As Chief Investment Officer of Kestra Investment Management, Kara provides investment expertise and support for the financial professionals within Kestra Holdings, empowering them to serve their clients’ wealth management needs. That support includes market research and commentary, empirically driven guidance on portfolio construction, and an array of sophisticated investment strategies.


Kara is a keynote speaker at industry conferences and contributor to many television and radio programs, including CNBC, Bloomberg TV, Bloomberg Radio, Yahoo! Finance, and TD Ameritrade Network. She is also regularly quoted in financial publications including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Barron’s.



Prior to joining Kestra Investment Management, Kara served at several firms as Chief Investment Officer, most recently at Goldman Sachs Personal Financial Management, where she partnered with advisors to manage their client investments and help address a variety of investment and financial planning needs. She joined Goldman Sachs when it acquired United Capital, where Kara was Chief Investment Officer and built out a series of investment strategies and tools. Previously, Kara was Chief Investment Officer at AIG Funds, where during her tenure as CIO, assets grew from $23 billion to $50 billion.



Earlier in her career, she was an analyst at Chilton Investment Company, a hedge fund, and at Morgan Stanley Investment Management. Before joining the investment industry, she was an analyst covering international political and economic risk at Marvin Zonis + Associates, with a focus on Eastern Europe and Russia.



Kara is a member of the CFA Society of New York and the CFA Society of Dallas-Fort Worth. She serves on the board of directors for Welcome Home, a nonprofit, which she founded to provide support for newly resettled refugees. Kara earned a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and earned a master’s degree from the University of Chicago. She is a passionate supporter of financial literacy and diversity within the financial services industry. Most importantly, she is a proud wife and mom of three children who keep her busy, delighted and humbled, often all in the same day.
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As Head of Business and Sales Strategy for Kestra Investment Management (KIM), Brandon is responsible for shaping and executing KIM’s strategy, leading high-impact sales initiatives, and overseeing business operations to accelerate growth. A senior member of the leadership team, he works cross-functionally to drive go-to-market strategy, elevate Salesforce effectiveness, and harness data and analytics to strengthen engagement with advisors and advance firm-wide objectives.‍

Brandon brings more than 20 years of leadership experience across wealth management, investment banking, and asset management, with a proven track record of designing and implementing strategies that drive performance, enhance the client and advisor experience, and scale businesses. Before joining KIM, he held senior roles at Pantera Capital and UBS, where he led global initiatives in growth strategy, data analytics, and sales transformation. His career began in management consulting at Booz & Co., and includes earlier roles at Salomon Smith Barney and Invesco, where he developed a strong foundation in working closely with financial advisors and private clients.‍

Brandon earned his MBA with High Honors from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and holds a BA in Economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a CFA Charterholder and holds the CFA Institute Sustainable Investing Certificate.‍

As Head of Marketing and Client Experience Strategy for Kestra Investment Management (KIM), Victoria leads all aspects of marketing strategy and sales activation to increase awareness, lead-gen and client-centric solutions for advisory clients. Victoria is a key member of the KIM Leadership team and works collaboratively to develop and manage the firm’s digital marketing, multimedia production, content creation and all investment-related materials.


Prior to joining KIM, Victoria led the Institutional Relationship Management Segment Marketing for Invesco Ltd. where she created, developed, launched and maintained an award-winning relationship management client experience program strategy central to Invesco’s lifecycle servicing models. Before Invesco, Victoria headed Corporate Access for BTIG, a global financial services firm specializing in investment banking, trading and brokerage services. In advance of Corporate Access, Victoria was Executive Conference Director-Finance and Alternative Investments division with Informa, a leading global events, digital services and academic knowledge firm. Previously, Victoria held senior roles at ABN Amro and Cantor Fitzgerald in addition to experience as a business news reporter/producer & writer for CNBC and CNN as well as an independent Documentary Film Producer; all of which rounds out her ability to holistically serve the needs of clients.



Victoria earned dual bachelor’s degrees from New York University in International Affairs and International Finance and a Masters of Arts from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. She holds FINRA SIE, Series 7 and 63 licenses and serves on the board of directors of Atlanta Council of International Relations and Pink Concussions; an organization focused on female brain injuries.
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Michael Humbert is an Investment Analyst on the Kestra Investment Management team. Before joining the team in January 2025, Michael was an Investment Strategist at Dimensional Fund Advisors, where he was a product specialist for the firm’s equity portfolios. He was responsible for communicating the firm’s investment philosophy and portfolio construction to clients, including individuals, advisors, institutions, and as a speaker at industry events.

Prior to joining Dimensional Fund Advisors, Michael served as a portfolio manager at Starwood Capital, where he managed real estate investments of varying strategies. Michael was responsible for all aspects of portfolio management, including day-to-day fund management, cash flows, and the creation of key financial projections that informed strategic decision-making.

