August 5, 2025 • 12 mins
On January 1, 2025, Brad was named President and CEO of Clearstead, succeeding longtime partner David Fulton who has assumed the role of Chairman Emeritus. As CEO, Brad is now leading a larger and more complex firm than existed ten years ago, with revenues and earnings having grown significantly and the number of employees and assets under advisement increasing several times. The firm has acquired eleven firms in the past ten years and has added capabilities in tax compliance and financial planning while also forming Clearstead Trust, a nondepository trust company. Brad’s appointment as CEO was part of a longstanding management succession plan at Clearstead. He will continue to be instrumental to strategic initiatives at Clearstead, including accelerating organic growth through the addition of new channels and holistic service offerings, investing in technology to improve the client and advisor experience, and expanding our geographic footprint through integrating strategic acquisitions. Brad holds the Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst designations and joined Clearstead in 2016. Brad has held positions in the private client and institutional groups at the firm and has served as President from 2023 to the present. Since 2018, he has run the firm’s Private Client and Trust practices. Brad has over 25 years of experience in wealth advisory and investment management, having held positions with two major financial institutions prior to joining Clearstead. Prior to joining Clearstead, Brad was a Senior Vice President with Hawthorn/PNC Family and Key Private Bank. Brad began his investment career at McDonald & Company, a regional broker/dealer and investment bank. Brad earned a BSBA degree in finance from John Carroll University. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst charter holder and a member of the CFA Society of Cleveland. Brad is a member of the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association and has earned the use of that designation.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
This is iHeartRadio's CEOs. You should know I'm Keith Hodgkiss.
Today our guest is Brad Napp, who's the CEO of
clear Stead A clear Stead, a fiduciary financial advisor with
more than two hundred employees based in downtown Cleveland.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Brad, thank you for being with us.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
Thank you for having me so talk to me a
little bit about clear Stead and what you do and
how someone might benefit from you.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
Absolutely, a clear Stead has been around for about thirty years,
so this is not new to downtown Cleveland. We run
around and our reaches across the United States. We now
have about twelve offices. But really what we do is
advise on about fifty billion in assets for prominent families
and institutions. And we like to say we're not just
managing investment assets. We are full service I would say
family office services. So we have a very large tax practice,
(00:47):
we have two trust companies. We'd have a very extensive
a state and financial planning. So we really try and
be holistic in our fiduciary services we offer families and institutions.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
That's really important.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
I mean, there probably is nothing more important than financial
and fiscal responsibility, right, and a lot of people don't
understand what they're doing right. And how do you guys
take something that's very complex and delineated down for a family.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Yeah, Simplifying complexity is really one of our core values.
That's really what we try to empower our clients, our families,
institutions so they are best informed to make their own
decisions right. We can help them along the way. But
everyone's different, everyone's goals and objectives are very different. So
we start and we like to say holistic, and I
use that word gets used an awful lot, but it
really does start with understanding the balance sheet of the
(01:34):
institution or the family, the cash flow, the tax situation,
what they're trying to achieve, investments, their state plan. We
really try and wrap our arms around all of it,
and then our team of experts simplifies it and puts
it in plain vernacular. And then we can sit with
the clients and the institutions to share with them our observations,
what we see, ways to improve the situation, ways to
(01:54):
more efficiently achieve their objectives. And since we don't sell product,
we're just true to do that is our role to
help clients meet their objectives or pass their objectives and
just do.
Speaker 4 (02:05):
It in a very candid, honest way.
Speaker 1 (02:06):
Well, that's really important, I think because you mentioned that
you don't sell products. I think that there's some mistrust
in this space from people who feel like they're getting
pushed on a mutual fund or an annuity. That's not
what you do, right.
Speaker 4 (02:22):
No, we do not.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
We do not charge commissions, we don't take incentive fees.
That is not what we do. By the nature our
client base, we work with the very promin institutions and
families demand that we have to be true fiduciaries and
so as you can see on our website and as
you can see with all our literature that is upfront
and prominent with what we do.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
So we're talking with Brad Napp, the CEO of clear Stead,
a fiduciary helping families to manage a complex situation. Can
you talk a little bit about financial markets? And it
seems as though we're in a really unique inflection.
Speaker 2 (02:54):
Point in history here.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
You've got so much of people's wealth is tied to
the stock market, but the stock mark mart as an
inflated money on paper, it's not real money.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
How do you balance that? How do you talk to.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
Clients about where to be and how much to invest
and where to invest.
