Buttonwood Financial Group's Most Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. Buttonwood is an SEC Registered Investment Advisor (RIA), and we openly accept the legal fiduciary duty to put our clients' interests ahead of our own. Being a fiduciary means we are bound, both legally and ethically, to give advice that is in your best interest rather than to sell products that happen to benefit us. Not all financial firms are held to this standard; many large brokerage firms are not required to act as fiduciaries, which makes it one of the most important questions you can ask any advisor.

Yes. Investment management is a core part of what we do, though we manage it as one coordinated piece of your overall strategy rather than in isolation. Our objective is to seek a more consistent rate of return over full economic cycles rather than to chase short-term performance, because steadier results make it far easier to project your future cash flow, tax, and estate outcomes. Your portfolio receives full-time attention from a dedicated team, investment decisions are made with a tax-sensitive approach, and you'll have consolidated reporting, so you always understand what you own, why you own it, and how it's tracking against your plan.

We serve individuals and families, from busy professionals and business owners to multigenerational families, who value a coordinated strategy for their entire financial life. Our services are built around financial complexity rather than a single account minimum, so the best way to know whether we're a fit is an informal conversation. As a specialized, boutique firm serving just under 400 client households, giving each client personalized attention is central to how we work.

As your Family CFO, we create, implement, and continuously manage strategy across your entire financial life. That spans investment management, wealth management, tax strategy, retirement planning, insurance strategy, estate and legacy planning, and multigenerational wealth planning, along with business strategy, employee benefits, and lifestyle and concierge services for those who need them. Every piece is coordinated around your specific goals, so the parts reinforce one another instead of working in silos.

A Family CFO looks at how every part of your financial life fits together, the way a Chief Financial Officer would for a business. Most advisors focus primarily on investments; we coordinate investments alongside tax, insurance, estate, cash flow, retirement, education, and business strategy in a single integrated plan. The idea is simple: as your life and wealth grow more complex, you deserve someone accountable for the whole picture, not just one slice of it.

A few things set us apart. We are a fiduciary, legally committed to putting your interests first. We act as your Family CFO, coordinating your entire financial life rather than focusing only on investments. And our compensation is transparent and comes from our clients, with no hidden product commissions, which keeps our advice aligned with your interests. We also coordinate, rather than replace, your existing CPA, attorney, and other professionals so everyone works from the same playbook.

Our cost has two transparent components, both quoted upfront: a Family CFO Services fee and an Asset Management fee. There are no hidden product commissions, and our compensation comes from our clients, which keeps our advice aligned with your interests. Because our services are tailored to your complexity and goals, the clearest way to understand what your specific engagement would look like is a conversation with one of our Lead Advisors.

Often, yes. Multigenerational family financial planning is a specialty of ours. As your core strategy develops, it's rare that children, parents, or other family members don't enter the financial equation, and we frequently establish strategy at a household or family level. That said, we work at whatever level is right for you, and we'll never bring family members into the conversation without your direction.

Yes. Kansas City is our home and where we're headquartered, but our relationships aren't limited by geography. Secure technology and virtual meetings let us stay closely connected with client families wherever they live, and most relationships blend in-person and virtual meetings around whatever is most convenient for you. Wherever you are, you receive the same coordinated Family CFO experience.

Jon McGraw, our CEO, established Buttonwood over 20 years ago with the vision of simplifying financial complexity for families and individuals by providing Family CFO services. That vision remains largely unchanged today. We have been, and will continue to work hard to be, your Family CFO. While we've grown and will continue to grow and find new ways to serve you, our team knows and understands you and your needs, and we work hard every day to serve you and simplify your financial life.

The long-range goals are to continue to serve Buttonwood individuals and families with a “clients first” approach to Family CFO services. We are continuing to develop our Multi-Family Office Practice, and we're launching our Financial Advisory Practice as well, with the goal of bringing simplicity to clients across all levels of financial complexity.

Buttonwood has always had a leadership team to steer the overall growth and development of the firm. This group is comprised of a cross-functional team that represents leaders throughout the organization who can influence decisions and balance the interests of the firm and our clients. As CEO, Jon sits at the helm of the Leadership Team, as he has from the beginning, guiding philosophical decisions and growth strategy.

Buttonwood has an Investment Policy Committee that is comprised of a cross-functional group of Buttonwood team members. The Investment Policy Committee is responsible for evaluating, implementing, monitoring, and adjusting investment strategy for the models it maintains – including when to add, replace, or exit specific holdings. 

We fully embrace a client-centric approach to service. What this means to us is understanding who each client is on a personal level, and then using that information to match the right team members to you who can best support you, based on a mix of technical skills, soft skills, and personality to achieve the overall “fit.” Of course, you can request to meet anyone at Buttonwood at any time.

Yes! Get to know us — all of us. You can request to meet anyone at Buttonwood at any time. If you have questions for a member of your team, reach out. If you have questions for our Chief Operating Officer, request a time to meet. We are all here to serve you.

Buttonwood serves just under 400 client households today. As a specialized, boutique firm, ensuring that each one of our clients has personalized attention is very important to us. Because of this, we work very closely with industry experts to benchmark our team-to-client ratios to ensure that we are able to fully deliver on our promise of excellence in client-centric service and experience, and we're always ready to add to our team to continue to bring value to you as we grow.