Our Team

Will Gilchrist acts as the team lead for The Gilchrist Group of Oppenheimer & Co Inc. He oversees their strategy and execution for corporate services, multifamily office services, asset management, and alliances.

Will’s clients include ultra-high net worth individuals (individuals with a $30 million to $999 million net worth), founders and C-level executives of billion dollar companies, corporate clients, institutional investors, high profile entertainers, and owners/executives of public and private companies.

Within the multi-family offices services vertical Will differentiates himself by focusing on family wealth rather than solely on investments. Many clients see Will as a coach: someone who is forward thinking, strategic, detail oriented, disciplined, stresses accountability, sets defined goals, and measures results. He understands that for wealthy families, factors such as behavioral economics, family dynamics, leaving a legacy, values, building a strong network of resources, and having a plan are crucial in delivering positive outcomes.

His strategy for asset management attempts to deliver favorable risk adjusted returns measured by the Sharpe Ratio of the portfolio. In the new age of investing, high net worth investors often look beyond the typical stock/bond allocations. To address this need, Will and his team have devoted significant time to analyze and incorporate alternative investment strategies, for qualified clients.

Will also seeks to deliver tax efficiency through low portfolio turnover, periodic loss harvesting, opportunistic gain harvesting, strategically allocating certain assets in tax advantaged accounts, financial modeling the change of domicile to a lower tax state, and helping coordinate advanced estate planning strategies (that involve trusts, partnerships, foundations, and LLCs) with highly vetted attorneys/accountants in his network.

Through the team’s corporate services vertical he provides niche services to executives and their companies. For owners of private companies Will specializes in the financial planning component of exit planning. He and his team create comparative financial plans that model the impacts of staying on as an owner/investor and hiring new management vs investing the proceeds in an outright sale.

For public companies and executives he assists with the public sale of restricted/control securities through Rule 144 transactions, Rule 10b5-1 plan creation/administration for insiders, lending programs for stock option exercises, hedging strategies, and guidance on executive compensation ranging from RSU’s (Restricted Stock Units), ISO’s (Incentive Stock Options), NSO’s (Non-Qualified Stock Options), etc. He also assists companies with stock option exercises for employees, corporate retirement plans, corporate cash management, and introductions to Oppenheimer’s investment banking department.

For clients with other financial-focused advisors (such as CPAs, attorneys, business managers, CFOs) he has developed a detailed communication/ coordination process that allows a client to remain informed, while avoiding the administrative role in, and responsibility for the exchange of valuable information. Additionally, clients often reach out to Will regarding issues that pertain to their non-financial lives. To address this issue he has sought out and built a network of expert professionals in a variety of fi elds, upon whom he can rely.

Outside the office, Will is a fitness enthusiast. He enjoys lifting weights, playing basketball, biking, and hiking. He serves on the Board of Directors of The Badu Foundation (a Chicago based non-profit youth financial literacy organization); previously served on The Board of Advisors of The Earl Monroe New Renaissance Charter Basketball School (serving with high level US politicians, NBA franchise owners, NBA Hall of Famers, and Business leaders); and was a past member of the Associate Board of Urban Gateways.

Joan, who joined Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. in 1981, became the youngest Senior Vice President in the history of the firm in 1983. She was recently ranked among the top Illinois Wealth Advisors by Forbes/Shook, one of the top female wealth advisors in the country by Forbes, and a 5 Star Wealth Advisor .She is a current and past member of both Oppenheimer’s Chairman’s and Executive Councils, which honors the top 80 producers in the firm each year.

She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Northwestern University and holds the General Securities Representative License (Series 7), and is a licensed as an agent for life and health insurance professional in multiple states.

Joan provides comprehensive wealth management advice for Gilchrist Group clients. Typically these clients have complex financial situations that require close attention to tax issues, estate planning, asset allocation, and risk management.

In addition to advising clients on wealth strategies, Joan is a Portfolio Manager through the Oppenheimer OMEGA Portfolio Management program. OMEGA managed portfolios are managed with discretion and a fiduciary standard of care. The portfolios provide a wide range of investment options.

John joined Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. in 1996 after serving for seven years as the Chairman of First Chicago Capital Markets (a securities affiliate of The First National Bank of Chicago). He has over 25 years of experience as an investment banker in municipal finance. During his career, he has been chairman both of the Illinois State Employees Retirement System and the Illinois Study Commission on Public Pension Investment Policy. He is also a past member of the Illinois State Board of Investment and a past President of Urban Gateways of Chicago, a recipient of the National Medal of Art.

John oversees the teams fixed income portfolios. He analyzes factors such as duration, interest rates, credit quality, tax implications, and default risk. John also works alongside many of our clients outside advisors to implement complex wealth strategies. These outside estate and generational strategies advisors include attorneys, CPA’s, business managers, and personal assistants.

John earned a B.A. in Business from SMU and a M.B.A. from University of Chicago.

Jon’s primary focus is creating financial strategies that reflect the client’s life and financial goals. He is skilled at translating a client’s financial profile and goals into an actionable long term strategy.

He provides assistance to startup founders, and executives on goals-based planning related to their equity based compensation. These individuals are often granted ISOs (incentive Stock Options), NSOs (Non-Qualified Stock Options), RSUs (Restricted Stock Units), or other forms of equity compensation. Plans are created to assist in risk evaluation and tax efficiency.

Cash management strategies for corporations, tax-loss harvesting strategies, addressing insurance needs, and providing access to alternative investments (for qualified individuals) are additional areas of focus. Outside advisors can join Oppenheimer’s Professionals Alliance Group. Professional alliances allow these advisors to create recurring revenue streams, provide additional services to existing clients, and deepen client relationships through coordination. Jon works on developing and supporting relationships with outside advisors.

His previous experience includes working as a finance professor’s assistant and a student fund manager at the Florida State University College of Business Student Investment fund. Jon holds both a Master’s and bachelor’s degree in Finance.