FIFTH AVENUE FINANCIAL - Key Persons
Christina Mantzaris is the CFO-COO at Fifth Avenue Financial. She has worked as a strategic partner to Michael Book for over 23 years across various organizations and roles. In her current position, she is responsible for the firm's financial growth strategy while overseeing the implementation of that strategy and its operational aspects.
Before joining FAF, she was the CFO at Lenox Advisors where she was responsible for overseeing financial operations including accounting and financial reporting and served in a strategic advisory role for the CEO and executive team.
Christina has an MBA in Business Administration and BS in Finance from Marist College. She splits her time between NYC and Scottsdale Arizona, where she can be found hiking most weekends.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director
- Managing Director, Brokerage
Dennis Mullen is a Managing Director at Fifth Avenue Financial. Since 2009, Dennis has led our brokerage division, making our firm one of the leading brokerage arms of MassMutual. He also works closely with our independent brokers to help them solve their clients' financial needs with the MassMutual product portfolio, including: life insurance, disability income insurance, long term care solutions and fixed annuities.
Prior to his work with FAF, Dennis began his career at Paul Revere, working in the Wall Street market. After his time there, Dennis opened the only disability income sales office for MassMutual in Atlanta. During his tenure there, he successfully grew the practice into the largest in MassMutual.
Dennis graduated from Iona College and received his degree in Business Administration. His professional designations include Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®) and Certified Long Term Care Consultant (CLTC). Dennis is one of MassMutual's leading wholesalers in Life Insurance and has been featured in many financial publications.
Giving back to the Financial Services industry is very important to Dennis. Accordingly, he volunteers his time for:
• Association for Advanced Life Underwriting (AALU)
Job Titles:
- SVP
- SVP, Business Development
Liz D'Aleo joined as our SVP of Business Development in April 2022. Liz acts as a sales, strategy and consultative resource, providing guidance, product knowledge, and practice management support. She spends her time working closely with our advisors optimizing their staff, assisting in critical strategic business decisions, institutionalizing, and implementing key processes, in turn increasing sales activity and revenue.
Liz began her career in Financial Services in 2002 for Wachovia Bank, as a Licensed Financial Specialist, then Retail Sales and Service Coach. She joined MassMutual's Lee, Nolan and Koroghlian agency in late 2008. Liz spent over 10 years as a key member of MassMutual's Lee, Nolan & Koroghlian Agency, where she served in a variety of capacities, beginning as an advisor, a dedicated product specialist, and for most of her 10+ year tenure, she worked closely with their brokers and career-advisor population to help them grow their practices.
Most recently before joining FAF, Liz served as the Director of Family Offices for a well-established wealth preservation firm. Liz was the direct contact to A-clients, next to the President and CEO. She coordinated all aspects of the firm's 360 Degree Wealth Management Process.
Liz graduated with a B.A. in Mathematics from Dominican University New York. She holds a NJ Life/Health Insurance License, Series 6, Series 63, and Series 7.
Job Titles:
- Senior Vice President With
- SVP, Advanced Life Sales
Since 2009, James Farka has been a Senior Vice President with Fifth Avenue Financial supervising our firm's Advanced Life Sales division. He works with our advisors in the affluent marketplace focusing on estate planning, retirement planning, business planning and personal planning techniques.
Jim delivers specific value solutions to advisors and clients in his practice by auditing current risk portfolios, understanding product offerings and their suitability. Jim has over 40 years of financial services experience. He joined Fifth Avenue Financial after previously working at Connecticut Mutual, MassMutual, and then Cowan Financial Group in 1990.
Jim holds a FINRA Series 6 and 63 Registration (Investment Company Products/Variable Contracts Limited Representative) and is also Life & Health insurance licensed in NY and CT. Jim graduated from York University and enjoys fishing, golf, and the outdoors.
Jocie Rojas is our VP of Corporate Services at Fifth Avenue Financial. She directly supports our CFO-COO and ensures that corporate operations are running efficiently and effectively. She is a key member of the management team and is also responsible for managing select agency business functions and personnel.
Before joining FAF, she worked at Lenox Advisors for over 15 years, where she gained a wide breadth of experience working with their sales management team, providing operational, business development, and initiatives support.
Jocie is working towards obtaining a dual Master's degree in Business Administration and Leadership from Grand Canyon University.
