We are proud to announce that we are ranked the #14 fastest-growing RIA by FA Magazine¹ Our dedication to helping our investors, advisors, and their businesses grow has paid off in big ways. And we are just getting started.
We are proud to announce that we are ranked the #14 fastest-growing RIA by FA Magazine¹ Our dedication to helping our investors, advisors, and their businesses grow has paid off in big ways. And we are just getting started.
Foundations Investment Advisors has always done things a little different. From startup to a full-fledged RIA, we have experienced tremendous growth.
"The new space really allowed us to expand our team and resources to keep up with our rapid growth. Innovation and collaboration are important to us, and having a space that encourages those values have allowed us to remain competitive."
Stephanie Jones, Chief Business Development Officer
Invest with an RIA who cares about your financial goals and will work to help you achieve those.
Founder and Chief Executive Officer Bryon Rice established Foundations Investment Advisors in 2015 to provide the end client a legitimate opportunity to achieve their financial goals. As a 23-year veteran of the financial services industry, Bryon leads the decision-making process at Foundations with the input of a team he hand-picked for their ability to laser-focus on the client without dropping the ball because doing so can be catastrophic for the investor at or near retirement. Providing straightforward advice and always doing what you say you will do aren’t just the words he lives by; they are the firm’s founding principles and modus operandi.
A lifelong entrepreneur, Bryon acquired his work ethic at the age of eight, working days, evenings, and weekends at the Pioneer Chicken restaurant owned by his father. By the age of seventeen, Bryon owned his own successful business and was recruited into the insurance industry in 1996. After setting up his own retail practice in Corona, California, where he currently lives with his wife and four kids, Bryon became president of Magellan Financial in 2002, one of the fastest-growing financial marketing organizations in the industry, with nearly $2 billion in annual sales. In 2018 he established the full-service advisory firm Alpha 1Tax & Wealth, with Pro Football Hall of Famer Terrell Davis, based out of Denver, Colorado. In addition, he is a supporter of the Travis Mills Foundation to aid recalibrated veterans and their families. When not running his companies, he enjoys fishing and is a self-professed foodie and lover of wine.
Jarrod Florence is an accomplished executive, team builder and advisor to the most elite financial advisors and business owners of his generation. Working alongside his friend and business partner of more than twenty years, Bryon Rice, Jarrod played a key role in building Magellan Financial into one of the strongest and most successful brands in financial services. Under his guidance, Magellan advisors have become the fastest growing family of financial advisors in the world, with no end in sight.
Unchanged in two decades of success are Jarrod’s core principles; the same values guide his work today. Believing that financial advisors are called to a noble profession, Jarrod is driven to provide more American families access to high-quality advice and money management through his work. A visionary marketer, the powerful messaging and innovative delivery methods he pioneered are directly responsible for impacting millions of household’s finances for the better.
And yet, it’s Jarrod’s ability to transfer his beliefs to a massive and diverse group of financial advisors that truly sets him apart. His timeless lessons concerning financial planning, investing, business building, and how the client and advisory firm can thrive together have guided advisory practices from coast to coast. A veteran speaker on stages across the country, everyone Jarrod meets has felt firsthand his ability to connect with and serve people “in the unique way they need to be served”, a principle he’s instilled into everything Magellan does.
Jarrod believes that success brings with it great responsibility, and his dedication to excellence extends to his philanthropic efforts. Examples include sponsoring dozens of families each year through the Scotty D. Memorial Foundation, raising tens of thousands for Make-A-Wish, and leading Magellan to become a major benefactor of the Travis Mills Foundation, an organization serving our countries’ wounded warriors and heroes returning from war. Calling the greater Topeka area home, Jarrod stands determined to make an impact locally. With a special emphasis on the life-lessons youth sports teach children and providing opportunities for underprivileged children through many charitable programs here in Topeka, Jarrod’s work to make the world a better place starts in his own backyard.
Now just 47 years old, Jarrod has established himself as a dominant force in financial marketing and distribution, and a positive influence on the dozens of employees and hundreds of advisors who call him a mentor, a role model, and a friend. He is happiest with his wife Tara raising their four children, sons Jalen, Kane and Drew, and his youngest daughter, Lexus. An avid Kansas sports fan, you’ll often find Jarrod at the famous Allen Field house, cheering on his favorite team, the KU basketball squad. Jarrod and his family enjoy traveling, are self-described foodies, and love nothing more than an excellent wine and conversation with good friends.
Chief Investment Officer David Young has provided investment strategy, portfolio management, and asset allocation for many of the largest and most sophisticated institutional and private investors across the globe. During his 26 years of investment experience, he served as the executive vice president of Pacific Investment Management Company (PIMCO) for fourteen years, retiring in 2008 to pursue teaching opportunities at the Paul Merage School of Business in Irvine, California. As a professor, he currently teaches finance and investment courses there and at the Financial Times Knowledge Programs in the UK, along with CFA exam preparation courses sponsored by CFA societies in California and abroad. From 1999 to 2006, David also served as head of the PIMCO account management group in London, where he built a team of investment professionals managing approximately $50 billion in assets across the UK, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
David holds the chartered financial analyst (CFA) designation from the CFA Institute, considered by many to be the most difficult test on Wall Street. He also earned an MBA with a concentration in finance from the Paul Merage School of Business, with degrees in economics and political science from the University of California, Irvine. He sits on several non-profit investment committees and boards, including the county-organized health system, CalOptima, serving residents of Orange County, California.