Speaker 4 (03:09):
That's perfect.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
What we first want to do is we want to
understand a person's balance sheet or an institution's balance sheet.
Speaker 4 (03:14):
What are all the moving pieces you have.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Is it a personal business that's creating the wealth that
you still own, is it investment assets, is it the
human capital that you're going to work every day? What
do you have and what are you trying to achieve?
And so once we really start to understand that balance
sheet and what the objectives are, it's not as hard
as you think. We just educate them on what's the
best and efficient and cost effective and after tax, the
best way to get there to achieve those objectives. So
(03:38):
it does encompass private markets, public markets, private businesses. The
innovation machine of this country is just truly humbling and
amazing to watch with some of the families and institutions
we work with. So much wealth is created through small
businesses that become mid sized businesses, they become large businesses,
and the innovation machine that's really where a lot of
this wealth is created. So we do try and invest
(03:59):
in public and prime markets because that's where we think
clients will get the best.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
Return, right right when you thinking about there's a lot
I've been doing a lot of thinking on taxes and
how there's so much noise involved in taxes, And just
as an aside, I was curious as to your thought
about flat taxes and making it easier and more fair.
Speaker 2 (04:20):
Is that on the horizon? Is that a possibility.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
We're getting so convoluted and complex and now there's a
movement towards reducing the irs. Is there conversations around tax
strategy and will that ever change? Do you think the
country over move to more simple tax strategy?
Speaker 3 (04:35):
Sure, my opinion, I would say, our opinion is no,
the simplification is not going to happen. Even though Congress
triates to make it simpler. With every revision they say
they're making it simpler, it ends up becoming more complex. Right,
So the tax code doesn't get easier. There's a bit
of a reason for that from our perspective, and it
creates opportunity for clients. You know, the soft hand of
the government tries to incent new businesses and institutions the
(04:57):
creation of formation of wealth, and they do that through
the time tax code. So there's certain incentives for real
estate development, for example, that's to create new real estate.
That's where the government has imposed tax laws to make
sure that those formations are happening. And so we don't
think it's going to get easier. We do think that's
part of our job, and that's part of our secret
sauce is simplifying their tax situation and trying to optimize
(05:18):
every opportunity. There is a lot of opportunity in that
tax code, and it's really having fiduciary expertise to understand
it and say, in your situation, here's two or three
different scenarios you may want to think about with your business,
with your company, with your institution that might make you
save a little bit on taxes and become more efficient
with your wealth.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
Talk a little bit about how you ended up at
clear Stead. You've worked at a lot of different high
profile wealth management companies in town and what makes clear
Stead different.
Speaker 4 (05:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (05:47):
Absolutely, I've been at Clearstead now for ten years. And
the way I got to clear Stead, I started my
career not too far from where we are today in
downtown Cleveland, working for McDonald and Company, a very prominent
investment bank and broker's house that had such real talent
and wonderful leadership. So that helped form me earlier in
my years, and I didn't sway very far. I stayed
working with a few other larger institutions that are still
(06:09):
in town, and I would say in the Midwest that
are very prominent. And the way I got to Clearstead
was I actually shared a very large family with some
of my now colleagues at Clearstead, and when we'd sit
in those family meetings that would last the better part
of a day. I was seeing what Heartland at the time,
which became Clearstead when we rebranded, what they were doing,
and I thought it was trement, the deliverables, the service
(06:31):
that the real Fiduciary Council was heads and tails above
what I was able to deliver. So it was really
seeing what the competition was doing, and it was so
far advanced. I'd said I want to be part of Clearstead.
So I jumped in the boat and that was ten
years ago and I've never stopped.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
We can't have a conversation about business these days with
the question about how AI is impacting what you do
and how are you leveraging AI, and what should people
think about when they're talking about artificial intelligence in terms
of financial plan and how do you guys use it?
Speaker 3 (07:01):
Yes, happy to AI is just a not a day
goes by.
Speaker 4 (07:05):
We don't talk about it with our leadership team, with
our board.
Speaker 3 (07:07):
Internally, it is amazing the capabilities that we can now
leverage with AI. Some of the tools that we're using
just to make us more efficient and faster with clients,
make a much better client experience, quite frankly, helping analyze
some of our data, our plans, our investment strategies that
can we can analyze them even faster than what we
could five years ago, three years ago, the beginning of
(07:28):
this year. So it is amazing. So we are incorporating AI.
We're very cautious because confidentiality, reputation is right the forefront.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
Of our business well, and of course some of that
is open sourced, right, and you don't want that information
being used, right.
