CE Faculty
Lee Conti Jr., Insurance Planner & Educator
Lee Conti, Jr. is a Director with CPS Elite Advisors Insurance Svcs, as well as a nationally recognized speaker on cutting edge insurance trends. Lee focuses on coaching advisors on cutting-edge risk management strategies in the areas of Longevity Planning, Disability protection, Long Term Care, Linked Benefits, and Life Insurance. Lee is committed to the highest fiduciary standards and he has dedicated the last 25 years to helping advisors design insurance programs to help their clients protect and augment wealth. He brings a planner’s mindset to all his tailored risk management solutions, in a space often crowded with transaction-minded individuals.
Lee is certified nationally as a Continuing Education instructor for Insurance sessions and is also approved to teach CFP® Continuing Education courses to financial advisors. Lee has been a breakout speaker at financial planning industry conferences since 2006 and is consistently a go-to resource for advisors on insurance-related questions. He takes pride in creating and teaching dynamic sessions that allow advisors to walk away with practical information to help their clients plan for a better future and he has currently trained over 8,000 advisors on risk management strategies. Lee's passion for education led him to serve on the FPA of NY’s Board of Directors as Co-Chair of the Spring Forum and Director of the Practitioners monthly educational meetings before becoming President in 2016v. He currently sits on the Board of Savvy Ladies, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. The organization provides free financial education and resources to empower women to achieve financial independence.
Marguerita M. Cheng, CFP®, RICP®
Marguerita M. Cheng is the Chief Executive Officer at Blue Ocean Global Wealth. Prior to co-founding Blue Ocean Global Wealth, she was a Financial Advisor at Ameriprise Financial and an Analyst and Editor at Towa Securities in Tokyo, Japan. Marguerita is a past spokesperson for the AARP Financial Freedom Campaign and a regular columnist for Investopedia & Kiplinger. She is a CFP® professional, a Chartered Retirement Planning CounselorSM, a Retirement Income Certified Professional® and a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst. As a Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (CFP Board) Ambassador, Marguerita helps educate the public, policy makers, and media about the benefits of competent, ethical financial planning. She serves as a Women’s Initiative (WIN) Advocate and subject matter expert for CFP Board, contributing to the development of examination questions for the CFP® Certification Examination. Marguerita also volunteers for CFP Board Disciplinary and Ethics Commission (DEC) hearings. She served on the Financial Planning Association (FPA) National Board of Directors from 2013 – 2015 and is a past president of the Financial Planning Association of the National Capital Area (FPA NCA).
Rita is a recipient of the Ameriprise Financial Presidential Award for Quality of Advice and the prestigious Japanese Monbukagakusho Scholarship. In 2017, she was named the #3 Most Influential Financial Advisor in the Investopedia Top 100, a Woman to Watch by InvestmentNews, and a Top 100 Minority Business Enterprise (MBE®) by the Capital Region Minority Supplier Development Council (CRMSDC).
Tom Virkler
For 30 years Tom Virkler, JD, CLU has specialized in the areas of estate, charitable, business and non-qualified benefit planning, as well as in matters of Life Insurance, Long Term Care Insurance, Disability Insurance and Annuity taxation. Tom received his B.A. from the State University of New York. His law degree is from the Cumberland School of Law, Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama. He is a member of the Alabama State Bar Association and the North Atlanta Society of Financial Service Professionals. Tom joined CPS in 2010 and is available to assist you with all planning issues involved in the design and sale of advanced cases. Tom can also work with your client and their advisors when working on your complex cases, and can assist you in marketing efforts that will enhance your access to larger and more advanced casework.
Sameer Somal
Sameer Somal, CFA, CFP®, CAIASM is CEO and co-founder of Blue Ocean Global Technology. Prior to co-founding Blue Ocean Global Technology, he was a Senior Investment Analyst at The Bank of Nova Scotia and a Financial Advisor and Intermediary at Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch & Co. As part of the Investment Strategy Group at The Bank of Nova Scotia, Sameer actively contributed to the firm’s white paper and institutional business development efforts. He delivered keynote presentations and fostered education partnerships nationally. His fiduciary responsibility at Ernst & Young and Advisor Compliance Associates include helping asset management and alternative investment companies adapt to Sarbanes-Oxley.
Sameer is a CFA Charterholder, a CFP® professional, and a Chartered Alternative Investment AnalystSM. Sameer serves on the Financial Planning Association (FPA) National Diversity Committee and the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia/Tri-State FPA. A senior financial services leader on industry roundtable and panel discussions, Sameer serves on CFP Board’s Council on Education and is a Women’s Initiative (WIN) Advocate. He is an active member at CFA Institute and a Board Advisor at the iPlan Education Institute in New Delhi, India. A member of the Speakers’ Series at the Johns Hopkins University Carey School of Business, Sameer is a frequent speaker on succession planning, technology, diversity, retirement, financial planning, entrepreneurship, and leadership. He earned his B.S. in Finance and Accounting from Georgetown University and is a 2012 FPA Diversity Scholar.
