Stephen Smith, CSSCS, CCFS®
President
Stephen helps retirees build a secure retirement that accounts for all of life’s unknowns. He takes a holistic approach that focuses on social security optimization, tax efficient distribution, and complex, customized wealth transfer strategies. Stephen works closely with his clients to create the security they are looking for in their golden years.
Stephen has a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical/Computer Engineering from Marquette University. He is certified in social security claiming strategies (CSSCS) and college funding solutions (CCFS®).
Additionally, Stephen is a nationally recognized speaker on the complex topics of Social Security Benefits and tax efficient distribution strategies. Through a partnership with Highland Capital Brokerage, he mentors hundreds of advisors who have grown their practice by adopting Stephen’s holistic approach to financial planning.
Brian Atkins
President
Brian started his career in finance in 1997 at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange while attending the University of Illinois, Chicago. After a short period, Brian leased a membership and began trading for both his clients and his personal account. Recognizing the shift from open outcry to electronic markets, Brian joined Allendale Inc., a commodity brokerage firm located in McHenry, Illinois. His responsibilities included advising commercial accounts on how to best forward price their future crop and livestock production and manage their currency risk. Brian formed Atkins & Associates in 2011. A & A has allowed Brian to continue his work with hedging clients while adding asset management, social security planning, managed futures and other alternative investment products deemed advantageous to his clients.
Brian holds series 3 and series 65, he is licensed in life and health insurance, and is registered with the National Futures Association as an AP and a CPO. Outside of the office, Brian stays very active with his family. He enjoys boating on the Fox River, and traveling with his beautiful wife Jodie.
Michael Clements
Chief Quantitative Officer
Michael Clements brings over 20 years of experience in the financial industry, with a deep foundation in the physical sciences and computing. As a portfolio manager and quantitative analyst, he applies advanced programming and analytical expertise to a range of roles, including research, system development, and portfolio construction.
Michael has developed and implemented fully automated trading systems managing multi-million dollar allocations, as well as designed software platforms used in the management of nine-figure portfolios. Prior to his work in finance, he served as a researcher at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory.
He holds both a B.S. and M.S. in Physics from Brown University.
Outside of work, Michael enjoys traveling with his wife and son, practicing martial arts—he holds a black belt—and exploring hands-on projects in woodworking and metalworking. He’s an avid reader and lifelong learner who enjoys diving into new ideas and disciplines.
Alayna Leuzé
Financial Advisor
Everyone has a different vision of what makes a successful retirement. Your dream, whatever it may be, is one that could be attainable. As a financial advisor at Significant Wealth, Alayna provides attentive and knowledgeable services and support for our clients. Alayna holds a series 7 and series 66 as well as a license for Health/Life Insurance. She provides clients with education on how to take their assets and utilize them in the most efficient way so they may have the retirement lifestyle that they always dreamed of having. Whether it is today, 20 years from now, or just around the corner, Alayna and her team will analyze every aspect of your financial life to measure the progress you are making to reach your goals.
Alayna received her Bachelors in Finance at Roosevelt University. She began her career as a Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch, perusing her dreams to become educated in preserving hard earned money and sharing her knowledge with others. There she learned valuable skills on how to work with clients as strategic partners and create tailored and personalized plans that addressed their specific needs. Alayna later joined Significant Wealth to apply her skills and build ongoing relationships with the clients she works with. Alayna knows that working on a team with individuals that vary in expertise is crucial in producing the best results for her clients.
Alayna lives in Cary with her husband Dave and their 5 children. They are avid Chicago sports fans and play volleyball in the summer. In their free time they enjoy traveling, fishing, boating, and watching their children's sporting events.
Scott Smith
Financial Advisor
Scott holds an Associate of Science Degree in Mechanical Design Engineering from Moraine Park Technical College and a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from the University of Phoenix. He has been a successful entrepreneur having started three businesses in the manufacturing sector, taking one public. He has worked with hundreds of manufacturing firms over his career offering solutions to challenging design, manufacturing, sourcing and strategy problems as an executive in sales, marketing, engineering and operations.
