San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency Financial Professional Awarded Top MassMutual Freshman Year Honor


WALNUT CREEK, CA--(Marketwire - Feb 27, 2012) - The San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency, general agency of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual), today announced that Amy Liu was awarded the prestigious "Freshman Five" first-year award for outstanding performance as a financial services agent. The highly competitive award is given to the five best-performing agents out of the approximately 1500 first year associates in MassMutual's 85 national offices who completed their first year as an agent in 2011. Ms. Liu is the SF Bay Area Insurance Agency's sixth Freshman Five qualifier in the past eight years.

Ms. Liu started her career in financial services in May 2010 after earning an MBA and spending over ten years in high technology corporate and product marketing. "I always had a passion for the financial services industry and always wanted to help people and decided I wanted to make this my career," she explained. "I researched many of the large financial services firms, doing my due diligence, and was most impressed with MassMutual and approached the SF Bay Area Insurance Agency about opportunities."

To develop her business and build her client base, Ms. Liu says she spent the first month at the Agency simply observing the senior financial professionals to learn as much as possible, and then started talking to her friends and family about their financial problems and concerns. "I never pressured people to buy anything but instead discussed how to address their concerns and then helped them solve those problems. And once I had worked through my market of friends and family I have enjoyed receiving many referrals. Beyond that, I have been working very hard to participate in social and professional networking events to meet even more people and continue to expand my relationships," she says.

"Amy is doing exceptional work in her first year, which is the only way she could achieve this high honor," said Robert Fakhimi, CEO and Managing Partner, San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency. "She is very conscientious, smart, understands how to connect with people and is working very hard to manage her clients' financial needs. We are thrilled to have another Freshman Five honoree this year."

Ms. Liu's designation as a Freshman Five award winner continues the successful tradition of the Agency. Other recent Agency honors include the qualification of financial professional Tony Delumen for the MassMutual Chairman's Club for 2012, an award given to only 10 of the 5300-plus agents at MassMutual, and the awarding of the First in Class honor to General Agent Robert Fakhimi.

As a MassMutual general agency, the San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency leverages the resources of a 161-year-old, Fortune 500 company (March 11th, 2011) with local expertise on helping clients achieve their financial goals. The agency offers a broad range of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, disability income insurance, long-term care insurance, and retirement planning products and services. The Agency is headquartered in Walnut Creek and has field offices in Milpitas, Fremont, Palo Alto and San Francisco.

About the San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency Inc.
With roots going back to 1891, the San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency Inc. is a significant contributor to the local economy, as shown by the following figures about the San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency and its detached offices (as of December 31, 2010):

  • More than 36,000 policyholders and clients1
  • Managing over $863 million in assets (including assets and certain external investment funds managed by MassMutual and its subsidiaries)
  • More than $4.7 billion in life insurance face amount in force2
  • Will return more than $8.3 million in dividends to its participating policyholders in 20103

Robert Fakhimi is CEO and Managing Partner of the San Francisco Bay Area Insurance Agency Inc. Recently named as one of the Bay Area's Best Places to Work, the agency is headquartered in Walnut Creek with branch offices in San Francisco, Fremont and Milpitas. Mr. Fakhimi can be reached at 888-803-3631, ext. 320 or by e-mailing him at rfakhimi@financialguide.com. Securities and investment advisory services offered through qualified registered representatives of MML Investors Services LLC, member SIPC, Inc. 2121 N. California Blvd. Suite 395, Walnut Creek, CA 94596, (925) 979-2300.

About MassMutual

Founded in 1851, MassMutual is a leading mutual life insurance company that is run for the benefit of its members and participating policyholders. The company has a long history of financial strength and strong performance, and although dividends are not guaranteed, MassMutual has paid dividends to eligible participating policyholders every year since the 1860s. With whole life insurance as its foundation, MassMutual provides products to help meet the financial needs of clients, such as life insurance, disability income insurance, long term care insurance, retirement/401(k) plan services, and annuities. In addition, the company's strong and growing network of financial professionals helps clients make good financial decisions for the long-term.

MassMutual Financial Group is a marketing name for Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual) and its affiliated companies and sales representatives. MassMutual is headquartered in Springfield, Massachusetts and its major affiliates include: Babson Capital Management LLC; Baring Asset Management Limited; Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers LLC; The First Mercantile Trust Company; MassMutual International LLC; MML Investors Services, LLC., member FINRA and SIPC; OppenheimerFunds, Inc.; and The MassMutual Trust Company, FSB.

For more information, visit massmutual.com.

1 An insured, owner, or payer of a MassMutual policy or contract.
2 Amount of individual life insurance in force at the end of the period related to products issued by Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company and its subsidiaries, C.M. Life Insurance Company and MML Baystate Life Insurance Company.
3 The amount of dividends to whole life policyholders in 2010.

Contact Information:

Contact:
Erica Zeidenberg
925-631-0553