Chris Benda, CIMA®, CPWA®
Hi 👋🏼 I’m Chris. I advise successful individuals and families to move from accomplishment to significance, with clarity, confidence, and a financial plan aligned to what truly matters.
At Benda & Co., we believe success is not the finish line. Many people reach a point where they’ve built wealth and achievement, yet feel a deeper question emerging: What is this all for? We serve as partners in that moment, walking alongside our clients as they define what comes next with intention and purpose. Together, we transform wealth from a static resource into a powerful tool for living well today, while preparing thoughtfully for tomorrow.
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Des Moines, IA
“I help clients bring the whole picture together, recognizing what’s possible, realizing what truly matters, and building financial plans that support real life, not just numbers."
Our Team
Jodi Breheny has spent nearly three decades inside the mechanics of wealth management, building her career from the ground up and becoming the person others rely on when precision, follow-through, and integrity matter most.
Her experience spans client service, compliance, mutual funds, and operations leadership, and today she serves as an associate advisor at Benda & Co. Jodi is the steady force behind the scenes, connecting people, processes, and priorities with intention and care. She brings clarity to complexity, consistency to change, and calm to moments that require exactness.
Jodi believes lasting results come from doing things the right way, every time. Her work is guided by persistence, honesty, and a deep respect for details that matter. Outside the office, she’s been a mom for 26 years and now embraces her favorite new role as a grandmother, bringing the same values of reliability, pride, and commitment to everything she does.
Grounded, dependable, and quietly indispensable, Jodi is the anchor that keeps everything moving forward.
Jodi Breheny
Partner
How can I help?
Retirement Planning
Estate & Trust Planning
We specialize in making the often complex and emotionally charged process of trust and estate planning as seamless as possible ensuring the security and preservation of a client's legacy for future generations.
Succession Planning
Building a successful business is an incredible feat, but what happens to your hard-earned legacy when you're ready to step down? We build strategic blueprints to help ensure the continued growth and success of your enterprise.
Legacy & Charitable Planning
Whether it’s transferring assets to kids or grandkids, or maximizing your charitable donations, we have the expertise with complex strategies surrounding wealth transfer.
Monthly recaps on financial markets. Stay in the loop with Chris.
Get to know Chris
My path to wealth management was shaped by real-world experience long before formal credentials. However, those formal credentials along with over 20 years of experience spearheaded my expertise and proficiency to work with high net worth individuals, families, and institutions.
I am a graduate of Texas Tech University and hold the Certified Investment Management Analyst® certification administered by the Investments and Wealth Institute and taught in conjunction with The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. CIMA certification is the peak international, technical portfolio construction program for investment consultants, financial advisors, and wealth management professionals, and it stands out among other financial certifications for its effective emphasis on the combination of theory and practical application.
In addition, I hold the Certified Private Wealth Advisor® designation taught in conjunction with the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. The CPWA program takes a holistic and multidisciplinary approach that includes a deep dive into sophisticated wealth strategies, estate planning, wealth transfer, behavioral finance, family dynamics, tax management, and legacy planning. CPWA® certified professionals are able to identify and analyze the unique challenges high-net-worth individuals face and understand how to develop specific strategies to minimize taxes, monetize and protect assets, maximize growth, and transfer wealth.
Before there were portfolios, there were french fries.
Chris’s first career started at 16 behind a McDonald's counter. By 20, he was living with his dad in a $19-a-night motel room in some tiny town at the top of the Texas Panhandle, helping his parents take the biggest risk of their lives—building a restaurant empire from scratch. Fast forward ten years: 8 restaurants, 400 employees, and his parents' dreams realized.
Then it was time to build his own.
Two decades in wealth management later, Chris holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst® certification administered by the Investments & Wealth Institute and taught in conjunction with The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He also holds the Certified Private Wealth Advisor® designation taught in conjunction with the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and he’s a Texas Tech grad. But the real education came from the School of Hard Knocks—the struggles of a small business owner, the weight of decisions that keep you up at night, the satisfaction of watching hard work turn into something meaningful.
