Meet Our Team

Carol M. Lippman, CFA

Managing Director

Carol manages Dearborn Partners' Core Rising Dividend Portfolio and High & Rising Dividend Portfolio strategies. For nearly three decades, Carol has managed investments according to her Rising Dividend philosophy, first for A.G. Edwards and its successor firms. She joined Dearborn as a partner from Wells Fargo Advisors in 2011 and has 30+ years of investment experience. She is a past president and a member of the Board of Governors of the St. Louis Society of Financial Analysts and a member of the CFA Institute.

Michael B. Andelman

Managing Director

Mike serves as the co-portfolio manager for the Rising Dividend strategies. He conducts equity research in the Healthcare and Technology sectors of the market with a specific focus on companies with a growing dividend stream. Prior to joining Dearborn in 2004 he worked in various capacities at MPI Investment Management as well as First Trust Advisors, LP. In 2010 he was named partner in the Firm.

Richard R. Seitz

Managing Director

Rick is in charge of marketing and sales of the firm's investment products to financial advisors and other intermediaries, focusing now on the Rising Dividend Strategy. Prior to joining Dearborn Partners, he was a Managing Director and National Sales Manager for Legg Mason Global Asset Management and its predecessor, Citigroup Asset Management, with $700 billion of assets under management.

Rick is a thirty year veteran of the financial services industry with significant experience in separately managed accounts, open and closed end mutual funds as well as many structured products. He has also held senior marketing positions with E.F. Hutton and American National Security.

Peter J. Deakos, CFA

Director

Peter serves as a Portfolio Manager for the Rising Dividend strategies. He has more than 18 years of investment experience. Prior to joining Dearborn in 2017, Deakos co-managed a portfolio at Wells Fargo Advisors that grew to more than $3 billion in assets under management in three years. Peter’s experience at Wells Fargo and A.G. Edwards included wealth and trust portfolio management and extensive equity analysis. He earned the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation in 2005.

Brian A. Payne, CFP®

Director

Brian is responsible for marketing and sales of the firm's investment products to financial advisors and other intermediaries, focusing specifically on the Rising Dividend Strategy. Prior to joining Dearborn Partners, Brian was a CFP® at Bernstein Global Wealth Management and then head of business development for a golf technology company he co-founded. Following his graduation from Northwestern University, Brian pursued a professional golf career on various tours around the world.

James D. Lathrop, AIF

Director

Jim is responsible for marketing and sales of the firm's investment products to financial advisors and other intermediaries, focusing specifically on the Rising Dividend Strategy. Prior to joining Dearborn Partners, Jim was a regional director at Russell Investments for 13 years. He was also a regional manager for Alliance Bernstein and a senior marketing director for Putnam Investments, where he was responsible for driving sales of mutual funds, variable annuities, retirement planning, and education funding vehicles.

George P. Jameson, Founder

Founding Managing Director

George is responsible for overseeing the firm's operations. Prior to founding Dearborn Partners, he was a Managing Director of the Fixed Income Division of Nesbitt Burns Securities, Inc., a subsidiary of the Bank of Montreal. He began his career at Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he served 16 years in various capacities, including Fixed Income Product Manager, Midwest Regional Manager, and Vice President.

Jameson also served as Senior Managing Director and Head of Fixed Income Sales and Marketing at First Chicago Capital Markets.

John V. Celentani, CFP^®, CPWA^®

Director

John is responsible for providing financial planning and personalized service to private clients of the firm. He focuses on asset allocation, income tax planning, retirement and education planning, as well as sophisticated charitable giving and estate planning techniques. John served as Vice President in the Wealth Strategies group of Northern Trust for eight years prior to joining Dearborn Partners.

Bradley C. Smith

Portfolio Manager

Brad is responsible for providing personalized Portfolio Management investment advice to private wealth clients and their families.Areas of focus include developing comprehensive asset allocation strategies, as well as customized investment and financial goal plans.Prior to joining Dearborn Partners, he served as Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager for 26 years at MPI Investment Management, Inc.Brad began his financial industry career at Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith in their Business Merger & Acquisition Division.