In her free time, she enjoys dining out and going on road trips with her family. Jocie also volunteers at her church, helping young women build faith and understand their identities. She also serves on the executive board of the Parent Teacher Association of her daughters' school and advocates for families across NYC who have children with Type 1 Diabetes.
Kay-Dean Dawson-Smith is an Assistant Controller at Fifth Avenue Financial. She works closely with our CFO to oversee our financial processes and activities. This includes supervising all accounting functions and ensuring the highest level of standards, internal controls and process excellence. Before joining FAF, she worked at Lenox Advisors as a member of their New Business case management and Finance teams.
Kay-Dean holds a Master's in Business Administration with a major in Accounting and Bachelor of Business Administration.
Kay-Dean is based in Atlanta, GA, and has two children. Outside work, she enjoys quiet picnics and road trips with her family.
Job Titles:
- FINRA Registered Principal
- Vice President and Head of Regulatory Operations
- VP, Head of Regulatory Operations
Kristen Olsziewski is Vice President and Head of Regulatory Operations, Supervisory Solutions at Fifth Avenue Financial. With ten years of supervisory experience, she leads a team responsible for monitoring, evaluating, and mitigating compliance and regulatory risk, as well as licensing and credentialing.
Kristen is a FINRA Registered Principal and holds Series 7, Series 24, and Series 66 registrations.
Job Titles:
- Vice President and Head of Investment Oversight
- VP, Head of Investment Oversight
Kyle Uricchio is a Vice President and Head of Investment Oversight at Fifth Avenue Financial since 2014. Kyle is responsible for monitoring, evaluating, and mitigating compliance and regulatory risks to the firm. Prior to joining Fifth Avenue Financial, Kyle was a member of the Business Acceptance Team at MassMutual, where he conducted back-office suitability reviews and firm acceptance of new and existing submissions related to brokerage, direct & third-party advisory accounts.
Michael Book is a Managing Partner of Fifth Avenue Financial. Under Michael's leadership, Fifth Avenue Financial has been the #1 ranked MassMutual firm in the country every year since our founding in 2009. Michael works closely with our advisors with advice on how to create the best financial strategies and insurance plans to help their clients. He also spends time finding the right advisors to join our team.
Michael is active in the MassMutual General Agents Association and led the organization as its President in 2019.
Michael started his career in 1991 as an advisor with the Cowan Financial Group. In 2000, he co-founded Lenox Advisors with two partners. Lenox has gone on to be one of the most successful producer groups in the US. Michael was an active advisor for 18 years prior to taking on his current role. He was a top advisor for MassMutual throughout his career, achieving Chairman's Club 12 consecutive years before stepping down. During that time, he was very active in the MassMutual Advisors Association, culminating as the organization's President in 2005-2006.
Michael is a well-sought-after industry speaker on topics such as leadership and the importance of building culture. He is a graduate of the University of Delaware. He and his wife, April, reside in Westport, Connecticut and Pompano Beach, Florida. They have three grown children. He is an avid sports fan and enjoys playing golf, as well as participating in various philanthropic endeavors.
Job Titles:
- Vice President of Brokerage
Michael Patch is Vice President of Brokerage at Fifth Avenue Financial. He works closely with our network of brokers to maintain and foster strong relationships within our brokerage community. He specializes in working with independent brokers to help solve their clients' financial needs with the MassMutual product portfolio including: life insurance, disability income insurance, long term care solutions, and fixed annuities. Prior to joining Fifth Avenue Financial, Michael was an Associate at Lenox Advisors, where he worked with individual clients, attaining a vast knowledge of MassMutual's product offerings and case design.
Michael graduated from Flagler College and received his degree in Sports Management. He is continuing his education and pursuing his CLU designation.
Being a part of the Financial Services industry is very important. He is currently involved in the following organizations:
Society of Financial Service Professionals (SFAP)
National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA)
Michael lives in Manhattan with his wife Abby, and son Bodhi. Michael is an avid cyclist and enjoys racing/training in the New York City area. When not on the bike, he enjoys photography and spending time with family.
Job Titles:
- Chief Supervisory Officer
- Member of Our Executive Team
Peter Kane is the Chief Supervisory Officer at Fifth Avenue Financial. Peter and his team handle all aspects of supervision and risk management for the firm. Complying with the constantly evolving regulatory requirements takes a culture dedicated to putting the client's needs above all else. From there, it is just a matter of building processes and executing. A culture like this is only possible if everyone from the top-down shares the vision. As a result, we are fortunate to have one of the most tenured supervisory teams in the industry.
