Our Team

Having graduated from San Diego State’s School of Business, my passion for helping people and building close relationships led me to years of work in the fields of accounting and investment real estate. After searching for the perfect fit for my life, I was led to join a team climbing Denali (Mt. McKinley) in Alaska. After two weeks on the glacier, it was summit day. Having little oxygen, committing step-by-step through rough terrain, and climbing with pick axes and ever-changing weather, I found myself at 19,500 feet, struggling with altitude sickness. I was abandoned by my team who wanted to summit in spite of my condition. Without the timely help of some Austrian climbers who found me and took me down 2,500 feet, I would not have survived. My journey provided an epiphany. Without the help of caring individuals who look out for your well-being, we often struggle and sometimes don’t make it. The same can be said in the financial arena. Without caring wealth managers who put their clients’ needs first and create a plan to meet their unique goals, people can be misled and mismanaged. 

I established Powell Financial Group in 1987, more than 35 years ago, with the motto “We Take the Time to Listen.” Powell Financial Group is staffed with a caring, well-educated staff who work hard each day to provide independent advice, complex analysis, and active management of our clients’ accounts. With a constantly changing landscape of political and financial change, keeping abreast of trends is crucial to providing top advice to our clientele. 

Erin, my wife of 38 years, is my soulmate. She has been supporting me through years of working long hours, building a firm, and meeting the needs of people through wealth advising and charitable work all over the country. We are the proud parents of four children. Our older daughter, Sierra, is married and works for our firm as our Technology and Account Services Manager. She and her husband provided us with our first grandchild, a girl named Kensington Wren. Our older son, Steven, graduated from CSU Chico with a degree in animation and video game design. He is living in Boulder, Colorado, and is polishing up his portfolio to enter the workforce. Our younger daughter, Carolina, is a talented pastry chef, having worked in several high-end restaurants in Southern California. She resides in Idaho, enjoying nature and exploring various opportunities. Our younger son, Michael, is a sergeant in the U.S. Army, serving as a medic/paratrooper, and has graduated from Army Ranger School. He is stationed in Anchorage, Alaska.

I love giving back to our local and global communities, especially together with our clients. Along with my family, friends, and clients, we have worked together to build new homes for families in Mexico and the Conejo Valley. We also give back to a local charity called My Stuff Bags. They help foster children and local victims of fires with needed personal items, toys, blankets, and stuffed animals, which are put in duffle bags and delivered to foster homes and shelters. My Stuff Bags is close to my heart since three of our four children are adopted. In addition, I support various non-profits that protect endangered species, save forests and land, and help keep our oceans clean. In my spare time, I work on my golf game, spend time traveling to see the world I strive to protect, and learn photography to record the memories.

 

 

Hello there!

My name is Iris Ilao. I’m a wealth manager and Certified Retirement Counselor^® (CRC^®) at Powell Financial Group. I am passionate about building long-term, meaningful client relationships, and helping clients identify, pursue, and achieve a life that brings fulfillment and joy. Additionally, through the development and implementation of value-added financial planning services, my efforts are focused on helping shape the vision for the future of our firm.

While living in New York as a college student and sorting through the financial implications of private university tuition, I was fortunate enough to have been recruited to the field of finance at the young age of 19, over 20 years ago. I started in the business through true grit immersion—marketing and selling life insurance as a means of paying for my expenses as a young adult. As I made my way through the insurance industry, I realized that I had a profound desire to help people align their finances with their values and purpose so they can live their greatest lives. It was then that I decided to pursue entrepreneurship and a career as a financial advisor. 

I learned the value of a good work ethic, perseverance, and building relationships by assisting in small businesses owned by my parents. My personal entrepreneurial endeavors include an HOA commercial landscaping business, a photography business, a gift shop/mailbox store, and rental properties. The experiences I’ve had as a business owner are invaluable and translate into additional resources for clients who share my entrepreneurial drive. 

In my personal life, family is most important to me. My husband, Alex, and I enjoy watching our kids, Christopher (11), Jordan (7), and Savannah (3) play and grow. In 2018, we began our journey as a foster and adoptive family, and since then have become advocates for foster kids. We help raise awareness of the need for “resources” and/or foster families. Inspired by David and Erin Powell’s story as adoptive parents, I too wish to inspire others to open their hearts and homes to children. If you’d like to hear about our experience as a foster and adoptive family, I’d be happy to share our story with you over a cup of coffee!

Standing by the importance of investing not just in one’s own future, but in society’s as well, I support and volunteer for various charitable organizations. I am a board director of Ventura County's emerging children's museum, kidSTREAM, and sit on the board alongside some of the most distinguished members of our local community. We all share the common desire to inspire and empower kids of Ventura County to become critical thinkers, innovators, and lifelong learners.

In my most fulfilling role as a volunteer, I mentored a “little sister” through Big Brothers Big Sisters for 10 years and helped my “little sister” achieve her goal of being the first person in her family to graduate from high school! 100 Women Who Care Conejo Valley, Childfund, Compassion International, The Conejo Valley Village, Raising Hope, Organic Soup Kitchen, and Lighthouse Church are other organizations I support. If interested, I’d love for you to join me in volunteering one day. 

When I’m not helping clients or giving back to the community, you may find me reading a book or napping for relaxation and camping, traveling, or cooking for fun!

Hi! My name is Sierra, and I am the technology and account services manager for Powell Financial Group. I attended a small liberal arts college where I majored in art with minors in religion and dance. I also played for the soccer team and spent many hours playing other sports like Ultimate Frisbee and performing for our dance productions. After graduating with a BA, I had a series of unrelated jobs for the next six years. The most relevant of which was my position at Apple, Inc., as a technical specialist. This position afforded me a wide range of technical knowledge and customer service, which has helped me easily integrate into my role at PFG.

Another of my career possibilities was as a travel consultant. I have always been enthusiastic about traveling and visiting other countries. I am proud to have visited 30 countries and 28 states. I hope to continue adding to these numbers throughout my life. The countries that have always spoken to me are Germany, Scotland, and Ireland, although London is the only city in the world I would ever consider living in.

While working for Apple, I also worked a second job where I met my husband in 2016. We have been married since 2018 and have a beautiful daughter who was born in February of 2021, right after I began working for PFG. We live a quiet life along with three cats and two dogs and enjoy being homebodies, reading for book clubs, playing video games, and watching TV and movies. As if we didn’t sound nerdy enough, we also spend a lot of time at Renaissance Faires and even spent a few years working in a sword booth at our home faire.

While I may not see you in the office, I am glad for the opportunity to work remotely so that I can spend time with my family.