Our Team

Jim Schlager, CFP

Running Point founder Jim Schlager brings more than 30 years of experience in financial planning, asset management, tax, trusts and estates, insurance, and business management to the establishment of a firm dedicated to his long-held vision: that clients are best served by integrating a team of financial services experts under a single roof. Families and families who own businesses are, after all, extremely busy. Jim’s foundational ethos is to make clients’ lives easier, while utilizing a team method to help them secure an abundant, well-planned future.

Clients can come to Running Point and meet with their CPA, CIO, investment advisor, insurance advisor, and even their estate planner, all under one roof in a multifamily office.

Jim’s ability to integrate and execute these offerings is the result of decades of expertise and experience. After co-founding Financial Security Group in Bellevue, Washington, he merged the company with one of the largest public accounting firms in the country, Moss Adams LLP, in 2001. The result of the merger was a wealth management firm ahead of its time—one that offered seamless, integrated services including financial planning, asset management, tax, insurance, and estate planning.

Subsequently, Jim launched and built the Financial Security Group inside the Moss Adams Los Angeles and Northern California offices, moved to Manhattan Beach, California, and grew the group steadily over the course of 18 years. During that time, the two entities fully merged to become Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC.

For many years, Jim helped clients thrive as he worked side-by-side with highly regarded Moss Adams CPAs and consultants in numerous industries and areas of expertise. All the while, Jim’s desire to create his own multifamily office grew.

In 2020, he launched Running Point Capital Advisors to realize his unique vision: a firm that comprises a team of financial experts to help families and family business owners achieve financial prosperity and security.

Jim and his family live in Manhattan Beach, California, where Jim is an active and engaged member of the community. As a resident and business owner, he is committed to community service and actively involved in local institutions. He has served on the boards of the Manhattan Beach Education Foundation and the South Bay Police and Fire Department Memorial Foundation. He is a former planning commissioner with the City of Manhattan Beach, and a member of Manhattan Beach Rotary.

Michael Ashley Schulman, CFA

As chief investment officer and a founding partner of Running Point Capital Advisors, Michael Ashley Schulman is responsible for Running Point’s global macro outlook, research, investment strategies, asset allocation, portfolio management, and impact and social assessments across public and private investments.

Michael brings to his role more than 20 years of institutional and high-net-worth portfolio management, research, trading, and asset allocation experience across fixed-income, equity, hedge fund, and private investment classes. He has built quantitative and fundamental models, implemented robo-approaches and custom indices with tax-loss harvesting, and managed a fixed-income arbitrage and multi-asset fund.

Prior to Running Point, Michael was a partner, managing director, senior portfolio manager, and hedge fund manager at Hollencrest Capital Management; vice president, collateralized debt obligation (CDO)/quantitative analysis specialist at Deutsche Bank; manager at Accenture; director of strategy at Open Ratings; and a portfolio manager at Pacific Income Advisors.

He has also effectively consulted for the World Federation of Exchanges, the Colombian Financial Exchange, and several high-tech firms, and has presented at forums and conferences in California, New York, Malaysia, Argentina, and Spain.

Michael served on the advisory board of an impact fund and is a past president and board member of the CFA Society of Orange County. In his spare time, he enjoys art and adventure travel, most recently island-hopping in Fiji and mountain biking in Mongolia to raise funds for underprivileged Mongolian children.

Liz deSousa, CFP, CDFA

As a senior financial advisor, Liz provides financial planning and advice, working with clients to develop strategies unique to their financial and personal goals. She coordinates all aspects of wealth management and collaborates with Running Point’s team of cross-disciplinary professionals to provide options and solutions for individual situations.

Liz began her career in the financial services industry in 2000 at Barclays Global Investors (now BlackRock) in the Consultant Resource Group. In 2002, she began working at Duckworth Wealth Advisors as part of a team of tax and financial planning professionals providing wealth management and personal office services to high-net-worth individuals and families. Liz was a client advisor and principal at the respected firm, which she helped to grow. In 2017, Duckworth was acquired by Mercer Advisors, where Liz continued working as an advisor with existing and new clients.

Liz is a Certified Financial Planner and a member of the Financial Planning Association. As a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA), one of Liz’s specialties is working with women experiencing a life transition, such as divorce or the death of a spouse. She wants clients to feel in control of their lives and their finances, freeing them to focus on enjoying life.

She also serves as a trustee for the Friends of the Girl Scouts Trust, an endowment fund created by the Girl Scouts of Orange County, and is a board member of WISE, a philanthropic educational organization that provides girls and women opportunities to learn about investing and personal finance.

