John Gasowski, Partner

John Gasowski is a Partner at The Monolith Group and the inventor/patent holder of MEPS and the Monolith Funding Strategies program that was started in 2004. John, a graduate from Texas Christian University, spends the majority of his time working closely with attorneys and CPAs in the development of financial plans utilizing MEPS to solve issues for estate planning, buy/sell arrangements, charitable gifting, charitable LLC strategies, split dollar plans, deferred compensation structures, structured buyouts, and a whole host of other planning techniques to help clients mitigate both long term capital gains as well as estate taxes. He also spends time traveling as a guest speaker at many different conferences including those for The Wealth Strategies Institute. Prior to founding The Monolith Group, John started his career in the financial services sector in 1997 as a stock and bond analyst and portfolio designer. In 2000 John transitioned to a bond trader and actively managed multiple fixed income portfolios for various hedge funds.

Mike Carlson, Partner

Mike Carlson is a Partner at The Monolith Group and the inventor/patent holder of MEPS and the Monolith Funding Strategies program that was started in 2004. Mike began his career in Illinois with Prudential in 1979 as a Sales Representative. He was quickly promoted to a Sales Manager. As Mike’s career evolved, he relocated to New York as an AVP, assistant to Vice President, where he was promoted one year later to District Manager with Prudential.  His success was recognized by various management positions throughout the country with Prudential, in which he would relocate, build agencies, and increase revenue for more than 21 years. 

Mike is recognized as a top achiever in both Prudential and National industry awards. 

• Six (6) Prudential Presidential Citations
• National Management award by GAMA
• Top Agency of 2011 by Lincoln Financial Group
• Platinum Top Producer by Allianz 2013
• Top Independent Broker Leaders Award of 2014 by Minnesota Life

Mike is also a Life and Qualifying Member for the Million Dollar Round Table, one of the most recognized, leading organizations in the financial industry.

Kirk French, Partner

Kirk French graduated from Texas Christian University in 1997 with a BBA in Finance. He joined The Monolith Group in January 2021 and is responsible for coordinating the various financing aspects for clients with particular focus on the firm’s many banking relationships. Prior to joining Monolith, Kirk spent over 23 years in banking starting his career as an analyst in the Global Corporate and Investment Banking Division of Bank of America in Dallas, TX where he was responsible for underwriting and risk analysis of debt capital to multi-national corporations. In 1999 he moved to the Wealth Management Division of Bank of America in Fort Worth, TX where he served as client advisor until 2007. In that role he was responsible for coordinating teams that marketed and advised on a wide range of wealth management services including traditional and alternative investments, brokerage services, derivative securities, fiduciary services, and traditional lending. After a 2-year stint at Citi Smith Barney between 2007 and 2009, Kirk culminated his banking career as a Senior Vice President and Client Advisor at Bank of Texas, a subsidiary of BOK Financial. He was responsible for creating the company’s premium finance program in 2010 which has since grown to become the second largest line of business in the Wealth Management Division for BOK Financial.