Kelly Gustafson is one of Canada’s leading experts in advisor business transformation, operational modernization, and people-centered technology integration. With almost three decades of experience in the financial services industry, Kelly has helped hundreds of advisory firms across the country redesign the way they work from the inside out.
As the founder of Etcetera Projects, Kelly is known for her ability to cut through complexity, diagnose the real issues buried beneath the surface, and build practical, sustainable solutions that elevate both the advisor and the client experience. Her work blends strategic insight, behavioural understanding, operational architecture, and deep industry knowledge across insurance, investments, group benefits, and financial planning.
Kelly’s approach is unapologetically straightforward: people first, then process, then technology, in that order every time. She has become the go-to expert for advisors and leaders who want to modernize their businesses, reduce risk, scale capacity, and build a resilient, future-ready practice.
Her programs have helped advisory teams at every stage, from startups to long-established firms, create clarity, adopt technology ethically and effectively, strengthen compliance, eliminate operational friction, and build high-performing teams through training, workflow design, and strategic leadership development.
A dynamic speaker with a reputation for blending intelligence, humor, and hard truths, Kelly delivers insight-rich presentations rooted in real data, real experience, and real transformation. She is known across the country for her ability to “see the business behind the business” and translate those insights into concrete steps advisors can take immediately.
Kelly’s work has expanded to include her advanced digital literacy programs, her practice diagnostics process, her advisor business infrastructure platform (The CORE11™), and her national transformation frameworks, all designed to help advisors and their teams operate with confidence, efficiency, and long-term sustainability.