2021 LONG ISLAND TOP WORKPLACES – LITOPWORKPLACES.COM 9
TOP LI WORKPLACES
THE NEW YORK LIFE LONG ISLAND GENERAL
OFFICE SETS EMPLOYEES UP TO SUCCEED
BY BERNADETTE STARZEE
Flexibility, opportunity for success, and
the ability to help others are among the
many reasons employees say they love
their jobs at the New York Life Long Island
General Office, which finished first
among large businesses in this year’s
Long Island Top Workplaces survey.
With locations in Melville, Jericho,
Medford, Flushing, and Brooklyn and
700-plus agents, more than 50 management
team members and dozens of
administrative staffers, the Long Island
General Office is one of the largest general
offices companywide. Providing
insurance, retirement preparation and
overall financial strategies, the office assists
individuals, families and businesses
throughout Long Island and the New York
metropolitan area.
“I love my job because I am doing meaningful
work that serves a great purpose
for our local communities,” one employee
wrote. “It allows me to earn a living while
doing something I enjoy doing and being
able to spend time with my family.”
Like all employers, New York Life faced
unprecedented challenges when the
pandemic struck. To protect its team
members, the Long Island General Office
switched to a work-from-home model in
March 2020, except for a handful of essential
onsite employees. As restrictions
were eased, team members transitioned
back to physical office locations on rotating
schedules to limit the number of people
onsite at one time. The size of group
meetings continues to be limited and face
coverings are required in common areas
to help keep everyone safe.
To support team members as they
transitioned to working from home,
the Long Island General Office quickly
provided remote work tools and videoconferencing
instruction to conduct
office meetings, training sessions and
client appointments, as well as a suite of
e-resources to allow team members to
provide seamless service to their clients.
Giving employees the tools they need to
succeed is part of a pattern at New York
Life, where new agents complete three
development phases within their first
year to quickly build the right competencies
for a successful career. A broad
variety of accessible learning material
includes more than 200 trainings and
skill-building classes along with assessments,
and agents can choose their
career path – whether to work directly
with clients or focus on the management
side.
“I am able to be a pillar in my community
with the education shared with me
at New York Life,” wrote one employee.
“The tools provided allow me to be effective,
and the training is the best I have
ever experienced.”
The Long Island General Office creates a
culture where employees feel like they
are part of a large family. Office-wide
email announcements are sent to celebrate
employees’ milestones, such as a
wedding or birth of a child, and family
members are included in office events:
Employees are encouraged to bring
their spouse or significant other to the
annual black-tie gala and their family to
the office holiday party and an annual
summer picnic at the managing partner’s
home.
Team building is fostered through the
company’s Volunteers for Good program.
Created by the New York Life Foundation,
the program encourages employees
to volunteer with local charities and
provides the charity with a grant check
based on the number of people and hours
spent volunteering. Over the years, individuals
and teams from the office have
volunteered for Island Harvest, Special
Olympics, the Stony Brook Cancer Center,
and the League of Yes, among others.
“I love that I am working for a company
that really promotes and supports their
staff/employees/agents to participate in
charitable work unlike any other career
in my life,” one employee wrote.
To make team members feel that
their hard work is valued, the office
highlights top performers on a daily leaderboard.
Because the board recognizes
leaders in a broad range of categories,
there is a chance for most employees to
be recognized. There is also a monthly
recognition meeting designed to showcase
the leading agents and top-performing
managers in the office.
Throughout the year, there are contests
and celebrations that typically
include food and prizes. During the
pandemic, there was a bingo contest
in which prizes were shipped to the
winners’ homes.
For many employees, it’s the company’s
mission – to help clients meet their
financial goals – and their own contribution
to that mission that provide them
with the most job satisfaction.
“It makes me feel that I am part of something
meaningful and bigger than I am,”
an employee wrote. “I impact not just
my clients directly but their future
generation.”
As another employee put it, “I have a
positive, significant impact on so many
lives.”
BEST LARGE BUSINESS
“I love that I am working for a company
that really promotes and supports their
staff," an employee said.
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