Earlier in his career, Michael was a Senior Financial Analyst at First Reserve Corporation, focusing on the valuations of the company’s portfolio holdings and serving as a voting member of the firm’s Valuation Committee. Michael began his career at Blackstone, working as a Financial Analyst. Michael believes his blend of public and private investing experience has helped him develop a view on markets that is relevant to today’s environment.

Michael obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Richmond and his MBA from the University of Connecticut. Free time is at a premium these days, as most of his weekend time is spent chasing his two children around the house. When they settle down, Michael enjoys sci-fi books, golf, and cooking a passable meal for his wife Katarina.
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Ryan Chang is an Investment Analyst on the Kestra Investment Management team. Before joining the Investment Management team in September 2021, Ryan was a financial analyst at a Fortune 500 company and was responsible for all the operating expenses for the fastest growing business unit in the company. He also led an internship program and played a key role in communicating with executives to fulfill business development needs from a finance perspective.



Ryan brings experience in financial modeling, market research, charting economic indicators/ data, and communicating investment views.



Ryan’s first year of undergraduate studies was completed at Boston University where he was a member of its Division 1 swimming team. He then transferred to St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas where he graduated and obtained a finance degree in just 3 years. While attending St. Edward’s University, Ryan worked in various positions that provided him various opportunities to recognize the importance of developing strong sales and client relationships and to better his understanding of the mechanics of startup and large companies.
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John Choquette is an Investment Analyst on the Kestra Investment Management team. Before joining Kestra Investment Management, John was an investment analyst at a private equity firm, focusing primarily on secondaries and co-investments in the timberland space. John was responsible for transaction sourcing, due diligence, and execution, and supported the team’s investor relations and capital raising efforts. Prior to this, John spent eight years at Frost Bank, where he held multiple analyst and business development roles on the corporate banking side and worked with private equity firms and businesses of all sizes to support their banking needs.

John brings experience in institutional capital markets, financial modeling, market research, charting economic indicators / data, and communicating investment views.

John holds a BBA in Finance from Texas State University. He is a CFA Charterholder and a member of the CFA Society of Austin.
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Amelia Hammond joined Kestra Investment Management in 2023 as a trader and junior portfolio manager.



Her main responsibilities include trading and execution, portfolio construction, transition analysis, and investment strategy due diligence, with a focus on alternatives and derivatives.



Prior to joining Kestra, Amelia was a trader at Goldman Sachs PFM, where she helped advisors with their trading and portfolio needs. Prior to Goldman Sachs, Amelia was a trader specializing in options trading and later, a platform sales specialist at TD Ameritrade. 



Amelia earned her bachelor’s degree in Communication from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. In her free time, she loves spending quality time with her husband and their Samoyed and two cats, running, listening to true crime, and inventing healthy culinary creations.
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Andrew Ciccone joined Kestra Investment Management in 2024 as a trader. His main responsibilities include trading and execution, portfolio construction, transition analysis, and investment strategy due diligence, with a focus on derivatives.

Prior to joining Kestra, Andrew spent seven years at TD Ameritrade and then Charles Schwab where he worked in various roles in trading and risk management. His roles focused on derivatives in options, futures and leverage in Regulation T (provisions governing cash accounts and credit) and Portfolio Margin Risk.
 
Andrew earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the State University of New York at Binghamton and a Master of Science in Finance from the University of Texas at Dallas with a focus on Financial Analytics.
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Svante Rocabado is currently an Investment Specialist for Kestra Investment Management. He provides sales and service for the Kestra IM models and strategies to the financial professionals within Kestra Holdings. This includes transition analysis, portfolio construction, ongoing education and providing advisor insight to the team as they develop and expand the platform.

Prior to joining the Kestra IM team, Svante held various roles in Advisory Operations at Kestra Financial. Most recently, he was Advisory Operations Supervisor, managing a team of seven and assisted advisors with operational issues and working closely with KIM transitions. He also brings knowledge and experience as a financial representative with Fidelity and Edward Jones.

Svante earned his bachelor’s degree in economics at Texas Tech University, where he was active in charitable organizations such as the Lions Club and Habitat for Humanity. Apart from Kestra, Svante enjoys exploring the city, live music, and spending time with his family and friends.
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Daniel Makepeace joined Kestra Investment Management in early 2025 as an Investment Operations & Data Specialist. His main role includes operational support, data reporting, project management, billing, contribution to product launches, and partnering with KIM Portfolio Managers and Investment Specialists to drive process enhancements and support efforts to scale KIM’s efficiency.

Prior to the Kestra IM team, Daniel worked on the Kestra Financial Advisory Operations team, assisting advisors with operational issues and transitioning to KIM products. Before Kestra, Daniel was a Client Services Consultant with Wells Fargo and a Financial Professional at Equitable Advisors.

Daniel graduated with a BBA in Finance from Southern Methodist University, Cox School of Business. Originally from Virginia, Daniel calls Austin his home and in his free time, he enjoys tennis, golf and live music.
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