| | |  | | | Featured in the Charlotte Business Journal
Best Places to Work: HF Financial taking its own path in providing financial planning
November 4, 2010
An uncertain economy and volatile investment landscape have made financial planning a demanding business in recent years. But HF Financial has prospered in its 75th year and boasts a strong team spirit among its 98 employees.
A strong point in the company’s favor is that it pays health insurance, 401(k) matches and other benefits to its financial advisers although they’re not traditional salaried employees. The firm also pays an employer’s share of the Social Security and Medicare taxes for those employees.
While this approach is not unknown in the business, it’s neither standard nor required. David Cove, vice president of sales, says it’s part of a corporate culture that takes “more of a ‘whole person’ approach” to employees.
“We try to help them focus on what they are trying to accomplish in their lives — not just at work, but in their families and in their community, and find ways to tie their work into that,” Cove says.
The company seeks to walk a middle way between highly entrepreneurial financial firms — whose independent advisers work just for themselves — and traditional banking — where employees tend to be on salary.
HF Financial offers personal investment planning, employee-benefit programs and business-succession planning.
The company aims to foster entrepreneurial zeal and team spirit. And it succeeds in building loyalty among its workers.
That spirit goes beyond the office and into community work. That includes home building with Habitat for Humanity that has taken HF Financial staffers to Mexico and El Salvador and annual sponsorship with Exceptional Parent magazine of Disability Awareness Night at Knight’s Stadium.
On Saturday, the company will be taking on two new projects with Charlotte-based Love Inc. Employees will take time from work to build handicap ramps as part of a community-outreach project. And they will host a baby shower for single mothers. Company employees will distribute clothing, playpens, diapers and other items the mothers can’t afford to buy.
Cove says HF Financial chose the date to celebrate its 75th birthday. But he says the project isn’t aimed at promoting the company. “This is not a business development opportunity,” he says. “It goes beyond a company doing something solely for the bottom line.”
That appears to be communicated to the staff at HF Financial — both the independent advisers and the salaried administrative staff.
“The leadership here has great integrity, and they really value us in every way possible, from training support, charity events and social outings,” one employee writes in nominating the company for Best Places to Work. “Quite honestly, it’s the best place I have ever worked.”
Others praise the company for allowing flexible working schedules, maintaining a diverse culture and rewarding effort. That starts at the top, they say, with President Tim Flanagan Jr. “It’s very rare to find a leader who inspires without trying, leads by example, and sets the bar high and helps you get there,” an employee says. “He provides the foundation for an amazing company.”
Cove also credits the leadership of Flanagan, who has run HF Financial for seven years. The company has a history of caring for its employees, and Flanagan and his management team see themselves as stewards at work and in the community.
“That’s the culture we have,” Cove says. “It starts with Tim. And that’s the kind of person he is.”
Senior staff writer John Downey can be reached at (704) 973-1130 or
jdowney@bizjournals.com. | | |
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