Plan for What’s Next
Formerly our Retirement Planning Seminar.
Meet our experts
We’re excited to bring together experts in both the financial and non-financial aspects of retirement planning to speak at our seminar.
Chief Executive Officer, RPB
About Michael
Michael Kimmel joined RPB as executive director in 2015 and became its chief executive officer in 2019. He has overseen the addition of many new initiatives and enhancements, including target date funds, the Reform Jewish Values Stock Fund, expanded eligibility, a new full-scale branding and communications program, and the redesign and launch of a new online portal for participants and employers.
The Reform Movement has been Michael’s professional home since 2005. During that time, he held executive positions with the Union for Reform Judaism and Congregation Rodeph Sholom in New York City. Before 2005, Michael worked in the for-profit sector in finance and management consulting at firms that include Ernst & Young and Arthur Andersen. He holds an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business and a BS from the University at Albany. He lives in the New York area with his wonderful wife and two incredible daughters.
Director of Rabbinic Education and Support Services, CCAR
About Rabbi Betsy
Rabbi Betsy Torop was ordained at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, OH in 1990. Following her ordination, Rabbi Torop served as a rabbi in Melbourne, Australia for 8 years, first as an assistant rabbi at Temple Beth Israel and then with her husband, Rabbi Michael Torop, at the Leo Baeck Centre. Upon returning to the United States, Rabbi Torop served as the Director of Jewish Life and Learning at the Sid Jacobson Jewish Community Center in Roslyn, NY and as Rabbi at Congregation Shir Shalom in Bradenton, FL before becoming the Rabbi at Congregation Beth Shalom in 2003. Rabbi Torop has contributed a study guide on Pirke Avot to the UAHC Significant Jewish Books Initiative and a commentary on Exodus, Chapter 1 to Beginning the Journey: Toward a Women’s Commentary on Torah. She is a past chair of the CCAR Convention and has previously served as a CCAR board member and dues chair. She is the mother of three children
Founder, Or Chadash
About Rabbi Steven
Rabbi Kaye brings decades of experience as a congregational rabbi, chaplain, educator, and consultant. As the founder of Or Chadash, he has coached over 200 synagogue professionals and worked with more than 80 congregations to strengthen governance, clarify leadership roles, and elevate communal life. His facilitation style is warm, focused, inclusive, and firmly rooted in Jewish values and best practices from the nonprofit and business sectors.
Director of Participant and Employer Services, RPB
About Robert
Robert is a trusted and respected partner to our participants and employers as he oversees all aspects of our relationship management.
Robert began his career as an attorney in Philadelphia before moving to New York City. Before joining RPB in 2016, he spent 16 years in the financial services industry managing investor relations and fundraising for global private equity firms. Robert has a BS in economics from Allegheny College and JD from Temple Law School.
Workplace Financial Consultant, Fidelity Investments
About Dennis
Dennis Gump, a Fidelity Workplace Financial Consultant, has more than 10 years with the company. He was previously an investment education consultant with the Fidelity Employee Meeting group for the North-East region. Dennis promotes wellness for plan participants through one-on-one planning and educational events. He is a Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor, investment advisor representative, registered securities representative, and licensed insurance representative.
Partner, Peer, Gan & Gisler LLP
About Michael
Michael J. Gan is a labor and employment law attorney and managing partner at Peer, Gan & Gisler LLP in Washington, DC, and has been representing labor unions and professionals in collective bargaining, litigation, and contract negotiations for 25 years. He also maintains a significant practice working with Reform rabbis and other Jewish professionals in a wide variety of employment matters. Michael’s essay, “Women Rabbis and the Gender Pay Gap: Lessons from the CCAR’s 2012 Landmark Study and a Call to Action” was published in the 2016 National Jewish Book Award-Winner, The Sacred Calling: Four Decades of Women in the Rabbinate, from the CCAR Press. Michael is a graduate of the University of Michigan and the Boston University School of Law.
Founder & President, Rest-of-Life Communications
About Steve
Steve Vernon, F.S.A., is president of Rest-of-Life Communications, where he speaks, writes, and conducts research on the most challenging aspects of retirement, including finances, health, and lifestyle. He previously served for nine years as a consulting research scholar at the Stanford Center on Longevity. He retired as a vice president of Watson Wyatt Worldwide after a more than 30-year career helping Fortune 1000 employers design, manage, and communicate their retirement programs.
Steve has written more than 1,000 online columns on retirement and longevity topics for CBS MoneyWatch and Forbes.com over a 12-year period. His latest book, released in 2020, is Don’t Go Broke in Retirement: A Simple Plan to Build Lifetime Retirement Income.