As Ray Kroc said: "When you're green, you're growing. When you're ripe, you rot." Chris took that to heart.
We advise on a full array of wealth management solutions. This includes retirement planning, succession planning, asset allocation, portfolio construction, investment policy development, risk management, charitable giving, as well as tax and estate planning.
We focus on integrating technical financial expertise with real-life considerations, helping clients navigate complexity while keeping decisions aligned with their long-term goals and values.
We primarily work with pre-retirees and retirees who are preparing for—or already navigating—their next chapter of life. Many of our clients are what we call significance seekers: successful individuals and families who have done many of the right things, yet sense there is more ahead.
They are not starting over. They are refining direction. While their lives may look accomplished on paper, they want greater clarity around what is meaningful and how to move forward with confidence and purpose. At Benda & Co., we meet clients at this pivotal moment—helping them clarify what matters most, align their resources accordingly, and step into the next phase of life with intention, confidence, and significance.
I focus on tax planning and optimization because they are crucial aspects to consider when managing your finances. By strategizing efficient ways to minimize tax liabilities and maximize savings, my clients can plan for the future. Additionally, I also help clients with retirement planning, Investment management, and cash flow planning because they are essential for maintaining a healthy financial balance.
We help clients align their financial strategies with the life they want to live, today and in the future.
This includes building strategies and plans that are highly integrated into their overall life and legacy plan based upon each client's complex financial matters. Our work is not about one-size-fits-all solutions, but about intentional planning that reflects each client’s priorities
Our invitation—and challenge—to clients is simple: live your legacy now. We believe legacy isn’t something reserved for the future; it’s created through the decisions you make and the impact you have today.
We believe what truly sets Benda & CO apart is our ability to put the entire financial puzzle together. Many people see pieces of opportunity but struggle to connect them into a clear, cohesive picture. We integrate financial strategy with personal values and long-term vision, helping clients recognize what’s possible and realize what truly matters.
This approach removes doubt, simplifies complexity, and replaces hesitation with clarity and confidence. By aligning resources with intention, we help clients choose purpose over inertia—so they can fully enjoy the life they’ve built today while shaping a future they’re proud of.
What our clients really know us for is putting the financial puzzle together.
Many people see fragments of opportunity but struggle to connect them into a clear picture. We help clients recognize what’s possible and realize what truly matters by integrating financial strategy with personal priorities and long-term vision.
Our process brings clarity, simplifies complexity, and helps clients move from uncertainty to confident decision-making. The result is a financial life that feels intentional, empowering, and aligned with a deeper sense of purpose.
We partnered with Savvy because we found a firm that shares our standards and mindset.
Savvy matches our commitment to excellence, thoughtful decision-making, and continuous growth, while also valuing collaboration and the human side of the work. Their platform allows us to focus on what matters most: delivering high-quality advice, building strong client relationships, and doing meaningful work with people we respect.
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Meet and greet. Get to know each other and learn about the benefits of wealth management through Savvy.
Neither Savvy Wealth, nor Savvy Advisors compensates directly for testimonials or endorsements provided herein, by advisers. However advisors may have an indirect financial incentive to provide testimonials.
Chris Benda is an investment adviser representative with Savvy Advisors, Inc. (“Savvy Advisors”). Savvy Advisors is an investment advisor registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Benda & Co. is an independent marketing brand name used by Chris Benda for advertising and marketing purposes only. All advisory services are offered through Savvy Advisors. Savvy Wealth Inc. is the parent company of Savvy Advisors and operates as a technology company. This website may include information about both Savvy Wealth Inc. and Savvy Advisors. Savvy Advisors is an SEC registered investment adviser. Registration does not imply any specific level of skill or training and does not constitute an endorsement of the firm by the Commission. Savvy Advisors may only transact business in those states in which it is registered, or qualifies for an exemption or exclusion from registration requirements. Diversification does not guarantee a profit or protect against loss. For information about Savvy, visit our website: www.SavvyWealth.com . For more information about Savvy’s investment advisory business, please see our Form ADV and Form CRS.
