PLANADVISER: How did you end up in the retirement advisory industry?
Huniak: After spending nearly 15 years in a variety of professional roles—including nonprofit organizations, education and legal offices—I reached a pivotal point in my life as a newly single mother and needed to build a stable, long-term career to support my family. Through a connection at Buckingham Strategic Wealth, I was encouraged to explore opportunities within the firm, which led me to a temporary retirement solutions specialist position. What began as an entry-level role quickly revealed something important about myself: I thrive at the intersection of people and processes. I enjoy solving problems, improving workflows and helping others succeed. Within a year and a half, I was leading projects, asking questions, seeking solutions and, ultimately, stepping into the operations manager role. That period required a great deal of determination and perseverance. Prior to becoming a manager, I worked full-time on the retirement team while maintaining a part-time job to make ends meet. Accepting the management position was the first time I was able to focus my energy on a single career path, and I fully embraced the opportunity. Like many in this industry, the retirement plan space found me. What I discovered, however, is that supporting people, building processes and creating clarity is truly where I belong.
PLANADVISER: What leadership skills are most important in operations today?
Huniak: I believe several qualities have been critical to my growth: tenacity, curiosity, humility and a commitment to continuous improvement. Our CEO, Adam Bierenbaum, often talks about “positive persistence,” and that mindset has stayed with me throughout my career. I’ve learned that asking questions is a strength and that the fear of appearing uninformed should never outweigh the desire to gain clarity and understanding. I also have a deep appreciation for the people around me. Success is never achieved alone, and I’ve found that the strongest outcomes come from collaboration and learning from others. Equally important is a commitment to simplicity. I often say that simplicity is hard-earned—if a process is still difficult to explain or to navigate, the work isn’t finished. We should always strive to leave things better than we found them. Leadership, in my view, is not tied to a title. It is reflected in how consistently we show up, treat others and model our values in every setting. One of the most impactful lessons I’ve learned is that you can fail at something and still be successful. As a recovering perfectionist, embracing that idea has been truly life-changing and has given me the confidence to keep learning, growing and taking on new challenges.
PLANADVISER: What motivates you and keeps you engaged in the retirement plan advisory industry?
Huniak: Thanks to the style of leadership on our team and within our company, I have been invited into building the business from Day 1 on our team—before I understood the big picture of what we wanted to build or what the bigger picture of our company footprint looked like. Let me tell you: Once you push through the unknown of something and finally see the other side, that feeling of “Wow, look at what we did” is incredible. There is nothing like it. That is what success feels like, and getting to be a part of building success is what I love most. We get to build an amazing “engine” that helps us serve our clients and support advisers well. It matters. Some people say “operations is not everything,” but when your operations can be seamless and efficient, everyone thrives, and building truly begins. Until that baseline is established, growth is just survival. Surviving is not thriving, and thriving is the goal. Everyone wants to feel good about their work at the end of the day, and we get to do that. Our team values each other. We know that we need all of us and our different strengths. We trust each other and we love what we do. We want everyone who works with us to feel that—to enjoy working with us—because when one of us succeeds, we truly all do.