HOLBROOK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / July 20, 2020 / American Portfolios Financial Services, Inc. (AP)-a privately-held, independent broker/dealer that services financial advisors nationwide-has been chosen as a finalist in three separate categories of the WealthManagement.com 2020 Industry Awards ("the Wealthies"). A judging panel comprised of financial services industry leaders selected AP within the Broker-Dealers with Fewer than 1,000 Advisors for the individual categories of Technology; Service; and Corporate Social Responsibility/Diversity. AP was chosen among a near-record number of submissions (from 221 companies with more than 625 entries and 73 award categories). It is the second consecutive year that AP has been recognized by WealthMangagement.com for this awards program.
"We are extremely honored to be chosen as finalists for three categories in this highly-respected industry recognition program-more so because the categories represent several of our core principles: technological innovation, customer loyalty and community involvement," states CEO Lon T. Dolber. "We strive to stay true to our mission to be good corporate citizens, provide optimal customer service to our valued affiliated financial advisors and build efficient, scalable technology to secure the level of independence our affiliated practices have come to know, enjoy and thrive in as business owners."
"AP works diligently to ensure that our advisor community is equipped with the proper resources and technology needed to operate to their fullest potential," adds Chief Administrative Officer Dalchand Laljit. "The strides we have made in technology development, along with our first subscription-based service model and our continued commitment to corporate social responsibility, have benefitted investment professionals and the communities we serve. To be recognized as finalists for the 2020 Wealthies validates our efforts and proves we are providing much-needed, valuable solutions."
AP was chosen as a 2020 Wealthies Broker-Dealers with Fewer than 1,000 Advisors - Technology finalist for its enhanced update of Advisor Dashboard, the firm's proprietary FinTech tool. Advisor Dashboard provides AP advisors with a dynamic view of their businesses, affording them the increased ability to scale their operations by giving them a hierarchical, at-a-glance overview of the health of their practices. This expansion is in keeping with the firm's strategic vision to find innovative solutions through platform and technology independence and was spearheaded by AP's EVP of Technology Strategy Atindra Barua. Invaluable feedback was provided by AP Advisor Council (APAC) Technology subcommittee lead and affiliated financial advisor Gus Catanzaro (CEO of PPS Advisors, Inc.; Holbrook, N.Y.) and AP's affiliated investment professionals-resulting in a FinTech solution that was built by AP advisors for AP advisors. The expanded Advisor Dashboard gives AP colleagues multiple ways to analyze their businesses and areas of growth, as well as identify problem areas that need to be addressed to ensure overall success. Since its official launch in March 2020, Advisor Dashboard has helped AP's advisors stay fully engaged in their practices. Throughout its beta testing phase and subsequent rollout, AP's new business development team fielded overwhelmingly positive feedback from advisors using it daily, emphasizing how well it has helped them get a pulse on their business, particularly during uncertain times brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additionally, AP was chosen as a 2020 Wealthies Broker-Dealers with Fewer than 1,000 Advisors - Service finalist for its Virtual Administrative Services (VAS) practice management solution. VAS is a subscription-based service available to AP-affiliated financial advisors in need of administrative assistance to help them with time-consuming tasks so they can spend more time cultivating prospects and nurturing existing client relationships. VAS has enabled AP-affiliated practices to operate with greater efficiency and scalability, affording advisors the ability to address new demands on their practices, plans for expansion, special projects and the needs of overworked staff, while not having to worry about the intricacies of human resources management. Since its inception and official launch in the first quarter of 2019, VAS has seen a 75 percent increase in adoption, with demand continuing to increase.
Lastly, AP was chosen as a 2020 Wealthies Broker-Dealers with Fewer than 1,000 Advisors - Corporate Social Responsibility/Diversity finalist for its long-standing sponsorship of Virtual Enterprises International, Inc. (VEI), an experiential learning program for business-minded high school students. AP's commitment to the non-profit organization involves judging students' virtual business plans for competitions, hosting the Long Island VEI Business Plan Competition finals at its headquarters and the forming the AP-VEI Fellows Internship Program, which has mentored dozens of interns at the AP home office and affiliated advisor practices since its 2016 inception. In 2019, AP increased its involvement by hosting two VEI Facilitator meetings attended by 125 local high school teachers and administrators who learned how to include VEI in their school curricula. With 127 school districts and over 200 private schools on Long Island, VEI is available to students in 68 schools; AP is proud to have increased that number by 10 through hosting its VEI Facilitator meetings.
The Wealthies is the only awards program of its kind to honor outstanding achievements by companies, organizations and individuals that support financial advisor success. A panel of 15 judges determined the 2020 Wealthies based on quantitative measures of their initiatives-such as scope, scale, adoption and feature set-along with qualitative measures such as innovation, creativity and new methods of delivery. The 2020 Wealthies Awards Event will be held virtually on Sept. 10, 2020, live from Las Vegas, Nev.
"We are extremely honored to be chosen as finalists for three categories in this highly-respected industry recognition program-more so because the categories represent several of our core principles: technological innovation, customer loyalty and community involvement," states CEO Lon T. Dolber. "We strive to stay true to our mission to be good corporate citizens, provide optimal customer service to our valued affiliated financial advisors and build efficient, scalable technology to secure the level of independence our affiliated practices have come to know, enjoy and thrive in as business owners."
About Us
About American Portfolios
Headquartered in Holbrook, N.Y., American Portfolios Financial Services, Inc. (APFS) is a full-service, independent broker/dealer and member firm of FINRA and SIPC, offering a complete range of financial services, including personal financial and retirement planning, securities trading, mutual funds, access to investment research, long-term care planning, insurance products and tax-free investing. Fee-based asset management is offered through its sister subsidiary, American Portfolios Advisors, Inc., (APA), an SEC Registered Investment Advisor. Both entities, along with technology entity American Portfolios Advisory Solutions, LLC, collectively reside under the legal entity American Portfolios Holdings, Inc. (APH). Full-service securities brokerage is available through a clearing firm relationship with Pershing, LLC, a BNY Mellon firm, the securities of which are held on a fully disclosed basis. The company currently supports 852 independent investment professionals-inclusive of registered assistants-and more than 375 non-registered associates, located in 397 branch locations throughout the nation. It was named Broker-Dealer of the Year* (Division III) by Investment Advisor magazine for five consecutive years (2015-2019); a 2019 and 2020 WealthManagement.com Industry Award Finalist in multiple categories**; one of the Best Companies to Work for in the state of New York for five consecutive years (2016-2020) by the New York State Society for Human Resources Management (NYS-SHRM) and the Best Companies Group (BCG); and one of the Top Long Island Workplaces for 2018 and 2019 by Newsday.
* Based on a poll of registered representatives conducted by Investment Advisor magazine. Broker/dealers rated highest by their representatives are awarded "Broker/Dealer (B/D) of the Year."
** Wealthmanagement.com Industry Award finalists are selected by a panel of independent judges made up of subject matter experts in the industry. Award is based on support provided to AP's affiliated people and does not reflect public customers nor their account performance.
Contact:
Melissa Grappone
VP, Mktg. & Corp. Comm.
Work: 631.439.4600
[email protected]
http://americanportfolios.com/
SOURCE: American Portfolios Financial Services, Inc.