research and partner at Great Gable Partners LP, Baker Avenue’s alternative asset manager. Kevin oversees the research process for the alternative strategies and identifies and investigates new and existing opportunities in the alternative investment market.

Kevin has 12 years of public equity investment experience. Before joining Baker Avenue, Kevin co-founded and served as managing director of Arcanum Capital Management, a proprietary-model hedge fund that raised over $100 million in equity commitments. From 1996 to 2000, Kevin was an equity analyst at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ) in New York and London, where he was recognized as a top-ranked analyst in the Reuters 2000 Institutional Analyst Poll. Prior to being ranked as a telecom equipment analyst in London, Kevin worked for two #1 ranked analysts in New York covering conglomerates and paper and forest products.

Kevin earned an M.B.A. from Stanford University in 2002 and a B.A. cum laude from Amherst College in 1995.

Stacey Kruus brings over 20 years of money market, fixed income, foreign exchange, and derivatives experience to Baker Avenue. She is responsible for all of the firm’s compliance activities.

Previously, Stacey was director of capital markets at Transamerica, where she oversaw its debt and derivative portfolios, commercial paper program, euro-commercial paper program, and foreign exchange risk. She was also responsible for all derivative hedging activities, including interest rate risk management and portfolio sensitivity analysis. Before joining Transamerica, Stacey held senior trading positions at Westpac Banking Corp (London), Dresdner Bank AG (Frankfurt and New York), and the National Bank of Canada (New York).

Stacey earned a B.S. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1984. She is working towards her Investment Adviser Certified Compliance Professional (IACCP) designation.

Zuzana Forrest works tirelessly to enhance the quality of the client experience at Baker Avenue. She is responsible for managing all client service initiatives and providing assistance and support to both new and existing clients. As one of Baker’s first employees, Zuzana played a key role developing the firm’s operational strategies, methodologies, and best practices. Her strong work ethic and positive attitude have been instrumental in shaping the company culture.

Prior to joining Baker Avenue, Zuzana was employed by Warner Music in her native Czech Republic. In her role reporting directly to Warner Music’s European GM, Zuzana oversaw operations, assisted with artist promotions, and negotiated contract and royalty agreements with other labels. She also managed and coordinated artist press conferences, events, travel, and press schedules.

Zuzana graduated magna cum laude from San Francisco State University with a B.S. in business administration and a concentration in marketing. She was honored for her academic achievements through membership in Beta Gamma Sigma. Zuzana is currently pursuing the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation and expects to complete her certification in 2010.

Maria Michel is responsible for providing client support functions and assisting the director of client services in the overall management of office operations and client relationships.

Prior to joining Baker Avenue in 2006, Maria held a marketing position at First Republic Bank. Previously, she worked at Roza Real Estate Loans and the Oakland Fund for Children & Youth.

Maria earned her B.A. in political economy with a concentration in international business from the University of California, Berkeley. While attending UC Berkeley, Maria served as a member of the finance committee for the Latino Business Student Association and as treasurer for Hermanas Unidas, Inc.

Lindsey Thomson provides administrative support to the director of client services and helps keep the Baker Avenue office running smoothly.

Prior to joining the firm in 2009, Lindsey was the assistant manager and director of advertisement for Natomas LLC in Sacramento. Previously, she worked as the manager and director of marketing for Photo Magic Glamour Photography in San Diego.

Lindsey is currently earning her A.A. in business administration from American River City College of Sacramento. She plans to begin pursuing a B.S. in business administration with a concentration in marketing at San Francisco State University in 2010.