Scott recently joined Significant Wealth Partners to apply his strong solutions thinking and strategic plan development experience to the individual in need of financial planning and retirement services relying on strong analytic and thinking out of the box skills to the financial planning process for his clients. Scott specializes on developing conservative retirement and financial plans that protect principle while delivering reasonable returns.
Scott lives in Crystal Lake, IL with his wife of 41 years Joann. He has five grown children and three grandchildren.
Joshua Lang
Financial Advisor
Joshua believes that the way of planning for retirement has changed drastically over the years. With the decrease of pensions, he noticed that a large portion of retirees did not have a plan to go from accumulating assets to receiving income. Joshua takes a unique approach when guiding retirees through the distribution phase of retirement. Joshua holds a Series 65 as well as a Life/Health insurance license.
Joshua is a native of Florida, where he attended Lakewood Ranch High School and the University of South Florida. When he is not working, he loves to spend time with his wife, Natalya, and four young children. He also loves playing piano, in which he serves on the worship his church’s worship team.
Dave Leuze’
Financial Advisor
Dave jumped head first into the financial world starting out with Merrill Lynch. He studied hard and learned the business. It wasn't long before he realized he was in the right business but in the wrong place. He wanted to work with a specific type of client and do his job in a specific sort of way. He wanted to be different and needed a company that he could do that with.
Now at Significant Wealth Partners, Dave can honestly say that he loves his job. If you're looking for a different approach to advising and an advisor that adds value to your life and your portfolio, Dave is the guy for you.
Trent Atkins
Annuity Specialist
Trent Atkins is an annuity specialist at Significant Wealth Partners, where he takes a consultative, problem-solving approach to helping clients build secure financial futures. With a strong background in insurance and retirement planning, he focuses on understanding each client’s unique needs and crafting tailored annuity strategies that provide stability, growth, and long-term peace of mind.
Holding an insurance license, Trent simplifies the complexities of annuity products, ensuring clients make informed decisions with confidence. He believes in education and transparency, guiding individuals toward strategies that maximize retirement income while safeguarding their assets. His client-first mindset drives him to take a holistic approach, aligning financial solutions with both short-term needs and long-term goals.
Beyond his professional work, Trent enjoys hiking with his dog, reading, exercising, and exploring advancements in AI. His passion for continuous learning and problem-solving extends into every aspect of his life, keeping him at the forefront of evolving financial strategies and technologies that enhance client success.
Tammy Polivka
Office Manager
Tammy provides administrative support for the SWP team. She has a bachelor's degree in Business Management from Northern Illinois University. She enjoys spending time with her husband and two daughters and lives in Cary.
Eileen Brogan
Medicare Specialist
Eileen Brogan is an experienced and dedicated health insurance professional with over 17 years in the industry. She began her career in 2008 as a health insurance broker and quickly achieved success, training and mentoring hundreds of fellow agents in her early career. Eileen then pivoted to a more client-focused approach, specializing in Medicare, ACA coverage, Final Expense, Life insurance, and Long-term Care insurance; where she offers personalized one-on-one guidance to help individuals navigate their options.
In 2016, she teamed up with Significant Wealth Partners, allowing her to enhance her ability to provide tailored solutions for clients health coverages, as they plan their finances and approach retirement.
Eileen is deeply passionate about helping people, and she takes pride in her extremely patient approach and commitment to educating her clients in making the right choice. Her goal is always to empower individuals to make informed, confident decisions regarding their health insurance needs. She knows from personal experience how important it is for oneself and their loved ones to have the proper coverage when it's needed.
She is fully licensed, and government certified for Medicare and ACA coverages, and holds many different state licenses and credentials. She has obtained numerous accolades and awards in her career, but what she is most proud of is genuinely helping people. She enjoys spending her free time with friends and family, and is a big fan of music, nature and sports.