Liz lives in Newport Beach with her husband and two boys. She is active in her children’s school and chaired its PTA Reflections Art Program for three years. Liz is also a member of Friends of CASA (FOCASA), a fundraising group dedicated to supporting CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) of Orange County. She has always enjoyed working with and helping young people, and is particularly passionate about giving at-risk children a chance to succeed in life.

Daniel Kerr, CFP

As a senior financial advisor, Daniel Kerr is responsible for managing client relationships as well as supporting the rest of the Running Point team. He specializes in financial planning as well as educating and serving clients with expert recommendations.

Daniel has been in the financial services industry for seven years, all working with registered investment advisor (RIA) firms. These included firms that ranged in size from $100 million to
$2 billion in assets under management. Drawing on that background, Daniel is able to provide personal, tailored advice to clients that utilizes the best processes of both smaller and larger firms.

Prior to Running Point Capital, Daniel was an associate advisor at Mission Wealth; financial advisor, associate advisor, and paraplanner at Moss Adams Wealth Advisors; and a paraplanner at LJCooper Wealth Advisors.

In his spare time, Daniel is often found on a golf course or exploring Ventura’s food and brewery scene with his wife and friends.

Daniel Israeli, CPA, CFP, CFA

In his role as Financial Service Advisor, Daniel Israeli prepares financial plans, cultivates client relationships, and delivers personalized investment solutions to help clients achieve their long-term financial goals.

Daniel has worked as a forensic accountant for PCG Consultants, a property accountant for MWest Holdings, and a tax staff accountant for Leo Berger & Associates.

Prior to joining Running Point Capital Advisors, Daniel was an advisor at Kennedy Wealth Management, where he specialized in comprehensive retirement planning and client relationship management for high-net-worth individuals and families.

Outside of the office, Daniel enjoys watching and playing football and basketball as well as reading and traveling.

Susan Lash, CPA

As the firm’s tax partner, Susan Lash heads up Running Point Tax and Consulting LLC. She specializes in working with closely held businesses and their owners in the areas of real estate, personal services, entertainment and sports, and high-net-worth tax planning. Over the years, Susan has worked with several family groups, handling multigenerational issues and tiered businesses. She also brings years of experience working with clients in the areas of estate planning and trust and estate administration, including the related tax-compliance work.

With a well-rounded background in income and estate taxation, Susan is skilled in helping clients and their business advisors optimize their income tax position toward preserving the wealth they have created. For more than two decades, Susan’s expertise in income tax and estate planning has helped clients reach their goals and achieve a well-planned transfer of their wealth.

Susan holds a CPA license in California. Prior to joining Running Point, Susan worked for more than 25 years as a tax principal and senior tax manager in large regional and local public accounting firms in Southern California.

Bo Hatakeyama

Bo brings more than 15 years of accounting experience to her role as Tax Supervisor for Running Point Tax and Consulting LLC. Her background includes public accounting and taxation experience in large regional public accounting firms in Southern California. She holds a BS in accounting from California State University, Northridge. At Running Point, she works with clients on year-end and quarterly reviews and financial statements as well as reviews and reconciliations of general ledger accounts. She provides a full range of tax services to high-net-worth individuals and privately held businesses in various industries such as retail, consumer business, professional services, and real estate. Outside the office, she loves reading and hanging out at South Bay beaches with her family.

Laura Lee

Laura’s role with Running Point Tax and Consulting LLC is to assist the team with analysis of client data and research toward the preparation of tax returns. A born cruncher of numbers, Laura comes to Running Point after 20 years of service in the federal government. In her most recent position, she was the Deputy Budget Officer for the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, within the Department of Health and Human Services’ National Institutes of Health. Among other duties in that role, she managed the preparation of the Institute’s annual congressional justification for presentation to Congress and was responsible for providing budget reports and data to the institute director, other government agencies, and to the public. She has a BS in accounting from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Jerry Schnaus, JD, CPA

As Running Point’s Tax & Succession Strategist, Jerry Schnaus focuses on the tax aspects of estate planning, including gift and generation-skipping taxes, children’s trusts, life insurance trusts, foreign trusts, and charitable giving. Jerry is also an attorney for Jerry Schnaus Law Firm, LLP, practicing tax, estate, and trust law. In his capacity with Running Point Capital Advisors, LLC, and its affiliates, he acts as an independent consultant only and does not practice law or accounting for Running Point Capital Advisors, LLC, and its affiliated companies.

