Rick Pierchalski

Rick Pierchalski is the chief executive officer of BPU Investment Management and a prominent Western Pennsylvania civic leader who is active on a number of boards and committees and the past Chairman of the Allegheny Regional Asset District.
Pierchalski founded Berkowitz, Pierchalski, Inc. with William Berkowitz in 1985, which later evolved to be BPU Investment Management. As CEO and Chairman, he remains actively involved in the firm’s operations, overseeing the main areas of wealth management, administration, investments and sales while maintaining the growth and development of the business. He has worked in finance for more than 30 years.
Outside of his career in securities, Pierchalski’s dynamic involvement in local organizations includes leadership in the Allegheny Regional Asset District (RAD), Pittsburgh’s Urban Redevelopment Committee, the Polish Cultural Council and Pike Run Country Club. A past member of numerous other committees, boards and organizations, he has a longstanding commitment to both the Pittsburgh and Polish-American communities.

Career
Pierchalski is a founder of Berkowitz Pierchalski, Inc, now BPU Investment Management, a full-service investment firm with offices in Pittsburgh, Greensburg and Uniontown, PA. The firm serves individual, corporate and institutional clients in four distinctive areas. These include private wealth management, investment management, full-service brokerage and investment fiduciary counseling. BPU Investment Management is a federally registered investment advisor and a FINRA-registered broker/dealer.
As the CEO of BPU Investment Management, Pierchalski is primarily involved in managing the firm’s operations, overseeing firm development and review. He is also responsible for maintaining an overview of the major areas of wealth management, administration, investments and sales. In addition to serving as CEO, Pierchalski is the Chairman of the BPU Investment Management board.
Since founding the firm in 1985, Pierchalski has developed several successful business models. The CUvest Division provides investment guidance for credit unions through portfolio analysis, planning and compliance review. Developed in partnership with Paul Brahim, the Equity Capital Management’s 401(k) retirement model encompasses one-on-one participant advice, investment portfolio modeling and trustee fiduciary reviews.

In the course of his career at BPU Investment Management, Pierchalski has written articles for a number of local publications including the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and Pittsburgh Business Times, offering advice for planning investment strategy and discussing current financial trends.
Organizational Affiliations
Outside of BPU Investment Management, Pierchalski is highly active in community organizations. Most notably, he is the former Chairman, Vice Chairman and a current board member of the Allegheny Regional Asset District (RAD), a specific purpose area-wide unit of the local government that supports and finances regional assets in the areas of libraries, parks and recreation, cultural, sports and civic facilities and programs. He is also a member of the Loan Review Committee of the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh, an agency committed to creating jobs, expanding the City’s tax base and improving the vitality of businesses and neighborhoods.
In addition to his work with the city of Pittsburgh, Pierchalski dedicates a significant amount of his time to the support to the Polish-American community. He is the current Chairman of the Polish Cultural Council of Western Pennsylvania, former treasurer of Kosciuszko Foundation in New York City, and the former national officer of the Polish American Congress.
Pierchalski is currently a member of the board at Pike Run Country Club, where he formerly served as the president.
Pierchalski’s commitment to both the Pittsburgh and Polish communities has not gone unrecognized. In November 2009, he received the Dominion Volunteer in the Arts Award (VITA), for his volunteer work in keeping nonprofit arts organizations in the Pittsburgh region alive and thriving. In recognition of great service to the Polish Nation, Pierchalski was honored with the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland in October 2009.
Background and Education
Pierchalski earned his B.A. from the University of Cincinnati. He then went on to the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, where he earned a master’s degree with a focus in public finance. Pierchalski also attended the Lessing Institute in Prague, where he studied the German Language. A native of the Pittsburgh area, Pierchalski grew up in New Kensington, PA and graduated from Valley High School.
Beginning in his high school years and lasting through college, Pierchalski was a member of the rock band, Fly By Night. The band performed primarily in the Pittsburgh-area and throughout the Allegheny and Kiski Valleys. Pierchalski played the keyboards and sang, remaining with the band even into his first years working as a stockbroker. He had been active in the school choir and formed Fly By Night with a group of high school friends.
Prior to founding Berkowitz, Pierchalski, Inc., he began his career in securities with Butcher & Singer, now part of Wachovia Bank. He also worked briefly for PaineWebber and E.F. Hutton & Co. as the Vice President of Investments.

Awards
* Dominion Volunteer in the Arts (VITA)
* Knight’s Cross of the Republic of Poland
Organizational Affiliations
* Allegheny Regional Asset District
* Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh, Loan Review Committee
* Polish Cultural Council
* Kosciuszko Foundation
* Polish American Congress

* Pike Run Country Club

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