Vice president Benjamin C. Sullivan, CFP®, CVA, EA, is extensively involved throughout the firm’s asset management, personal financial planning, tax and valuation practices. As chief investment officer and chairman of the firm’s investment committee, he leads a team of portfolio managers who oversee more than $1.7 billion in client assets, including all aspects of investment strategy, portfolio management, due diligence and manager selection. Under Ben’s leadership, the investment committee seeks the most efficient and cost-effective ways to implement client portfolio strategies. Ben joined the Palisades Hudson staff in early 2007, became a manager in 2010 and joined the executive team in 2025. In 2016, he established the firm’s branch office in Austin, Texas, where he currently resides.
Ben is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certificant. As an Enrolled Agent eligible to practice before the Internal Revenue Service, Ben is also authorized to represent his clients in tax disputes at all administrative levels. He holds the Certified Valuation Analyst designation from the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts.
Ben has been widely quoted in print, as well as interviewed in video and audio appearances, on personal financial planning and related topics in national media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, Money Magazine, Kiplinger’s Retirement Report, CNN Money and USA Today. He has also appeared as a guest on the firm's own podcast, "Something Personal," two times in the first season and once in the second season.
Ben has written many articles for the firm’s Sentinel newsletter, including:
- “Why I Serve On A Nonprofit Board” (March 2025)
- “Post-Election Investment Planning: Buckle Up But Don't Bail Out” (November 2024)
- “Financial Independence: Reimagining Retirement” (October 2023)
- “A Closer Look At Capital Gains (Part II)” (September 2022, co-authored with Kasey Radney) and
- “A Closer Look At Capital Gains (Part I)” (August 2022, co-authored with Kasey Radney).
Ben wrote two chapters for the firm's book The High Achiever's Guide to Wealth: “Investments: Fundamentals, Techniques And Psychology” and “Employment Contracts.” In addition, Ben authored two chapters for Looking Ahead: Life, Family, Wealth and Business After 55, covering federal income tax and investment psychology.
A native of East Hanover, New Jersey, Ben graduated magna cum laude from Tulane University’s Freeman School of Business with a degree in finance and legal studies in business. Outside his work at Palisades Hudson, he serves as a member of the board of directors of Caritas of Austin.
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