Jerry assists Running Point clients with their trust administration matters, helps families continue their legacy while reducing taxes, and guides pass-through entities in their dissolution through merger, acquisition, or succession planning. He has also assisted numerous domestic and foreign clients in the private equity, real estate, construction, manufacturing and technology industries analyze, plan, model, and document partnership transactions.

Prior to starting his law firm, Jerry was a tax managing director at BDO, where he led private client services in Los Angeles. At a boutique law firm in Irvine, he advised on transaction structuring to acquire and finance various real estate ventures in a tax-efficient manner; drafted estate plans for high-net-worth individuals and their families; and worked on trust administration for various clients.

Allen Ahdoot

As Running Point’s Tax & Succession Strategist, Allen Ahdoot focuses on the tax aspects of estate planning, including gift and generation-skipping taxes, children’s trusts, life insurance trusts, foreign trusts, and charitable giving. Allen is also a tax manager for Schnaus Law Group, APC, practicing tax, estate, and trust law. In his capacity with Running Point Capital Advisors, LLC, and its affiliates, he acts as an independent consultant only and does not practice law or accounting for Running Point Capital Advisors, LLC, and its affiliated companies.

Allen assists Running Point clients with their trust administration matters, helps families continue their legacy while reducing taxes, and guides pass-through entities in their dissolution through merger, acquisition, or succession planning. He has also assisted numerous domestic and foreign clients in the real estate, apparel, technology, and manufacturing industries analyze, plan, model, and document their succession transactions.

Prior to joining the Schnaus Law Group he worked at a large national CPA firm in Los Angeles for 7 years. Allen provided tax compliance and consulting services primarily to middle-market companies and closely held businesses in the real estate, apparel, and manufacturing industries as well as related business owners and families.

Tracy Smith

Tracy joined Running Point after 15 years of managing her own accounting practice, where she worked with a variety of business sectors including real estate and construction. She takes equal pleasure in client interaction—building relationships and trust—and maintaining detailed records for daily and monthly reports. The mother of two is a former competitive weightlifter who still lifts for fitness and pleasure.

Rupali Evans

As our senior accountant, Rupali carefully interfaces with Running Point's wealth management, accounting, and tax teams to expertly manage the business affairs of high-net-worth clients. She handles day-to-day accounting for clients and works with the Running Point team to help them achieve their long-term goals.

Educated in India, Wales, and at UCLA, Rupali speaks Hindi and Punjabi as well as English. In the course of nine years of working in regional public accounting and business management, she has worked closely with entertainers, high-net-worth individuals, and small businesses. Outside of work she enjoys reading, watching sports, and, of course, our SoCal beaches.

Meena Pegany

Meena works closely with Running Point’s financial advisors in several capacities, including portfolio management, investment analysis, and financial planning to help clients meet their long-term goals. As a frequent liaison between clients and advisors, she exemplifies Running Point’s emphasis on personalized service. She gets to know clients well and responds promptly to their inquiries.

Meena brings nearly a decade of experience working for Registered Investment Advisory firms (RIA). She began her career with Churchill Management Group, helping manage a book of business for high-net-worth clients. She has also served as a client service associate at Edelman Financial Services and a senior associate at Camden Capital.

Prior to joining Running Point, Meena was part of the Wealth Operations Team at EP Wealth Advisors as a senior operations associate, where she helped process complex client accounts and ensure their accuracy.

She holds a BA in business management with an emphasis in finance from California State University, Fullerton and a Certified Financial Planning Certificate from the University of California, Irvine.

In her free time, she enjoys yoga, exploring LA restaurants, keeping up with current affairs, traveling, and living a healthy lifestyle.

Jacqueline Kuhns

Jackie is the Registered Representative for Running Point Capital Insurance Agency. She interacts frequently with investment and insurance clients and runs point for the firm’s Private Placement Life Insurance (PPLI) business. Jackie is a 14-year veteran of the financial services industry, having served as an assistant at SEIA Investment Advisors, operations associate at Northwestern Mutual, and senior investment operations associate at Prudential. She holds a BA in marketing from California State University, Northridge. A South Bay native, Jackie loves to travel and spoil her corgi, Lois.

Radell Edwards

Running Point tax clients are very likely to interact with the multitalented Radell Edwards, who manages operations for the tax department and assists with bookkeeping, invoicing, and accounts receivable duties. She brings more than 20 years of experience to the role, including six years with such accounting firms as Squar Milner. She has a BA in liberal arts/labor studies from California State University, Dominguez Hills as well as an AA in business from LA Harbor College and a vocational teaching credential in keyboard applications from Cal Poly Pomona. Away from the office, Radell dotes on her twin grandsons and volunteers for the Los Angeles Mission’s work with the homeless.