Advisor Shawn Dunnigan Builds Practice Around Family Values

This LPL Financial advisor has built a practice grounded in family values—and seen impressive growth along the way

Family is very important to Shawn Dunnigan, President of Dunnigan Financial Group in Fort Collins, Colorado. Born and raised in Bismark, North Dakota as part of a large, Irish-Catholic family, Shawn – along with his partners – has strived to build family-like relationships with clients and prospects.

“Family is a big deal for us. We create and view our client base as family, and very much treat them like that. We also create an environment where they feel like they're part of something special,” he said.

Making things at Dunnigan Financial Group even more familial, Shawn’s son, Jack, is a junior associate at the firm. “We have this wonderful team with a father/son approach to it, and that really adds to the family atmosphere and family values. I don't want to use a cliché, but it truly is how we view things,” he said.

Building a practice from the ground up

Shawn got his start in the financial services industry more than 30 years ago, thanks to an opportunity brought about by his brother. Ultimately, the job at a small investment firm did not work out for Shawn. However, the role did show there was a place for him in the financial industry.

“I failed miserably. It was a very challenging environment, but I knew I had a passion for this. I went into the corporate banking world, and got a job in my hometown, and then I transferred here to Colorado, and worked in that corporate environment for about 20 years,” he said. 

After 20 years of working in a corporate environment, Shawn was ready for a change and started a small family office practice out of the basement in his home.

“Corporations have a profit motive. How I thought this job should be done, and how I was doing it, were different. I had a vision of what I wanted that to look like, because it had to align with my goals and my values,” he said.

Client by client, employee by employee, Shawn built his practice from the ground up.

“I started off with just my phone, sitting in my little office after I left the banking environment, and I had a non-compete so I couldn't call people. I just prayed that the phone would ring, and, luckily, the phone started to ring. So now here we are some 11 years later, and I walk into my office, which we own. My name is on the door. My son is here. It's been quite a journey,” he said.

Shawn’s practice now supports over 100 families in the area of financial planning and other services, including investment management. “I started in this business 30 years ago, selling municipal bonds and individual stocks, and I've come a long way since then,” he said.

Helping clients find their true purpose

Dunnigan Financial Group continues to grow, having actually doubled in size in the last four years. When it comes to managing their clients’ assets, Shawn and his partners use five models in which clients are segmented based on certain characteristics. From there, a risk analysis is performed for each client.

“We don't sell anything to anybody. We provide a service. We help people relieve their financial stress; that financial responsibility that they feel in their lives,” he said.

The financial planning process Shawn employs establishes a transparent relationship between him and the client. “They know that everything that touches money in their life works in a very synchronistic manner. Everything works together, and that's the power of that financial plan,” he said.

Building strong relationships with clients is important to Shawn and the rest of the Dunnigan Financial Group family. “Relationship is the key word of what we do as a firm. That's the most important thing that we bring to the table. Our purpose is to make a positive impact in the people's lives that we encounter, and to establish that relationship. Because in the end, relationships are your greatest asset,” he said.

While many financial advisors focus on the investment side of money management, Shawn and his partners focus on the emotional side. In fact, Shawn’s so passionate about relieving his clients of financial stress that he wrote a book about it.

“It took me 30 years to get to the point of acquiring that experience, expertise and knowledge, and about 18 months to write the book. Our mission is to help people relieve that financial stress and anxiety, and get to a place where they can live in a more purposeful way because now they have a partner,” he said.

The views and opinions expressed by the LPL Financial Advisor may not be representative of the views of other Financial Advisors and are not indicative of future performance or success. Neither LPL Financial nor the LPL Financial Advisor can be held responsible for any direct or incidental loss incurred by applying any of the information offered.

Dunnigan Financial Group and LPL Financial are separate entities.