Speaker 3 (07:40):
That's correct, So we are very diligent with our compliance
and legal folks and our technology team to make sure
we're not using it with client data. But the lift
is so much efficient and we're getting much much better
at it and spending a lot of time and money
on AI. We don't think it's going to We think
it's going to enhance the client experience, enhance the service.
It's not going to mean that we're out of business
(08:00):
in the next five or ten years. It just allows
us to focus on what's more important, staying closer to
the client, anticipating their needs. So it really helps us
with a better deliverable for our clients.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Well, it's kind of be really rewarding work you're doing
to help families secure futures for themselves in a very
you know, it's a chaotic economic environment. There's noise and
news every day and pushes and pulls from the different
political spectrums. But you know, what you're doing is sort
of silencing that noise and helping them, you know, navigate
these waters. What is something when if someone's looking to
(08:34):
get a hold of you, what's something they should know
in advance about or what questions do you really help
answer that people really didn't know the answers to.
Speaker 3 (08:42):
Yeah, what we like to do is somebody who's interested
in maybe working with clearestead or they maybe they just
want a second opinion, the same way you might do
that with a medical professional, get a second opinion. We
do that an awful lot with clients and prospects. I
would say that, say, you know, I'm happy with my
tax provider, I think happy with my investment strategy, but
I just want a second opinion, and so we do
(09:03):
that for anybody who would like to work with clear Stead,
we've provide that second opinion, and a lot of times
what we'll see is there's some areas for improvement. We're
not trying to displace relationships that they're happy with. That's fine,
it's their objective, their money. But we like to provide
that honest counsel that open we have. We're not trying
to sell you anything. We're not trying to push a product. Really,
(09:23):
we're just trying to give you, as professionals, what the
best services and give you our just candid, honest feedback.
If I can make one more comment on this, A
lot of times you've probably heard the investment products and
insurance is sold, not bought, and so that's an important
part of clear Stead of we're not trying to sell
anybody anything. I'm a CFA, my background, I'm just trying
(09:46):
to give objective, honest counsel on here's what I see
and here's what I do.
Speaker 4 (09:50):
If I'm in your situation.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
Yeah, again, I think that's worth repeating that you're not
selling products. You're simply advising people on in families and
institutions on fire financial responsibility and how to make sure
that they maximize things. So a lot of the listeners
to this podcast are likely in Cleveland and likely are
looking to know. They're looking to learn how to grow,
(10:12):
scale their business and be financially responsible. So clear Stead
located in Cleveland, more than two hundred employees in downtown.
Speaker 2 (10:20):
So if you're a.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Supporter of Cleveland and a fan like we are, how
should they get a hold of you?
Speaker 3 (10:26):
I would say, again, we can go directly to our website.
We have some wonderful tools so you can see what
we do and how we do it and start that
process of that second opinion process I was referring to.
We collect a little bit information up front. We'll have
one of our wonderful advisors and consultants reach out and
set up some time to share with you our thoughts
and opinions on your situation.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
So, Brad, in our final moments, CEO of clear Stead,
that's a hefty responsibility.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
You've got a lot of people counting on you.
Speaker 1 (10:55):
So there's a lot of pressure, and one of the
things we talk about on CEOs you should know is
how to folks like you find there I say zen
or how do you decompress from your day?
Speaker 2 (11:05):
What do you like to do?
Speaker 1 (11:05):
And how do you guys, how do you personally handle
the work you're doing in the pressure to succeed.
Speaker 4 (11:11):
For your clients.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
Well, it's both an on and a privilege to be
CEO and president of clear Stead, But it's not as
hard as you think. It's because the types of individuals
we have that are partners of mine do a lot
of the heavy lifting. So I'm not the one doing
all this every day. It's we have a wonderful leadership team.
We have a wonderful research, investment research team, tax team,
state planning, financial council. So again they're doing a lot
(11:35):
of the heavy lifting. Yeah, you're asking what do I
do to relax?
Speaker 4 (11:39):
This is fun.
Speaker 3 (11:41):
There is not a better job on the face of
this earth than speaking with clients and institutions, meeting with them,
getting to know them very personally. They share so much
information and you become part of their trusted council. That
is entertainment. That is so much fun for me of
getting to know these people. So again, I do spend
a lot of time with clients and helping develop client relationships.
(12:02):
Outside of that, my daughter, we have one daughter. She
is a hockey player. That's awesome, and so we spend
an awful lot of time on the road, spend a
lot of time on the ice, and I would say
between running clear Stead and my family, that takes up
most of my time.
