Doug Besso is the Chief Technology at HighTower. Mr. Besso’s relentless devotion to strategically building the firm’s platform and supporting advisor teams continues to elevate HighTower’s premium technology offerings. With more than 25 years of experience in financial services, his ability to align people, processes and innovative technologies along with his leadership of top talent has positioned HighTower as the “gold standard” in the industry.

Before joining HighTower, Mr. Besso was the Senior Vice President - Head of Information Technology at Calamos Investments, a $35 billion asset management firm. He also served as the Senior Vice President and a Managing Director - Division Information Officer at Wachovia Securities, where he was responsible for building the advisor SmartStation platform and successfully consolidated more than ten acquisitions creating one of the largest brokerage firms in the U.S.

Mr. Besso holds a Master of Business Administration degree in Finance from DePaul University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from Iowa State University. He is a graduate of the Wharton School's Securities Industry Institute, where he currently serves on the Board of Trustees. Doug holds the FINRA Series 7 and 99 licenses.