The Burbank Group

Mike Burbank , CFP, CIMA, Founder of The Burbank Group is a Managing Director and Private Wealth Advisor with the Private Wealth Management division of Morgan Stanley. Mike leads the team and draws on almost forty years of experience as an investor, financial planner and trusted advisor to founders and their families. The son of a Marine Corps fighter pilot who went on to co-found Bristol Farms and a speech pathologist, Mike earned a B.S. in Marine Biology at the University of California Santa Barbara where he played on the Division 1 Men’s volleyball team and made a career shift from marine biology to private wealth management in 1983.

Mike sits on the Director's Council of NCEAS, The National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis at UCSB, www.nceas.ucsb.edu and was the President of the Board of Directors of Seacology, an international conservation organization www.seacology.org, and a Founding Board Member of Naturally Bay Area, www.naturallybayarea.org.

The Burbank Group at Morgan Stanley was recognized as one of Barron's Top 250 Private Wealth Management Teams for 2024, and named to Forbes Magazine 2025 list of America’s Best-in-State Wealth Management Teams, ranking #14 for California – San Francisco. Mike Burbank has been recognized as one of the Top 400 Advisors in the United States by the Financial Times every year from 2013 through 2020, by Forbes Magazine 2025 list of America’s Best-in-State Wealth Advisors, ranking #13 for California, and the Barron’s list of America’s Top 1,200 Advisors: 2025 State-by-State, ranked #84 in California.

A voracious reader, avid scuba diver, enthusiastic (but mediocre) surfer, and rabid Golden State Warriors fan, Mike, his wife Cindy, and their thirteen-pound Cavapoo “Maverick” split their time between San Francisco and Manhattan Beach and visits to their three adult children, Ryan, Grace and Maya.

2024 Barron's Top 250 Private Wealth Management Teams Source: barrons.com (Awarded May 2024) Data compiled by Barron's for the period Jan 2023-Dec 2023.

2025 Forbes Best-In-State Wealth Management Teams Source: Forbes.com (Awarded Jan 2025) Data compiled by SHOOK Research LLC based on time period from 3/31/23-3/31/24.
Awards Disclosures

Forbes Best-In-State Wealth Advisors
Source: Forbes.com (Awarded April 2025) Data compiled by SHOOK Research LLC based on time period from 6/30/23 - 6/30/24.

Barron's Top 1,200 Financial Advisors: State-by-State
Source: Barron's.com (Awarded Mar 2025) Data compiled by Barron's based on time period from Sept 2023- Sept 2024.

2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 Financial Times 400 Top Financial Advisors
Source: ft.com. Data compiled by the Financial Times based the following time periods:
Awarded 2020; data 6/30/16 - 6/30/19
Awarded 2019; data 6/30/15 - 6/30/18
Awarded 2018; data 6/30/15 - 6/30/17
Awarded 2017; data 9/30/14 - 9/30/16
Awarded 2016; data 9/30/13 - 9/30/15
Awarded 2015; data 9/30/13 - 9/30/14
Awarded 2014; data 9/30/12 - 9/30/13
Awarded 2013; data as of 12/31/12

©2022 Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC. Member SIPC.
Securities Agent: MD, MN, MO, NC, NH, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TX, UT, VA, VI, WA, WI, WY, ME, IN, AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, HI, ID, IL, KY, MA; BM/Supervisor; General Securities Representative; Investment Advisor Representative; Managed Futures
NMLS#: 1268245
CA Insurance License #: 0A32861

Scott is Chief Investment Officer for the team, chairs our Investment Committee, and has primary responsibility for researching, implementing, and monitoring investment plans for our clients.

Scott and Mike teamed up almost 20 years ago, and he brings his experience as an options trader at Fidelity, an analyst at UBS and Hambrecht & Quist, the Chartered Financial Analyst’s designation (CFA), a BA degree from the University of Utah, and a prodigious memory to the task.

In 2015, 2017, and 2018, Scott was recognized by the Financial Times as one of the Top 400 Financial Advisors in the United States.

Scott and his family live in Santa Monica and, when not working, can usually be found at the beach or in the mountains, surfing, camping, climbing, or skiing.

2015, 2017, 2018 Financial Times 400 Top Financial Advisors
Source: ft.com. Data compiled by the Financial Times based the following time periods:
Awarded 2018; data 6/30/15 - 6/30/17
Awarded 2017; data 9/30/14 - 9/30/16
Awarded 2015; data 9/30/13 - 9/30/14

Willis is Director of Financial Planning for The Burbank Group. He’s a thoughtful planner, a patient investor, and an enthusiastic educator. Willis graduated summa cum laude from Hampden-Sydney College with degrees in Mathematical Economics and Spanish and has held the Chartered Financial Analyst™ (CFA^®) since 2015. Willis has over 14 years of Private Wealth experience. Prior to joining the Burbank Group, he worked with Morgan Stanley’s Wealth Strategies Group in New York City and in our Washington, DC PWM office.

