The Churchman Group at Morgan Stanley

Joe has spent the majority of his career working closely with retirement plan sponsors as well as their employees, giving him the skills to serve both our corporate clients and their participants. His experience in plan design options not only provides our plan sponsors tailored solutions for an effective retirement plan, but it affords their participants easy access to a successful retirement. In addition, Joe maintains our clients’ fiduciary audit files and periodically benchmarks each retirement plan for services and fees. In 2016 and 2017, Joe was named by the National Association of Plan Advisors as a "Young Gun"— a Top Retirement Plan Advisor Under 40.

Joe began his career in 2008 and has earned several industry designations, including the Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist. He is a member of the National Association of Plan Advisors. Joe attended Hanover College and earned a bachelor of arts in economics. While at Hanover, he excelled as a pitcher for the baseball team and holds five school records for his efforts. Still very involved in athletics, he has begun coaching his own children, as he and his wife, Leah, have five: Joey, Ray, Louisa, Teddy and Willa.

Joe began working with Corporate Retirement clients over 25 years ago and has been a recognized leader in that field of practice ever since. He holds the C(k)P^® industry designations and was twice recognized by PLANSPONSOR magazine on its Top 100 Retirement Plan Advisors list. Most recently, Joe was named a 2015 Top 401 Retirement Plan Advisor by the Financial Times.
"Each client gives us the opportunity and responsibility to directly affect the retirement income of hundreds of hardworking employees," Joe proudly acknowledges, "something we take very seriously."
Understanding both the goals and the fears of employees help Joe and his team to prepare both successful investment menus and communication campaigns to help each employee better utilize the plan to advance toward those goals and alleviate those fears.
Joe, who earned his B.S. in business from Indiana University in 1977, has been actively involved in coaching youth sports, has held leadership roles in local hospital and school advisory boards, and enjoys a good round of golf. He and his wife, Connie, have been married since 1978 and have three grown children, and are

Liam N. Smith, CRPC^® Financial Advisor, joined the financial services industry in 2011 and has been with Morgan Stanley since 2014. A native of Toronto, Canada, Liam moved to the United States to pursue athletics in college and has since transformed his passion for training himself and others into a rewarding career coaching clients to meet their financial goals. Liam is dedicated to providing clients with multi-dimensional solutions for their complex challenges, utilizing his own experience in conjunction with the advanced resources available at Morgan Stanley.

As a member of The Churchman Group at Morgan Stanley, Liam focuses on enhancing and preserving the financial picture of his clients, guiding them through both expected and extraordinary life events. Liam takes great satisfaction in alleviating financial stress for his clients and always puts his client’s needs at the forefront of his financial planning service model.

Liam earned his undergraduate degree from Saint Francis University (Pa) and went on to achieve his graduate degree from Lehigh University. Liam is a former collegiate track athlete, collegiate-level coach, and current avid Toronto and Indianapolis sports fan. Today, Liam resides in the Broad Ripple/Meridian Kessler area of Indianapolis with his wife Katie and three daughters, Charlie, Zoey, and Serena.

Kyle joined the firm in 2019 as a Financial Planner for the Indianapolis Complex and surrounding offices. He transitioned to the Financial Advisor role in 2022. His focus is helping individuals and families navigate life’s financial complexities through planning. He holds Series 7, 66 and is currently pursuing a Certified Financial Planner designation. Kyle is a graduate of Purdue University with a bachelor’s degree in Consumer Sciences. In his previous career, he spent ten years in management and felt pulled to a career in finance. This change allowed him to continue his desire for helping people and pursue a professional passion.
Kyle loves to spend quality time with his wife Ashley and two girls Madilyn and Maren. In his free time, he enjoys playing soccer, golf, and mountain biking.

Drawing on more than 30 years of industry experience, Carla Kavanaugh provides a wide range of specialized services for clients of The Churchman Group. She is responsible for all client service activity and overlooks the team's administrative and operational issues as they relate to client accounts, online services and regulatory compliance.
Carla began her career in Operations in 1982. She enjoys working directly with clients and strives to always provide an excellent service experience. As an Associate Vice President with her FINRA Series 7, 63 and 66 securities licenses, she is able to execute trades for clients when the group's Financial Advisors are not available.