Speaker 1 (12:15):
Well, I'll tell you hockey parents are some of the
most dedicated families on the planet. And I can sit here,
we're looking at each other face to face. So if
you're listening to this podcast and you can appreciate the
passion and warmth that Brad brings to what can sometimes
be a cold business of financial institutions, this is something
you should look into. Clearstead in Cleveland and Brad Napp CEO,
(12:38):
thank you for being with us today.
Speaker 3 (12:39):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
I enjoyed our conversation and this has been iHeartRadio CEOs.
You should know today's show is produced by Bob Coates
SID I'm Keith Hotchkiss.
Speaker 2 (12:47):
We'll see you next time.
This is iHeartRadio's CEOs. You should know I'm Keith Hodgkiss.
Today our guest is Brad Napp, who's the CEO of
clear Stead A clear Stead, a fiduciary financial advisor with
more than two hundred employees based in downtown Cleveland.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Brad, thank you for being with us.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
Thank you for having me so talk to me a
little bit about clear Stead and what you do and
how someone might benefit from you.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
Absolutely, a clear Stead has been around for about thirty years,
so this is not new to downtown Cleveland. We run
around and our reaches across the United States. We now
have about twelve offices. But really what we do is
advise on about fifty billion in assets for prominent families
and institutions. And we like to say we're not just
managing investment assets. We are full service I would say
family office services. So we have a very large tax practice,
(00:47):
we have two trust companies. We'd have a very extensive
a state and financial planning. So we really try and
be holistic in our fiduciary services we offer families and institutions.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
That's really important.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
I mean, there probably is nothing more important than financial
and fiscal responsibility, right, and a lot of people don't
understand what they're doing right. And how do you guys
take something that's very complex and delineated down for a family.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Yeah, Simplifying complexity is really one of our core values.
That's really what we try to empower our clients, our families,
institutions so they are best informed to make their own
decisions right. We can help them along the way. But
everyone's different, everyone's goals and objectives are very different. So
we start and we like to say holistic, and I
use that word gets used an awful lot, but it
really does start with understanding the balance sheet of the
(01:34):
institution or the family, the cash flow, the tax situation,
what they're trying to achieve, investments, their state plan. We
really try and wrap our arms around all of it,
and then our team of experts simplifies it and puts
it in plain vernacular. And then we can sit with
the clients and the institutions to share with them our observations,
what we see, ways to improve the situation, ways to
(01:54):
more efficiently achieve their objectives. And since we don't sell product,
we're just true to do that is our role to
help clients meet their objectives or pass their objectives and
just do.
Speaker 4 (02:05):
It in a very candid, honest way.
Speaker 1 (02:06):
Well, that's really important, I think because you mentioned that
you don't sell products. I think that there's some mistrust
in this space from people who feel like they're getting
pushed on a mutual fund or an annuity. That's not
what you do, right.
Speaker 4 (02:22):
No, we do not.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
We do not charge commissions, we don't take incentive fees.
That is not what we do. By the nature our
client base, we work with the very promin institutions and
families demand that we have to be true fiduciaries and
so as you can see on our website and as
you can see with all our literature that is upfront
and prominent with what we do.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
So we're talking with Brad Napp, the CEO of clear Stead,
a fiduciary helping families to manage a complex situation. Can
you talk a little bit about financial markets? And it
seems as though we're in a really unique inflection.
Speaker 2 (02:54):
Point in history here.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
You've got so much of people's wealth is tied to
the stock market, but the stock mark mart as an
inflated money on paper, it's not real money.
Speaker 2 (03:04):
How do you balance that? How do you talk to.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
Clients about where to be and how much to invest
and where to invest.
Speaker 4 (03:09):
That's perfect.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
What we first want to do is we want to
understand a person's balance sheet or an institution's balance sheet.
Speaker 4 (03:14):
What are all the moving pieces you have.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Is it a personal business that's creating the wealth that
you still own, is it investment assets, is it the
human capital that you're going to work every day? What
do you have and what are you trying to achieve?
And so once we really start to understand that balance
sheet and what the objectives are, it's not as hard
as you think. We just educate them on what's the
best and efficient and cost effective and after tax, the
best way to get there to achieve those objectives. So
(03:38):
it does encompass private markets, public markets, private businesses. The
innovation machine of this country is just truly humbling and
amazing to watch with some of the families and institutions
we work with. So much wealth is created through small
businesses that become mid sized businesses, they become large businesses,
and the innovation machine that's really where a lot of
this wealth is created. So we do try and invest
(03:59):
in public and prime markets because that's where we think
clients will get the best.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
Return, right right when you thinking about there's a lot
I've been doing a lot of thinking on taxes and
how there's so much noise involved in taxes, And just
as an aside, I was curious as to your thought
about flat taxes and making it easier and more fair.
