FFP BENEFITS - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Account Manager
- Group Accounts Manager
Amanda recently joined our team as an Account Manager here at FFP Employee Benefits. She is a highly motivated and adaptable client relations manager with over 10 years' experience in customer service and 5 years in the healthcare industry. Her focus is on building productive client relationships, working to identify their needs, quickly resolve issues and assure that business needs are met. In her spare time Amanda enjoys traveling, going to sporting events, trying new restaurants and spending time with her friends and family.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Vice President of Employee Benefits
As the Director of FFP Employee Benefits, Dan has over 20 years of experience in helping both large and small employers design affordable Health insurance plans in the NJ/NY marketplace. Dan manages an internal team of agents and service coordinators that service over several hundred business clients, paying more than $20 million of premium.
Dan and his team specialize in group medical, dental, disability, life, and accident plans. We represent all carriers in the marketplace and make our consultations in a non-pressured style. Dan's team also handles the Medicare market, and we represent Medicare Supplemental, Part D, and Medicare Advantage plans from several carriers.
Dan is married with 2 children and resides in the Jersey Shore Area. Outside of the office, he can be seen playing golf, or watching his kids on the basketball court or soccer fields.
Job Titles:
- Consumer Sales / Group Accounts Manager
Joe has been with us since April 2013. He has been in the Health Insurance industry since 2006. He brings his experience working with all NJ & NY Health Insurance carriers. His tasks include getting Companies and Individuals set up on Health Insurance policies. He also specializes in helping with issues such as billing, enrollment, and general issues that come up in someone's health policy. Joe considers himself a movie buff and loves music of all genres. Making time for family and close friends is the most important thing for him.
Job Titles:
- CFP®, CPA, PFS
- President, Wealth Management Partner
A native of Jersey City with a bachelor's degree in accounting from St. Peter's College, John has been a CPA since 1987 and began his own financial planning firm in 1989. John is also a Personal Financial Specialist (PFS) and Certified Financial Planner®. In 1989 he expanded the CPA firm to include financial planning, to give his clients the same high level of service and support they had become accustomed to when working with him for tax planning.
"When I referred my tax clients to other financial advisors, I saw that many clients were returning with plans that didn't address their goals adequately. The planners weren't really paying attention to my clients' needs," John says. "That concerned me enough to make it my business to offer reputable financial planning services in my tax office." As the founding partner of an independent financial planning firm, FFP Wealth Management allows John to provide each client an individualized plan using the firm's Wealth Maximizer.
This thoroughly analyzes a client's situation before building a cohesive, long term plan with special attention to the years leading up to and immediately following a client's retirement. Today, John and FFP Wealth Management are not only servicing the financial planning needs of his growing list of clients, but he is actively mentoring and offering advice to over 115 CPA firms around the country, who wish to transition their business to include financial services for their clients. He has written several articles, spoken at tax seminars and even co-authored a book with his brother Joseph on the subject.
John recently appeared on Fox Business and was mentioned in Business Week, Newsweek, Senior Market Advisor and other local publications. He speaks regularly at the firms training meetings attended by fellow tax and financial professionals. "Trust… it's more than a word. We understand and appreciate the tremendous trust you place in us and the importance behind your decision to use our services to help you reach your long-term goals. We want to earn your business not only today but for the next ten and twenty years when you may need us most. Being successful isn't easy and requires hard work. We love what we do and will work to exceed your expectations and assist you in achieving your goals!"
John has also been an active member within his community throughout the year. He was a coach of several sports teams and as a board member for the Windmill Alliance providing jobs and housing for mentally and physically challenged adults. As a past president of the Bayonne Family YMCA, he turned around a near-bankrupt organization, paid off all debt and generated annual profits in excess of $100,000 while providing housing, daycare and health club services.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Wealth Management Partner
Joe Graziano began his career over 20 years ago and became interested in financial services at an early age. "When I was just 16 my father passed away. While my mother did a wonderful job running the household, it was not long before I realized the critical importance of planning. My parents had worked with a so-called "advisor" who was actually more of an insurance salesman and did no serious planning for them."
Early in his career, Joe's brother John invited him to join the firm. It was then that Joe became very interested in the concept of true, long-term financial planning. For the last 10 years he has been a partner with the firm which now has over 100 advisors and two billion in client assets under advisement. Today he looks forward to staying current in this ever-changing field and meeting with clients to help them achieve their long-term financial goals. Joe enjoys seeing financial plans evolve to help clients reach such goals as a comfortable retirement or being able to send their children to college.
Joe has an accounting degree from St. Peter's College and is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®), each of which has helped him to fully understand clients' financial pictures. Joe is also very passionate about the planning business and prides himself on keeping abreast of industry trends and the latest planning techniques. He typically reviews about 10 financial-planning periodicals monthly and personally attends several industry conferences a year.
As a member of the Financial Planning Association, Joe's expertise includes professional money management, investment planning, retirement planning, educational planning, estate planning, and business planning. He's been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Barron's, and Financial Planning magazine.
Joe, like his firm, remains "completely independent." It is not owned by a bank, brokerage firm, or insurance company. "This independence allows us to work in a conflict-free environment and do what we feel is best for each client. We also follow a regular review schedule to make certain clients' portfolios and plans are properly maintained."
As Joe firmly believes in obtaining an understanding of where the client is and where he would like to be, he relies on a unique process The Wealth Maximizer. This thoroughly analyzes a client's situation before building a cohesive, long-term financial plan. "We take a collaborative approach. At our weekly planning meetings several advisors collaborate on each client's plan, providing clients with several options. We also work closely with each client's financial team which may include an accountant and attorney to make sure their financial lives are completely aligned with each aspect of their personal goals and objectives."
Leslie has recently joined our team at FFP Employee Benefits. She is highly motivated and has over 20 years' experience with customer service. Leslie resides in Monmouth County. In her spare time, she enjoys going to her son's baseball games. She also enjoys spending time with her friends and family.
Ray has more than 25 years of experience in the health care insurance industry. Ray started his career on the carrier side, first at Prudential then at Aetna where he was regularly recognized as a national sales leader. As a broker, Ray has found success in helping his customers (both individuals and groups) navigate the complexities of insurance. Additionally, he has helped hundreds of Medicare beneficiaries with their health care needs.
Ray is active in the National Association of Health Underwriters and is the immediate past president of the Monmouth/Ocean chapter. He is currently a board member.
In his spare time Ray enjoys spending time with his two daughters along with boating on the Barnegat Bay and participating in running events.