Your Team

Your Trusted Advisory Team

Phillip James Financial (PJF) is an Independent, Fee-Only Financial Advisory practice, founded by a CPA and CFA. Because of their multi-discipline in financial planning, investments, accounting and taxes, PJF provides a full service wealth management experience. A client is never sold financial products, such as Life Insurance, Annuities, Loaded Mutual funds, or Non-Traded REITs. Working this way puts clients on the same side of the table, always focusing on their needs, not on what products to sell. The company motto, Investing with Purpose, reflects the commitment of thorough, connected planning, before investing occurs. Its this approach that provides among one of the best financial planning and investment experiences in the Twin Cities.

Phillip R. Christenson, CFA

Phillip's fascination with markets and investing started as a teenager. Taking his earnings from work at his family's restaurant, he bought his first mutual fund at age 15; seeing his hard earned wages grow into more money captivated him. Phillip went on to graduate from the University of St. Thomas with a degree in Finance and Accounting, and following graduation worked in various financial companies, including a hedge fund and a boutique wealth management firm catering to high-net-worth clientele. While working he earned his CFA Charter and maintained his active member status of the Minnesota CFA Society. He is co-founder of Phillip James Financial with grade-school friend James Sexton, and together they form the core of the wealth management team. When not helping clients achieve their goals, he enjoys days at the park with his two daughters Rhea and Elsie, and playing Yahtzee with his wife, Christine.

Helen M. Oslund, Office Manager

Helen, a MN native, comes to us with a storied 20+ year career as a dedicated administrative professional with a myriad of roles, most prominently in wealth management. At Phillip James, Helen helps to ensure the overall client experience is always exceptional; she is constantly looking for ways to serve and support clients even better. When she isn’t helping clients or keeping Phillip and Jim on task, she enjoys spending time with her husband Mike, along with their two children and three grandsons. She is an enthusiastic Twins fan, who to our knowledge has never missed a game! She even works many of the home games in the ticket office at Target Field. If you want to talk Twins with Helen, know you are in good company. In the off season she loves to quilt, travel, and was once crowned Swift County Dairy Princess. Who knew we brought royalty onto the team?! We are thrilled to have Helen and all of her many talents on our team.

James L. Sexton, CPA

James' interest in finance began at an early age. In high-school he was introduced to the concept of compounding interest and its powerful effect, which was enough to hook him into a life of investing and finance. This fascination with investments and the market have only grown since. He graduated Cum Laude from St. John's University with a degree in Accounting and Business Management, and went on to work for one of the "Big Four" accounting firms, Deloitte. There, he gained valuable experiences working with commercial banking, real estate, and health care companies, all while obtaining his CPA license. He then left to become CFO of a local real estate firm that invested in multi-family rental properties before going on to co-found Phillip James Financial. During his spare time, he enjoys tea parties with his daughters June and Veda, and traveling the world with his wife Bethany (an avid traveler who gave him, "the bug").

Michele Wallerius, Bookkeeper

Michele hails from Robbinsdale and has degrees in Mathematics and Accounting from the College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph, MN. Out of college she pursued a career in corporate real estate accounting, and gained experience leading and managing multi-million dollar clients across the U.S. With her passion in real estate in tact, Michele decided to pursue another fascination and interest: financial planning and investments at PJF. Michele owns accounting for multiple clients and also digs deep into retirement planning and cash-flow analysis. She has been a great fit to the PJF team. In her free time, Michele can be found decorating elaborate cakes, spoiling her best friend's kids, and hosting Games of Thrones parties at her home in St. Louis Park.