Associates

Jesse Bergland, CLU®

Recruiting Field Director

From Intern To College Unit Director

Jesse joined The Columns Resource Group as an intern in 2001. He went full time in 2002 after graduating with a degree in finance and entrepreneurship from the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management.  Jesse has attained the Network's Power of 10 Award, Pacesetter 40 Award, the Pacemaker Award, new client bonus, and has hired his own staff. He currently plays a leadership role as a College Unit Director. He looks forward to qualifying for Million Dollar Round Table, Northwestern Mutual's Forum, and some day being the number one Managing Director in the Central Region of the Network system.

Career Advice
For those considering the career Jesse offers, "This career can give you everything you want, but you have to be willing to put in the effort, long hours, and hard work. As long as you can give it what you need to upfront, you'll be fine."

Bethany N Blomquist

Financial Representative

James Carlson

Financial Representative

From Sales Rep to Financial Representative

Jim Carlson is 1968 graduate at the University of Minnesota. 
 
In January of 1974, Jim worked for another business in the industry that eventually became ING, and did that for four years. He started with the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network in 1978 because he decided he wanted to offer clients top-quality products. He's been with the Network ever since--for over 29 years.

Career Milestones

Jim achieved has Million Dollar Round Table membership 31 times since his first year with Northwestern Mutual. He earned the Certified Life Underwriter (CLU) designation within 7 years of being in the business. He wrote 100 lives a year for 13 years of his career--an important milestone to Jim.

An industry veteran, Jim has achieved Life Member of the Million Dollar Round Table 8 times since 1987.

Katherine Forrester Wirth, CLU®, ChFC®

Wealth Management Advisor

Katherine joined the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network as a Financial Representative in 1996. Since that time, she has helped over 700 clients by using financial solutions tailored to their needs and goals. She is a Qualifying Member of the Million Dollar Round Table (2001-2007). In 2002, she received the Jack G. Brown award, which recognizes a Columns Resource Group representative who embodies personal, community and business success. She was the youngest recipient and first woman ever to be given that award. She also received a Northwestern Mutual Community Service Award in 2001 for her volunteer efforts at University Good Samaritan Center, where she continues to serve on the board of directors.

Johan Gjenvick

Financial Representative

Johan Gjenvick attended St. Cloud State University with a major in Communication Studies with an emphasis in Rhetoric. Johan started with Northwestern Mutual Financial Network in June of 2006 as an Intern. During his Internship, Johan's many achievements included: Power of 10 and Target 20. Johan was also invited to attend Winter Camp in December of 2006 and 2007 where only the top 100 interns were invited. Johan earned his full-time status with Northwestern Mutual Financial Network in July of 2008. A lifetime resident of Minnesota, Johan currently lives in Maple Grove with his wife Laura and daughter Sidney.

Chris Hasling

Financial Representative

From Student to Financial Representative

 
Prior to becoming a financial representative, Chris was a student at the University of Minnesota Carlson School. The financial services industry was in his genes through family ties, but he still had not foreseen working in the financial services industry.

When he learned that the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network had a top 10 internship program and because he always had the desire to run with the best, he pursued the internship and hasn't looked back since.

The Career 
When asked about his career, Chris states: "I'm in a great industry. I'm with a great organization. It is a no-brainer to say that I feel this is the last great sales career in the world."
 

Jeffrey Thomas Johnson

Financial Representative

Larwin Kauffman

College Unit Director

From Internship to Full-time Representative

 
Larwin Kauffman was a student at the University of Minnesota, communication studies department. He took four different internships in college to help determine his career. He was looking for the right atmosphere. He had early success with the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network internship, feeling well prepared at the end, and felt ready to become a full-time financial representative.  Larwin has been a full-time representative since September of 2006.

Larwin finds the greatest reward in his career is building relationships " He feels the philosophy in dealing with clients for so many other companies is "How much money can I make off this person?" where he believes Northwestern Mutual's philosophy is "How much can we help this person?"


 

Brian Kelly

Financial Representative

Professional

Brian Kelly came to the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network after spending five years with C.H. Robinson. After spending some time searching for a more fulfilling career, he decided that working with Northwestern Mutual would allow him to work with people he enjoys and have a significant impact on their lives.

 
Career Advice
 
"This career gives you an opportunity, if you have an entrepreneurial spirit. It's cliche but true--You are in business for yourself but not by yourself. I can't imagine starting a business on my own trying to implement the space, phones, computers, maintenance, etc. The infrastructure is in place, all you need to do is work. Why not take the path of least resistance?"
 

Dave Klein

Financial Representative

Intern to Full-time Representative

David Klein was a student and member of a finance club on the University of Minnesota campus when Terry McTigue gave a class talk on the NMFN internship program. What drew him to the career were the entrepreneurial opportunities and unlimited income potential.

Career Milestones

David has won the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network's Pacesetter 40 Award, Pacesetter 2nd 60 Award, the Mike Gish Award, Power of 10 intern award, and the Columns Resource Group's New Representative of the Year award. He hopes to qualify soon for the Million Dollar Round Table and eventually for Northwestern Mutual's Forum.

Career Advice

For those considering the career David offers, "Follow everything your mentors and coaches say. Don't try to fight the system because the lessons they teach you and numbers you need to be successful truly work." 


 

Cort Lundeen

Financial Representative

Cort has been helping individuals achieve financial security as a Financial Representative since 1998. He is a member of NAIFA, and was a recipient of the National Quality Award (2002-2003, 2005-2007). He has bachelors' degree in finance from the University of WI-River Falls.

Thomas Schwebach, CLU®, ChFC®

Financial Advisor

Tom has provided client-focused solutions for business, personal, charitable, trust and estate purposes since 1977. His expertise speaks for itself: Million Dollar Round Table membership 19 times since 1980, among the Prestigious Top 20 in the company for Long-term Care Insurance (2003-2004), among the Prestigious Top 5 in the Central Region for LTC (2004), featured in Sports Illustrated, Newsweek, and U.S. News and World Report ads. Tom has the CLU designation, is a member of NAIFA, and is past president of Physician's Nationwide, a national organization specializing in personal needs analysis for the affluent professional. He's an Eden Prairie Soccer Club coach and a trainer for the MN Youth Soccer Association's Olympic Development Program.

Jacob Storms

Financial Representative

Jake Storms has a background in financial services. Northwestern Mutual has allowed him to use his knowledge to help families and businesses achieve financial security. Has been a full-time representative since Spring 2007.

 

Josh Storms, CLU®, ChFC®

Disability Income Specialist

Josh Storms has been a financial representative with The Columns Resource Group since 1997. As a disability income insurance specialist, he works with other financial representatives to educate consumers about the need for disability income insurance and the complexity of insurance offerings. He has earned his Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) and Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) designations. He qualified for the Million Dollar Round Table in 2003 and 2005. Storms is a member of the Eden Prairie Chamber of Commerce, is active in Rotary International, is a board member of the St. Francis Hospital Foundation, and volunteers for Meals on Wheels. He has a bachelor's degree in illustration from Pratt Institute, New York.

Timothy Weigel

Financial Representative