Prior to joining us as a member of our executive team, Peter was with Cowan Financial Group, the predecessor to Fifth Avenue Financial, in 2003 as part of its merger with Reiff Financial Group.
Peter holds his FINRA Series 6,7,24,53, and 63.
In his spare time, Peter enjoys golf, racquet sports, and spending time with family.
Scott Greenfield is a Managing Partner at Fifth Avenue Financial and strategic partner to Michael Book. He is responsible for the firm's talent acquisition strategy and advisor development, as well as partnering with our executive team on the firm's growth initiatives.
Prior to joining FAF, Scott's career spans over 28 years in the financial services industry. He started his career on Wall Street, where he was mentored by some of the industry's early innovators. As a result, he developed a true understanding of the fundamentals of the markets and asset management. Scott spent his first six years in the industry at Prudential Securities, and in 1999, he joined Morgan Stanley as an Associate Vice President.
In 2005, Scott had a turning point in his career when he realized he enjoyed the aspect of management and development and got the opportunity to join MetLife as a Sales Manager in their financial planning firm in New York City. During his time at MetLife, Scott recruited and developed a sales team, and he was ranked in the top ten of all Sales Managers at MetLife.
In 2009, Scott joined Lenox Advisors during a time of tremendous growth while under contract with MassMutual. Scott spearheaded the recruiting and development of advisors in New York City and Chicago where he brought in many of their top advisors.
In the summer of 2016, Scott was named the successor General Agent for MassMutual's agency in Atlanta, Georgia. Scott started his new position in the spring of 2017 and officially took over as the sole General Agent in January 2019 through April 2023 under the name Capstone Financial.
Scott has been married for 22 years to his wife, Sandi; they met through mutual friends while they were both working and living in New York City. In 2004, Scott and Sandi welcomed their twins, Sophie and Luke. When Luke was eighteen months old, he was diagnosed with Autism. Since that day, Scott and Sandi have been extremely active fundraising for various organizations, including Autism Speaks and the North Shore Autism Circle. In the summer of 2013, they started their nonprofit, 501(c)3, "Go Long for Luke." Go Long for Luke's mission is raising Autism Awareness and Acceptance.
Job Titles:
- Vice President of Advisor
- VP, Advisor & Broker Services
Shirley Morel is Vice President of Advisor & Broker Services at Fifth Avenue Financial. She works across various departments to ensure service and operational excellence for our advisors and brokers. She is responsible for the day-to-day operations of our brokerage and new business departments, developing our agency service standards and supporting the agency's marketing initiatives.
Shirley has over twenty years of financial services experience. Before joining Fifth Avenue Financial in 2009, she worked as a sales assistant at Cowan Financial Group. Her experience working across multiple departments at Fifth Avenue Financial has been instrumental in managing relationships and providing notable support to our producers and clients.
Shirley graduated from Berkeley College and holds a NY State Life, Accident & Health, and Notary license. She is fluent in both English and Spanish.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Brokerage Director
Zinora Koven brings over 40 years of insurance brokerage experience to our team. Before joining Fifth Avenue Financial, Zinora's insurance career began at National Pension Service, a general agency for The Guardian Life Insurance Company in White Plains, NY. From there, she moved on to their headquarters in NYC to work with George Brenner in the estate planning department. She was fortunate enough to be hired by Howard Cowan (Cowan Financial Group) which is the predecessor to Fifth Avenue Financial.
As a Brokerage Director, Zinora makes available to insurance brokers the portfolio of MassMutual products including: whole life and term insurance, disability income insurance products, long term care solutions and fixed annuities. Her career goal is to provide industry-leading service to brokers and innovative problem-solving solutions. Zinora is committed to her position of being the dominant force in the individual and corporate market. She intends to meet this objective by ensuring that broker satisfaction is always her highest priority.
Zinora is always looking for successful, independent producers (brokers) who are interested in offering MassMutual products to their clients. In turn, you can expect one-on-one support for all your clients' needs including case consultations, estate and business planning expertise, marketing and illustration support, plan design, plus product positioning strategies, and presentations.
In addition to maintaining a high level of service to her brokers, Zinora is spiritual and enjoys entertaining, cooking, gardening, traveling, fine dining, kayaking, and dancing.