About north compass private wealth

Disciplined strategies. Designed for freedom.

We’re a Calgary-based wealth management firm serving clients across Canada—built for those who value clear thinking, disciplined execution, and a long-term relationship.

Our Philosophy

A better process beats better predictions

Most investors don’t have an information problem—they have a process problem.
Our job is to build a repeatable framework you can stick with through uncertainty: plan deliberately, invest systematically, and manage risk intentionally.

Leadership Team

Advice built for decades, not quarters.
Nathan smith
CFA®, PFP®

Managing Partner
North Compass Private Wealth

Senior Wealth Advisor
North Compass Investments of Aligned Capital Partners Inc.
 

Nathan spent more than thirteen years as an investment and financial planning advisor with one of Canada’s largest banks. The role gave him broad exposure — both working directly with clients and equipping other planners on financial planning and investment management. Those years sharpened his strengths in integrated planning, disciplined investment thinking, and translating complexity into clear decisions clients can act on.

That experience shaped how he thinks about wealth. Done well, wealth is something to be stewarded — a tool for the life you’re building and the people and causes you want to support, not a scoreboard for its own sake. Doing it well takes three things: clarity on where you stand and what you’re working toward, the discipline to follow through on the unglamorous work that quietly determines outcomes, and an investment process you have real confidence in.

Those convictions are why Nathan co-founded North Compass Private Wealth. He works with business owners, professionals, and retirees and their families across Canada — helping them think bigger about what’s possible, then removing what’s in the way: tax inefficiency, income layering, outdated corporate structures, the integration work most practices never quite get to.

Nathan holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and Personal Financial Planner (PFP) designations. He lives in Calgary with his wife and five children.

Curtis novak
CFP®

Managing Partner
North Compass Private Wealth

Senior Wealth Advisor
North Compass Investments of Aligned Capital Partners Inc.
 

With a background spanning public accounting, financial advisory, and private wealth management, Curtis brings a comprehensive and analytical approach to helping professionals, business owners, retirees, and families make confident financial decisions.

Curtis began his career at Deloitte, where he gained experience in audit, financial advisory, and tax planning. Working within one of the world’s leading professional services firms provided him with a strong foundation in financial analysis, business operations, taxation, and strategic planning, which continues to influence his holistic approach to wealth management today.

He later spent more than a decade with RBC, building long-term client relationships and developing expertise in investment management, retirement planning, and comprehensive financial planning. Curtis eventually transitioned to the independent advisory space to provide clients with more personalized, transparent, and planning-focused advice.

Curtis holds the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation, reflecting his commitment to comprehensive financial planning excellence. He combines evidence-based investment strategies with tailored financial planning to help clients navigate complex financial situations with clarity and discipline.

Adam Burella

Managing Partner
North Compass Private Wealth

Quantitative Research Analyst
North Compass Investments of Aligned Capital Partners Inc.
 
 

Adam Burella is a mechanical engineer by training who spent nearly 20 years in the energy sector, leading technical and operational teams in complex, high-pressure environments where disciplined systems, risk management, and clear decision-making were essential.

That background strongly shapes the philosophy behind North Compass. Adam believes wealth should be approached with structure, discipline, and purpose — not emotion, prediction, or product sales. Years before launching the firm, he began researching systematic investment strategies for his own family, driven by a simple but powerful goal: to use wealth as a tool for freedom, flexibility, and a better life.

That belief became personal when Adam and his family took a year away to travel the world. The experience reinforced his conviction that financial planning is not just about account balances or market returns — it is about designing a life with more choice, meaning, and control.

At North Compass, Adam helps shape the firm’s research-driven philosophy, client education, and strategic direction. His approach combines engineering discipline, real-world leadership experience, and a deep belief that better systems can lead to better financial decisions.

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