Luke Knecht, CFA

Director

Luke has lead portfolio management responsibility for the firm's alternative fixed income product, Return Profile Management (RPM). He joined Dearborn Partners from Deerfield Capital where he held a number of senior management positions. Luke’s extensive previous experience includes positions at Colorado National Bank, Harris (Bank) Investment Management and Dresser RCM Global Investors.RPM is an absolute return fixed income strategy, with a lengthy track record of generating enhanced returns over U.S. Treasuries without using derivatives, leverage or credit risk. It offers clients total liquidity, no "lock-up" period and complete transparency as to the portfolio holdings and market value.

Donald G. McKinnon

Chief Compliance Officer

Don is responsible for overseeing and developing the firm’s compliance department. Prior to joining Dearborn Partners, he was a Due Diligence Specialist at Balyasny Asset Management LP. Don began his career as a Compliance Officer at Deephaven Capital Management LLC, and later joined Stark Investments LP as a Senior Compliance Officer.

Matthew Guttosch, CFA

Equity Analyst

Matt is an Equity Analyst for Dearborn’s Rising Dividend Portfolios. He focuses on Consumer and Financial companies. He has been with Dearborn since 2010, has 10+ years of investment experience and is a CFA^® charterholder.

Jackson J. Finks, CFA

Analyst

Jack currently supports Dearborn’s Rising Dividend Portfolios through equity research, marketing, and operations. He focuses on the Materials and Industrials sectors as well as banks. Jack has been with Dearborn since 2013 and is a CFA charter holder.

Meredith A. West

Director

Meredith oversees all aspects of technology at the firm. She is also responsible for client reporting, performance analysis, composite management and GIPS compliance. Meredith has more than 25 years of experience in various aspects of the financial services industry. She joined Dearborn Partners in 2004, and prior to that she worked at Deloitte, Harris Associates and JP Morgan in technology and performance analysis and reporting.

Samira Laskic

Director

Sam oversees the firm's trading and operations areas. She is accomplished in all of the wealth management support functions necessary to provide Dearborn clients with an outstanding experience. She began her career with UBS Financial Services in 2010.

Katie Wolford

Internal Wholesaler

Katie oversees the internal operations, marketing, and sales of the Rising Dividend Strategy. In this role, Katie is responsible for the service, growth, and expansion of the Rising Dividend Strategy. She works closely with advisors, providing them with resources for our product offerings and answering any queries they may have.

Gabe Szymarek

Internal Wholesaler

Gabe functions as an Internal Wholesaler for the Rising Dividend Strategy, working closely with financial advisors. He aims to provide the best possible experience for advisors and their clients. Prior to joining Dearborn, Gabe worked at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management and Wells Fargo Advisors.

Amber Delperdang

Operations

Amber joined Dearborn Partners in 2019 in our operations department. She began her career in 2014 with Northwestern Mutual in Los Angeles, CA as their Operations Associate, eventually becoming an Investment Analyst.

Sarah Burns

Office Manager

Sarah is responsible for all front office duties, including coordinating guests, maintaining office operations, ordering supplies, and overseeing deliveries. She moved to Chicago from Arkansas in 2011 after graduating from college and has been with Dearborn Partners since 2016. Prior to coming to Dearborn, she had four years of office management experience.

Calvin J. Pedersen, CFA

Managing Director

Cal is responsible for developing, maintaining and serving the firm's institutional business.A 30+ year investment management veteran, Pedersen was most recently Chairman and CEO of Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. and was on the Equity and Fixed Income Investment Strategy Committees. He previously served as Head of Sales and Marketing and was President and CEO of three closed-end mutual funds. Earlier, he was a Managing Director with First Chicago Investment Advisors.