Speaker 2 (04:20):
Is that on the horizon? Is that a possibility.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
We're getting so convoluted and complex and now there's a
movement towards reducing the irs. Is there conversations around tax
strategy and will that ever change? Do you think the
country over move to more simple tax strategy?
Speaker 3 (04:35):
Sure, my opinion, I would say, our opinion is no,
the simplification is not going to happen. Even though Congress
triates to make it simpler. With every revision they say
they're making it simpler, it ends up becoming more complex. Right,
So the tax code doesn't get easier. There's a bit
of a reason for that from our perspective, and it
creates opportunity for clients. You know, the soft hand of
the government tries to incent new businesses and institutions the
(04:57):
creation of formation of wealth, and they do that through
the time tax code. So there's certain incentives for real
estate development, for example, that's to create new real estate.
That's where the government has imposed tax laws to make
sure that those formations are happening. And so we don't
think it's going to get easier. We do think that's
part of our job, and that's part of our secret
sauce is simplifying their tax situation and trying to optimize
(05:18):
every opportunity. There is a lot of opportunity in that
tax code, and it's really having fiduciary expertise to understand
it and say, in your situation, here's two or three
different scenarios you may want to think about with your business,
with your company, with your institution that might make you
save a little bit on taxes and become more efficient
with your wealth.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
Talk a little bit about how you ended up at
clear Stead. You've worked at a lot of different high
profile wealth management companies in town and what makes clear
Stead different.
Speaker 4 (05:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (05:47):
Absolutely, I've been at Clearstead now for ten years. And
the way I got to clear Stead, I started my
career not too far from where we are today in
downtown Cleveland, working for McDonald and Company, a very prominent
investment bank and broker's house that had such real talent
and wonderful leadership. So that helped form me earlier in
my years, and I didn't sway very far. I stayed
working with a few other larger institutions that are still
(06:09):
in town, and I would say in the Midwest that
are very prominent. And the way I got to Clearstead
was I actually shared a very large family with some
of my now colleagues at Clearstead, and when we'd sit
in those family meetings that would last the better part
of a day. I was seeing what Heartland at the time,
which became Clearstead when we rebranded, what they were doing,
and I thought it was trement, the deliverables, the service
(06:31):
that the real Fiduciary Council was heads and tails above
what I was able to deliver. So it was really
seeing what the competition was doing, and it was so
far advanced. I'd said I want to be part of Clearstead.
So I jumped in the boat and that was ten
years ago and I've never stopped.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
We can't have a conversation about business these days with
the question about how AI is impacting what you do
and how are you leveraging AI, and what should people
think about when they're talking about artificial intelligence in terms
of financial plan and how do you guys use it?
Speaker 3 (07:01):
Yes, happy to AI is just a not a day
goes by.
Speaker 4 (07:05):
We don't talk about it with our leadership team, with
our board.
Speaker 3 (07:07):
Internally, it is amazing the capabilities that we can now
leverage with AI. Some of the tools that we're using
just to make us more efficient and faster with clients,
make a much better client experience, quite frankly, helping analyze
some of our data, our plans, our investment strategies that
can we can analyze them even faster than what we
could five years ago, three years ago, the beginning of
(07:28):
this year. So it is amazing. So we are incorporating AI.
We're very cautious because confidentiality, reputation is right the forefront.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
Of our business well, and of course some of that
is open sourced, right, and you don't want that information
being used, right.
Speaker 3 (07:40):
That's correct, So we are very diligent with our compliance
and legal folks and our technology team to make sure
we're not using it with client data. But the lift
is so much efficient and we're getting much much better
at it and spending a lot of time and money
on AI. We don't think it's going to We think
it's going to enhance the client experience, enhance the service.
It's not going to mean that we're out of business
(08:00):
in the next five or ten years. It just allows
us to focus on what's more important, staying closer to
the client, anticipating their needs. So it really helps us
with a better deliverable for our clients.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Well, it's kind of be really rewarding work you're doing
to help families secure futures for themselves in a very
you know, it's a chaotic economic environment. There's noise and
news every day and pushes and pulls from the different
political spectrums. But you know, what you're doing is sort
of silencing that noise and helping them, you know, navigate
these waters. What is something when if someone's looking to
(08:34):
get a hold of you, what's something they should know
in advance about or what questions do you really help
answer that people really didn't know the answers to.
