“One man can be a crucial ingredient on a team, but one man cannot make a team.”
—Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
This quote is one that resonates with the five partners at Heartwood Planning Group. In fact, they’ve taken these words and have put them into action. The new firm, which was incorporated in January 2022, is the result of a merger of five individual financial planning practices under the umbrella of Northwestern Mutual.
“It’s the best of both worlds,” says Kyle Wurtzel, partner and private wealth advisor. He believes the partnership blends personal service with the resources of a Fortune 100 company that’s been in the financial planning industry for over 150 years. “With five advisors, our clients can now benefit from a firm approach to wealth management rather than an individual advisor’s approach,” Wurtzel adds.
“We started to have conversations about this partnership in 2019,” says Grant Goeglein, partner and private wealth advisor. “We realized that our values and philosophies were very much the same, and that we could learn a lot from each other.”
Following those initial conversations, Jeff Rapp, Kyle Wurtzel, Matt Henry, Alex Reinhard and Grant Goeglein began to form Heartwood Planning Group. “One of our biggest goals is to provide stability and to be there for our clients and their families long after we’ve all retired,” says Goeglein. “Some of us are working with three generations — from young professionals to grandparents.”
Though the Heartwood partners have 70 years of combined experience, having a strong group of dedicated team members behind them allows the partners to primarily focus their time on providing sound advice and building relationships with their clients. Each of Heartwood’s 14 team members have either worked within the partner’s individual practices over the years or have joined Heartwood from the financial planning field. While Goeglein, Rapp, Henry and Reinhard primarily meet with clients in the Fort Wayne office, Wurtzel spends most of his time in between the Peru and Warsaw offices.
When it comes to the team’s financial planning philosophy, it all starts with the client’s needs, goals and aspirations. “Ultimately, we’re here to help our clients through all stages of life. We work with people from their first job, to entering retirement and beyond,” Wurtzel says. Taking the necessary time to learn about income resources, assets, liabilities, and especially goals and values is critical to developing a custom tailored financial plan unique to each client.
As a part of the Northwestern Mutual Private Client Group, Heartwood provides a distinctive set of services geared specifically towards high-net-worth individuals and families. Some of the most common wealth management strategies the Heartwood team engages in include Investment Solutions, Risk Management, Retirement Planning, Estate Planning, Tax Efficient Strategies and Business Planning.
In addition to serving its clients, the Heartwood team is also passionate about supporting local and national causes, specifically around childhood cancer awareness and treatments. In alignment with Northwestern Mutual, Heartwood primarily focuses its philanthropic efforts on childhood cancer research through Alex’s Lemonade Stand, a national effort that provides funding for countless hours of life-saving research. The team also supports organizations like Camp Watcha-Wanna-Do, Community Harvest Food Bank, Big Brothers-Big Sisters, and others within its local communities.
Ultimately, the core of what it means to partner with the Heartwood team can be found in its name. “We chose the name because the heartwood is the center and strongest part of a tree. As the supporting pillar of a tree’s life, it provides the stability a tree needs to continue to grow, thrive and pass its legacy on to future generations,” notes Goeglein. “True to our name, our team works to be at the heart of our clients’ financial lives and support them in achieving financial strength and security.”
Should you want to learn more about Heartwood Planning Group and the services it provides, please call (260) 443-7653 or email heartwood@nm.com.
Grant Tyler Goeglein, Matthew Louis Henry, Jeffrey J Rapp, Alex Reinhard and Kyle Joseph Wurtzel use Heartwood Planning Group as a marketing name for doing business as representatives of Northwestern Mutual. Heartwood Planning Group is not a registered investment adviser, broker-dealer, insurance agency or federal savings bank. Northwestern Mutual is the marketing name for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, WI (NM) (life and disability insurance, annuities, and life insurance with long-term care benefits) and its subsidiaries. Grant Tyler Goeglein, Matthew Louis Henry, Jeffrey J Rapp, Alex Reinhard and Kyle Joseph Wurtzel provide investment advisory services as Advisors of Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company® (NMWMC), Milwaukee, WI, a subsidiary of NM and federal savings bank. Grant Tyler Goeglein, Matthew Louis Henry, Jeffrey J Rapp, Alex Reinhard and Kyle Joseph Wurtzel provide investment brokerage services as Registered Representatives of Northwestern Mutual Investment Services, LLC (NMIS), a subsidiary of NM, registered investment adviser, broker-dealer and member FINRA (finra.org) and SIPC (sipc.org). Grant Tyler Goeglein, Matthew Louis Henry, Jeffrey J Rapp, Alex Reinhard and Kyle Joseph Wurtzel are Insurance Agents of NM.
Northwestern Mutual Private Client Group is a select group of Northwestern Mutual advisors and representatives. Northwestern Mutual Private Client Group is not a registered investment adviser, broker-dealer, insurance agency, federal savings bank or other legal entity.
Address: 110 Berry St., Suite 1600, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46802 / 71 W. Main St., Suite 2, Peru, Indiana 46970
Phone: (260) 443-7653
Website: heartwood.nm.com
Number of Employees: 19
Products & Services: Financial Planning, Wealth Management, Retirement Planning, Risk Management, Investment Solutions, Estate Planning and Business Succession Planning.