KO Partner Spotlight: Kirk Klein

Kirk began at Koss Olinger in 1995. After meeting Will Olinger at an industry conference and traveling to Gainesville to learn more about Koss Olinger, it didn’t take long for Kirk to decide to join the KO team. Twenty one years later he is a Managing Partner. We are grateful to Kirk for his leadership, guidance and vision for our firm.

10 Questions with Kirk Klein:

1. How long have you been with Koss Olinger and what is your role? I have been with Koss Olinger since 1995, 21 years. I moved from Illinois to join the firm after meeting Will Olinger at an industry meeting in 1993 and becoming friends.
2. Where did you grow up? I grew up in a small town in Illinois called Grand Ridge. Grand Ridge was a town of 700. I later moved to a much bigger city with a population of 20,000. Haha!
3. Do you have any pets? If yes, tell us about them. We have 8­-10 fish at any given time. The kids ask us daily for a dog.
4. What is something people would find surprising to learn about you? I am the youngest of 26 grandchildren. My oldest first cousin is the same age as my mother. When I was young (under 10) and my grandparents were alive, we would have 50­-70 people at Thanksgiving dinner.
5. What do you consider your best quality? My passion and love for people. I like to help people in any way I can.
6. If you could have dinner with one famous person from history who would it be? This is easy. My grandfather passed away when I was 10. He was 88 and a WWI veteran. I would love to hear the stories he used to tell me as a child one more time.
7. What is the best advice you ever received? My financial markets professor in college told me to go into financial planning and not banking. He said, “There are going to be so many mergers and acquisitions in the banking industry over the next 10-­20 years. Bankers’ heads will be spinning.” He was correct and I love what I do.
8. What’s your super power? My wife, Michelle. She is my high school sweetheart. We started dating 29 years ago. She has been with me every step of the way and brings me unbelievable confidence.
9. What is your favorite food? Pizza and ice cream. I have to stay away from both because I don’t know when to stop eating them.
10. What do you think is your biggest contribution to the Koss Olinger team? Building relationships with clients, people in our community and in our industry. My goal is always to lead by example.