Speaker 3 (08:42):
Yeah, what we like to do is somebody who's interested
in maybe working with clearestead or they maybe they just
want a second opinion, the same way you might do
that with a medical professional, get a second opinion. We
do that an awful lot with clients and prospects. I
would say that, say, you know, I'm happy with my
tax provider, I think happy with my investment strategy, but
I just want a second opinion, and so we do
(09:03):
that for anybody who would like to work with clear Stead,
we've provide that second opinion, and a lot of times
what we'll see is there's some areas for improvement. We're
not trying to displace relationships that they're happy with. That's fine,
it's their objective, their money. But we like to provide
that honest counsel that open we have. We're not trying
to sell you anything. We're not trying to push a product. Really,
(09:23):
we're just trying to give you, as professionals, what the
best services and give you our just candid, honest feedback.
If I can make one more comment on this, A
lot of times you've probably heard the investment products and
insurance is sold, not bought, and so that's an important
part of clear Stead of we're not trying to sell
anybody anything. I'm a CFA, my background, I'm just trying
(09:46):
to give objective, honest counsel on here's what I see
and here's what I do.
Speaker 4 (09:50):
If I'm in your situation.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
Yeah, again, I think that's worth repeating that you're not
selling products. You're simply advising people on in families and
institutions on fire financial responsibility and how to make sure
that they maximize things. So a lot of the listeners
to this podcast are likely in Cleveland and likely are
looking to know. They're looking to learn how to grow,
(10:12):
scale their business and be financially responsible. So clear Stead
located in Cleveland, more than two hundred employees in downtown.
Speaker 2 (10:20):
So if you're a.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Supporter of Cleveland and a fan like we are, how
should they get a hold of you?
Speaker 3 (10:26):
I would say, again, we can go directly to our website.
We have some wonderful tools so you can see what
we do and how we do it and start that
process of that second opinion process I was referring to.
We collect a little bit information up front. We'll have
one of our wonderful advisors and consultants reach out and
set up some time to share with you our thoughts
and opinions on your situation.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
So, Brad, in our final moments, CEO of clear Stead,
that's a hefty responsibility.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
You've got a lot of people counting on you.
Speaker 1 (10:55):
So there's a lot of pressure, and one of the
things we talk about on CEOs you should know is
how to folks like you find there I say zen
or how do you decompress from your day?
Speaker 2 (11:05):
What do you like to do?
Speaker 1 (11:05):
And how do you guys, how do you personally handle
the work you're doing in the pressure to succeed.
Speaker 4 (11:11):
For your clients.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
Well, it's both an on and a privilege to be
CEO and president of clear Stead, But it's not as
hard as you think. It's because the types of individuals
we have that are partners of mine do a lot
of the heavy lifting. So I'm not the one doing
all this every day. It's we have a wonderful leadership team.
We have a wonderful research, investment research team, tax team,
state planning, financial council. So again they're doing a lot
(11:35):
of the heavy lifting. Yeah, you're asking what do I
do to relax?
Speaker 4 (11:39):
This is fun.
Speaker 3 (11:41):
There is not a better job on the face of
this earth than speaking with clients and institutions, meeting with them,
getting to know them very personally. They share so much
information and you become part of their trusted council. That
is entertainment. That is so much fun for me of
getting to know these people. So again, I do spend
a lot of time with clients and helping develop client relationships.
(12:02):
Outside of that, my daughter, we have one daughter. She
is a hockey player. That's awesome, and so we spend
an awful lot of time on the road, spend a
lot of time on the ice, and I would say
between running clear Stead and my family, that takes up
most of my time.
Speaker 1 (12:15):
Well, I'll tell you hockey parents are some of the
most dedicated families on the planet. And I can sit here,
we're looking at each other face to face. So if
you're listening to this podcast and you can appreciate the
passion and warmth that Brad brings to what can sometimes
be a cold business of financial institutions, this is something
you should look into. Clearstead in Cleveland and Brad Napp CEO,
(12:38):
thank you for being with us today.
Speaker 3 (12:39):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
I enjoyed our conversation and this has been iHeartRadio CEOs.
You should know today's show is produced by Bob Coates
SID I'm Keith Hotchkiss.
Speaker 2 (12:47):
We'll see you next time.
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