Kim Shappee

My Story

My Official Bio

I help business owners, leaders, families, and women get clear on what living their best life looks like, and then help them craft and execute a financial plan to live that life. I am a vice president & financial advisor with a national financial services firm. I have been a featured speaker for the State of Montana’s Women’s Banking Association, the Women’s Foundation of Montana, Financial Advisor Magazine and the FairyGodBoss Summits. In 2022 Forbes recognized me as one of the top 100 women financial advisors in the U.S.

I was born and raised by small business owners in Missoula, Montana. I have extensive experience in banking and finance. I was lucky enough to help start, co-found, and run a private business bank in Montana. I also attended one of the best schools in the world for Entrepreneurship, and my time at Babson College changed my life. I have taught entrepreneurship in South Africa at the University of Stellenbosh, run business plan competitions in townships, researched informal economies in Latin America, taught graduate-level leadership courses at the University of Washington’s Pacific Coast Banking School, and worked in investment banking and economic development. I co-chaired the Missoula Food Bank’s capital campaign from 2014-2016, serve on the board of the Women’s Foundation of Montana, and am the Class President at University of Washington’s Pacific School of Banking class of 2012. I also met my husband when we were both working as river guides.

I believe that financially happy and engaged people do great things for our communities. I have seen first-hand the power of a microloan and a small business and what access to a great banker can do for a person, their family, and their community.

I believe that you are the company you keep. You become the sum of the people you spend your time with. Every person can benefit from having a personal board of advisors.

Local leadership- coaches, teachers, bosses, mentors – matter the most. It’s who you see and interact with on the daily that can change the course of your life. I was raised by small business owners and grew up in a house where we talked about balancing a till and Point of Sale systems. I love helping people get super clear on what financial success looks like for them.

I’m also a bit of a history and book geek. I love learning about submarines, the Panama Canal, the evolution of our water system and how clean water has evolved, World War II, the Civil War, and the founding of America’s banking system.

I love reading business books and biographies and about the American West. I have three children, a super fun husband, and a golden retriever named Huck. I talk to my parents every day, and we have family dinners every Sunday. If we chat, you’ll most likely hear about our adventures with urban chickens and exploring the Pacific Northwest.

Whether it is Stellenbosch, South Africa or Missoula, Montana, access to capital and financial counsel creates jobs, grows an economy, and creates a better life for individuals and communities. This is where my passion for financial advising began, with my work in lending and seeing firsthand how impactful financial guidance can be. I saw a pattern in the most fulfilled and successful people I was working with: they weren’t going it alone; they all built a team around them.