William J. Cerynik
William has more than two decades of experience in financial services. He joined Ashton Thomas in 2016.
William’s early career focused on corporate finance and banking. After completing the institutional training program at Chemical Bank, a predecessor of JP Morgan Chase, in New York City in 1995, William held a variety of roles within large financial institutions and fortune 100 companies. His experience included financial statement analysis, mergers and acquisitions, fixed income products, and enterprise technology solutions.
With a vision to help individuals using the knowledge he acquired, William turned to financial planning as a career in 2005. “I found more gratification helping regular people solve real-world financial problems. The rewards were noticeable and personal.”
William joined Waddell & Reed Financial, quickly ascending from Financial Advisor to District Manager with direct responsibility for training and mentoring new advisors. After becoming a key part of the regional leadership team in eastern Pennsylvania, he started a satellite office for the firm, the first ever at Waddell & Reed to be co-branded with a property and casualty insurance agency. When an opportunity arose to reevaluate his business model, William decided to move the office away from the “captive” career system and affiliate with Cambridge Investment Research, an independent broker-dealer.
An opportunity to restructure a regional office for a mid-sized RIA led William to Arizona in 2015. “For some time, I was looking to relocate geographically. When the opportunity arose somewhat unexpectedly, I went for it.” Today, William calls Scottsdale home, both personally and professionally.
William has been on the board of the Financial Planning Association of Greater Phoenix since 2016 and was Chapter President in 2022. He previously served on the national Financial Planning Association® (FPA®) Advisory Council Executive Committee and the FPA® Technology Task Force. He has also been a contributor to various financial industry publications.
In his leisure time, William enjoys golf, mountain biking, skiing, traveling, following geopolitics, and hosting friends and family. He shares his passion for life with his “better half,” Tori, whom he married in 2020. Together, they have a son named Larston. William also has four adult sons—Liam, Lance Logan, and Lucas—who are at various levels of early work pursuits and higher education.