Willis enjoys trail running, skiing, and lacrosse. He is an avid reader, and his favorite books include "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway, Marcus Aurelius’ "The Meditations", and "A Random Walk Down Wall Street" by Burton Malkiel. Willis has been an animal lover his entire life, supporting causes like The Marymont Foundation, The SPCA, and The Grey Muzzle Organization. Originally from Virginia, Willis and his wife now live in Marin.


Securities Agent: DC, CA, WI, WA, VA, UT, TX, SC, PA, OR, OK, OH, NY, NV, NJ, NH, NC, MO, MN, MD, MA, KY, IL, ID, HI, FL, DE, CT, CO, AZ, AR, AL; General Securities Representative; Investment Advisor Representative
Securities Agent: AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, HI, ID, IL, IN, MA, MD, MT, ME, MN, MO, NC, NH, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TX, UT, VA, VI, WA, WI, WY, AL; General Securities Representative; Investment Advisor Representative
NMLS#: 1999061

Helen Donnelly has joined as a Private Wealth Advisor Associate to broaden and deepen the team’s financial planning experience and bandwidth. Prior to joining the Burbank Group, Helen was Head of Client Strategy for the Ultra-High Net Worth Planning Team. In this role, she counseled advisors and their ultra-high net worth clients with more than $25 million in investable assets on strategies that bridge financial planning and investing decisions, including asset allocation and asset location, private equity, concentrated positions, executive compensation and pre-liquidity planning.

Helen joined Morgan Stanley in 2016 as part of the firm’s Rotational Analyst Program. She graduated from Cornell University and holds a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations. Helen currently lives in Manhattan with her husband but they are planning a move to the West Coast! Helen enjoys reading, cooking, and trying new restaurants.

Cate is a Senior Vice President and Group Director within the Private Wealth Management Division of Morgan Stanley. Cate oversees client service, money manager implementation, trade execution and restricted stock clearance for the Burbank Group.

Cate has 23 years Private Wealth experience and began working with Mike Burbank while at Montgomery Securities in 1998. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley Cate received a B.S. in Business Management and Biology from the University of California, Davis.

Cate and her family live in San Francisco, California.

Suzy is responsible for assisting the Burbank Group with client services and operations including portfolio reporting, alternative investment implementation, tax reporting, and trade execution.

Suzy has 8 years Private Wealth experience and began working with the Burbank Group in 2018 after receiving a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Texas at Dallas.

After escaping San Francisco’s fog during Covid, Suzy and her boyfriend Mark moved to Dallas where they love spending time with friends and family, cuddling up with their sweet Pomeranian, Carlos, and searching for new shows to binge watch on Netflix or diving into old favorites like Ozark. Stranger Things and Squid Game.

Oscar is a Portfolio Associate within the Private Wealth Management Division of Morgan Stanley. Oscar is responsible for assisting the Burbank Group with client services and operations including account related services and trade execution.

Oscar has 20 years Private Wealth experience. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley in 2007, Oscar was at UBS Wealth Management.

Oscar received a Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration from San Diego State University.

Oscar and his partner reside in San Francisco, California.

Wes is a Wealth Management Analyst within the Private Wealth Management Division of Morgan Stanley. He serves as a point of contact for client inquiries/requests, trade execution, portfolio reporting and onboarding within the Burbank Group. Wes works closely with Scott and Willis to implement cash management needs and assists on investment and financial plans.

Wes joined the Burbank Group in 2022 from Graystone Consulting-Dallas – the institutional consulting business of Morgan Stanley – serving endowments and foundations, not-for-profits and charitable organizations. Prior to Morgan Stanley, Wes had his start in the financial industry serving high-net-worth clients as a Charles Schwab advisor.

Wes holds a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies with a concentration in Business Communication and Management from the University of Texas at Dallas.

Fun Fact: Wes and Suzy have known each other for nearly two decades – graduating from the same high school, earning degrees from the same university, and now on the same team contributing to an outstanding overall service experience for our clients.

Although Wes is a native to the Bay Area, he has spent a majority of his life in Texas. He currently resides in Dallas with his fiancée where they enjoy scoping out the newest restaurants in town and spending summers on the lake to get away from the Texas heat. And whenever schedules align and time allows, Wes and his friends are always ready to book their next international adventure.