AFS again among nation’s best places to work

CHICAGO – Advanced Financial Services Inc. of Newport was honored at the Society for Human Resource Management Inc.’s 60th Annual Conference & Exposition as one of the 25 Best Medium-Sized Companies to Work for in America.
Companies with fewer than 1,000 employees have been allowed to vie for recognition from the SHRM and the Great Place to Work Institute Inc. since 2004. AFS has won recognition as one of the 50 Best Small & Medium-Sized Companies to Work for in America in four of those five years.
The company was ranked among the best small companies – with 50 to 250 U.S. employees – in 2004 and 2005; it moved up to the mid-sized list in 2007. (READ MORE)
This year’s 50 Best Small & Medium-Sized Companies to Work for in America rankings appear in the July 2008 edition of HR Magazine, the SHRM’s flagship publication.
AFS – a privately held mortgage lender with 274 employees – also was rated the Best Place to Work in Rhode Island in 2006, 2007 and 2008 (READ MORE) by Providence Business News and the Best Companies Group.
Judges in the local contest cited the company’s strong commitment to an employee-friendly corporate culture.
AFS offers new workers an average of 188 hours of orientation and training in their first year. Employee copayments for health insurance are low, and coverage is high. Performance incentives include merit increases that in recent years have averaged 7 percent – more than twice the national average – and a separate stock bonus program for employees with more than a year of service. A company-wide recognition program features monthly awards luncheons, annual honors and prizes that include a four-day paid vacation.
The company also gives back to the community, with paid time off for volunteers; donations to charities to which companies give their time; and matching gifts to nonprofits. Plus, one day a year, the whole company declares a Volunteer Day, pitching in to aid some local organization.

The Society for Human Resource Management Inc., founded in 1948, is based in Alexandria, Va. It has more than 575 chapters nationwide and more than 225,000 individual members in more than 125 nations. Additional information about the SHRM and the 2008 Best Small & Medium-Sized Companies to Work for in America – including video clips of workers talking about why they love their jobs – is available at www.shrm.org.
The Great Places to Work Institute Inc. is a San Francisco-based research and management consultancy with affiliate offices around the world. To learn more, or to nominate an employer for the 2009 Best Small & Medium-Sized Companies list, visit greatplacetowork.com. The deadline for nominations in Aug. 15.
Advanced Financial Services Inc., a privately held company based in Newport, is a residential mortgage lender whose network of local service providers reaches borrowers in more than 40 states. It is an active member of the Rhode Island Mortgage Bankers Association (RIMBA) and the Mortgage Bankers Association of America (MBA). Additional information is available at www.afsfitfinance.com.

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