Darren has been working in the financial markets for over 20 years, primarily as a buy-side institutional investor. He has provided multiple investment solutions to clients utilizing his extensive knowledge of the public and private global markets. Darren has created growth-oriented equity portfolios, fundamental tactical asset allocation models, passive asset allocation models, and developed quantitative strategy solutions for clients. Throughout his career, Darren had held a variety of senior positions including Chief Investment Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Portfolio Manager, Senior Analyst, Senior Trader, and Financial Advisor.
Darren received his BS in Finance from DePaul University and an MS in Financial Markets and Trading from the Illinois Institute of Technology. Darren is a CFA charter holder and is a member of the CFA Society of San Francisco. He has also been a member of both the San Francisco and Chicago Security Traders Associations.
Outside of work, Darren enjoys spending time with his two sons, Cole and Declan. He is an avid Thoroughbred racing fan. His other interests include art, golf, travel, and cooking.
As the Chief Financial Officer, Kyle Mann handles the finances and accounting, as well as providing oversight on investment advisor representative fees, payments, and general billing to the firm’s clients every month. His goal day in and day out is to ensure the financial stability and accuracy for both clients and advisors.
Educated at Brigham Young University where he studied Chemical Engineering, Kyle served as a missionary for two years in Argentina before building a career and buying ownership into an independent marketing organization. He was the head of annuity distribution until he joined Magellan in 2012, where he currently serves as Chief Operating Officer. He considers the financial services industry an opportunity to build relationships with people that at this point in his career, he regards as family. He believes in the planning process and the ability of the range products offered by the companies he works for to help people build wealth as well as retire securely and with peace of mind.
When not balancing the books or overseeing financial operations, Kyle stays involved in his community of Corona, California, where he is the father of three, enjoys working out and golfing, and is an avid snowboarder. A big supporter of the Amber Waves of Grain initiative to raise money for veteran charities, he can be seen as a sponsor at their annual event and beer tasting venue featuring more than 40 different microbreweries. He also does his part to support his local craft brewery, also veteran-owned and operated.
As Chief Operating Officer, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer, Ernest J. C’DeBaca (Ernie) oversees business operations, governance and all legal, compliance and HR matters for the firm. Active as an in-house counsel and compliance officer since 2000, he has focused on the various federal and state laws and related rules governing investment advisers and the insurance industry. He has extensive expertise in all areas of regulatory compliance and aids clients in preparation for regulatory examinations and the preparation of compliance policies and procedures. He enjoys the challenges of working on the developing side of financial services because of Foundation’s phenomenal growth pattern and the integrity at the core of the firm.
Ernie received his bachelor’s degree from the University of New Mexico and an MBA in finance from Webster University. From the University of New Mexico School of Law, he earned his Juris Doctor degree, and from Georgetown University Law Center he earned his LL.M. (Master of Laws) in securities. Ernie also holds both the Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®) and Chartered Financial Consultant® (ChFC®) designations. He began his legal career focusing on tax law and estate planning and has served as an attorney for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Away from the office, he is actively involved with several local non-profit organizations, including the church he attends with his wife and three children, and his homeowners’ association. Whenever possible, he remains optimistic about trying to improve his golf game.
Stephanie Roper began her career in the financial services industry in 2008 and she came to Foundations Investment Advisors with more than 10 years experience in operational management. Prior to joining FIA, Stephanie provided HR, compliance and operational support for two other SEC registered investment advisers, which she helped grow to over $100 million in five years. In 2012, Stephanie obtained her B.S. in Business with a concentration in Finance.
Stephanie is an integral part of the Foundations Investment Advisors team; she supervises, administers and manages the firm’s day-to-day activities. In addition, she cultivates strong relationships with advisers and business partners to create leading-edge technology solutions. Stephanie’s overall goal is to provide the highest-level of service to advisers and clients by fostering operational excellence. Stephanie resides in the Gilbert/Phoenix area with her husband and two children. She enjoys going to Broadway musicals with her son who is very active in community theatre.
Originally from Indiana, Josh Cooksey first began working in the financial industry in 2011 as an independent insurance producer. He built a book of business by providing clients assistance with Life Insurance, Annuities, Medicare, LTC, and Health insurance products. While doing this he also learned valuable skills assembling and managing a team of agents under him until 2015 when he decided to acquire his series 65 and practice as a financial advisor. He joined with Foundations Investment Advisors in 2016 as an operations specialist in addition to meeting with clients.In 2017 he put his degree in software design to use and developed a program to help financial firms with processing documents.
Josh currently heads the operations of Foundations and works to provide advisors and their staff top level service through design and implementation of improvements toward the infrastructure of the firm. He currently resides in Chandler, Arizona with his wife, Tracy, and three children. When not at the office he enjoys technology, golf, basketball and weightlifting.
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