Our Team

Chief Investment Officer

Joseph E. Powers

Joseph (JP) Powers serves as chief investment officer for RWA Wealth Partners and as chief investment officer for Ropes Wealth Advisors. JP chairs the Investment Policy Committee of RWA and is also a member of the Executive Leadership Team of RWA Wealth Partners. JP is responsible for implementing and overseeing the firm’s overall investment strategy. He leads the Investment Team in making asset allocation decisions and directing investment and manager selection on behalf of all clients. JP also works directly with clients, apprising them of global economic and market activity and its implications for their specific and customized investment strategies. JP leverages his analytical abilities to drive key elements of the firm’s investment technology platform, including researching and implementing new systems and software to continually improve the efficiency of the investment trading platform and enhance the client experience of performance reporting.

Previously, JP was portfolio manager and director at Ropes Wealth Advisors. Prior to Ropes Wealth, he was the director of fixed income for Silver Bridge Advisors. As director of fixed income, JP focused on fixed income portfolio construction, research, and trading in both the taxable and tax-exempt fixed income sectors. Before joining the fixed income team, JP spent several years supporting the company’s equity research efforts as an analyst for the technology, telecommunications and consumer staples sectors while overseeing the firm’s equity trading desk. JP began his career with State Street Corporation.

JP earned an MBA from Boston University’s Questrom School of Business and a B.S. in business administration from the University of New Hampshire. He was the winner of the Sandra A. F. Harper award from the BU Questrom program, which honors the student who best exemplifies community contribution and leadership within the graduating class.

JP resides in Dover, MA, with his wife and young son, and he enjoys sports, travel, and spending time with his family and friends. He divides his time between Boston and New Hampshire whenever possible.

Director of Portfolio Management

Charlie Toole

Charlie is portfolio manager for RWA Wealth Partners’ dividend growth strategies, and he serves as a member of the firm’s Senior Investment Committee. He joined RWA Wealth Partners in 2017 upon its acquisition of Braver Wealth Management. An engineer by training, Charlie has more than a decade of investment experience, and his commentary on the economy, markets and dividend stocks has appeared in Barron’s, Forbes and Investor’s Business Daily. Prior to joining Braver in 2006, he held positions with Boston Engineering Corporation and Parametric Technology Corp. as a consultant to technology and manufacturing firms. He holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and an M.S. in mechanical engineering from Northeastern University. Charlie is a five-time recipient of Boston magazine’s Five Star Wealth Manager award. He earned his Chartered Financial Analyst^® designation in 2008 and has been a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional since 2011. He is a member of the CFA Institute and the Boston Securities Analysts Society (BSAS).

Senior Portfolio Manager

Matthew Erickson

Matt is a member of RWA Wealth Partners’ Wealth Investment Committee and functions as our senior portfolio manager. Prior to joining RWA Wealth Partners, Matt ran his own investment management firm, Renaissance Capital Management in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In 2014, Wiley published Matt’s first book, Asset Rotation, which discusses the burgeoning ETF marketplace and provides readers with the tools necessary to reduce risk and optimize returns in a managed ETF portfolio. Matt is a contributor to SeekingAlpha.com, and he has also been featured on MarketWatch.com and in InvestmentNews and Yahoo Finance, among others.

Matt received his Bachelor of Science in business administration from Colorado Technical University, graduating summa cum laude.

In his free time, Matt enjoys sports, playing piano and guitar, hiking, swimming, cycling, and spending quality time with family and friends. He currently lives in Canton, Michigan, with his daughter, Mackenzie and son, Jacob.

Associate Portfolio Manager

Zachary Ganz

As an Associate Portfolio Manager for RWA Wealth Partners, Zachary Ganz manages the RWA Global Opportunities strategy and provides analysis across the firm’s investment platform with a special focus on the financial and information technology sectors.  He is a member of RWA Wealth Partners’ Investment Team.

Previously, Zachary was head of trading and a research analyst for Polaris Wealth Advisory Group until its acquisition by RWA Wealth Partners in 2022. Before joining Polaris, he served as a consultant specializing in finance, where he advised various departments at a major European bank and one of the world’s largest pension funds.

Zachary received his BS in economics from Lund University in Sweden, which consistently ranks in the top 100 QS World University Rankings.

In his spare time, Zachary enjoys cooking, exercising and scuba diving with his wife Sandra.

Partner, Wealth Advisor

Stephen Johnson

Steve joined RWA Wealth Partners in 2017 upon its acquisition of Braver Wealth Management. Steve started his investment career with Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and spent 14 years at Charles Schwab overseeing individual clients’ planning, portfolio design and allocation strategies. He was a frequent presenter at Schwab seminars and has spoken before national audiences about issues and opportunities in the markets. In 2023, Steve was honored in Boston magazine for the 10th time as a Five Star Wealth Manager. He has been quoted by Boston magazine, The Boston Globe, USA Today and The Washington Post. Steve holds a B.A. from the University of Vermont and is a magna cum laude graduate of the University of Maine School of Law. Admitted to the Massachusetts Bar, he spent a year with Bowditch & Dewey before realizing that his financial cases were the most interesting, precipitating his career change. He has been a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional since 2012.

Associate Portfolio Manager, Alternatives

Josh Jurbala

Josh is responsible for managing the firm’s tactical strategies, and he works alongside the fundamental research team to provide quantitative support for fund research, portfolio construction and analysis. Josh began his career with RWA Wealth Partners after graduating from Northeastern University in 2013 and worked in the firm’s operations department before joining the research team in 2016. During that time, Josh continued his education by completing an M.S. in finance from Pace University, primarily focused on applying technical and statistical analysis to investing in financial markets. Josh also works with Jim Lowell on the Fidelity Sector Investor newsletter, serving as senior quantitative and technical analyst.

Research Analyst

Gabe Reale

Gabe is a research analyst at RWA Wealth Partners. He is responsible for both fund and individual equity research. Prior to starting with RWA Wealth Partners in 2022, he worked as a fund accountant at Advent International, a global private equity firm.

Gabe received his B.S. in finance from Roger Williams University’s Gabelli School of Business. He is an avid sportsman and particularly enjoys lacrosse, golf and skiing.

Research Analyst

Rowan Niemela

Rowan is a research analyst at RWA Wealth Partners. He is responsible for individual equity research, data analysis and providing insights to support the investment management team’s decision-making process. Prior to joining RWA in 2025, he worked as an equity research associate for Manning & Napier, an asset manager based in Rochester, NY.

Rowan received his B.S. in financial economics from the University of Rochester. In his free time, he loves to play sports, particularly basketball and golf, and read fiction novels.

Trading Operations Associate

Anne-Beth Athey