As a financial advisor with over three decades of experience helping clients, Jim Deutsch views himself as a holistic financial planner who creates plans to help clients achieve their life goals. He leverages his extensive financial services experience and a network of competent teammates, including attorneys, CPAs, and insurance professionals, to help his clients answer their financial concerns and questions. Jim is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional and graduated from the University of Missouri – Columbia with a BS in Consumer and Family Economics. He earned a master’s degree in Finance from Webster University and is a graduate of the Securities Industry Institute at Wharton School of Business.
As President and CEO of Smith Moore, Jim leverages more than 30 years of industry experience with a significant record of results relating to organizational development, process improvement, audit performance, portfolio management, compliance, and client service. He is a bold, decisive leader with a proud reputation, strong work ethic, and a passion to improve performance at all levels of the organization.
Jim re-energized the organization and raised business standards by bolstering leadership, tightening financial controls, hiring new talent, and always striving to ensure regulatory compliance. His vision has driven broader utilization of improved technologies while consolidating two St. Louis offices into one central, prestigious location. Jim became a shareholder in 1999, was appointed to the Board of Directors in 2001, and was named President and CEO in 2003. Under his leadership, the firm has experienced revenue growth each year and has seen client assets increase from $400 million to over $3.8 billion. The firm has also expanded its footprint under Jim’s tenure, with eleven branch offices in Missouri, Illinois, Kansas, and Mississippi. Jim also manages a book of business with over $225 million in client assets.
Jim was a 2008 recipient of the St. Louis Business Journal’s prestigious “Forty Under 40” award and received the Distinguished Service Award from the University of Missouri – Columbia in 2016. Jim concurrently serves on the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) Board of Directors and SIFMA Private Client Group (PCG) Sub Committee, the Advisory Board for the Personal Financial Planning Department at the University of Missouri – Columbia, the Board of Directors for the St. Louis Jewish Federation and on the Board of Directors of Hillel at the University of Miami – Florida. Jim is also an adjunct faculty member at Washington University – Olin School of Business. Jim formerly served as the Board Chair for Covenant Place and was the Co-Chair of the 2016 St. Louis Delegation for the Maccabi Games.
Jim lives in St. Louis with his wife, Lisa, their four children, Ryan, Max, Sam, and Molly, and their dog, Oscar. He enjoys spending his spare time in Keystone, Colorado, skiing, boating, and hiking. Jim is a “hair band” and 80’s rock enthusiast who plays electric guitar in a band called Hyper Ambition.