The Empire State Financial Group

Our office fosters a strong culture through a supportive and collaborative environment. The Empire State Financial Group combines an entrepreneurial mindset and local involvement with a history and reputation you can be proud of as one of our financial planners, financial advisors and financial professionals.

Great Minds Think Alike

What makes a great fit? A professional who wants to run their business with a client-first approach.

Our Open Architecture Platform

You have flexibility. No quotas, no expectation of proprietary products to recommend.

Excel with Teaming

Be part of a team of individuals with complimentary skills to realize your vision.

Managing Director

Linkedin Profile

Brett started in financial services in 2006 as a Financial Professional out of Dewitt NY. He qualified for both MDRT and Prudential’s Conference numerous times as a Financial Professional. In April of 2013, Brett became a Manager of Financial Services where he built a successful team and earned a President’s Citation for every year he was in the role. In 2017, he was appointed to Managing Director and is now responsible for the market growth for all of Upstate NY. As a Managing Director, Brett has led The Empire State Financial Group to numerous Presidential Citations, as well as qualifying as a Master Firm with the industry organization Finseca. Outside of the office, Brett is involved in the community helping Upstate NY’s youth, ranging from supporting Elmcrest and youth sports organizations. Brett resides in Manlius, NY with his wife Tara and their two sons Collin and Jace.

Associate Managing Director, San Jose, CA

Linkedin Profile

Bill started his financial services career with HSBC Securities upon graduation from St. John Fisher College in 2001. He maintained his practice until 2010, when he earned a master’s degree in education from SUNY Oswego and began his career in training and development with MetLife. Bill began his career with Prudential in 2015 and was recognized as the top Manager of Training and Development 4 times and is now the Associate Managing Director of the Empire State Financial Group. Bill earned his Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) designation in 2013, became certified as a Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU®) in 2014 and earned his Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®) designation in 2017. Bill is an involved member of his community serving on the Jordan-Elbridge Central School District School Board, 2 district sub committees, as well as coaching youth sports.

Director, Sales Support & Oversight

Linkedin Profile

Lauren has been in the financial services industry for over 15 years, and has been with Prudential Advisors for over 5 years. Lauren and her support team partner with The Empire State Financial Group financial professionals to help support, train, coach and oversee compliance components. Through our financial professional partnership and home office relationships, problem solving and business submission is made easier and smoother. Our team’s goal is to allow you to grow your practice in a compliant manner. Lauren graduated from LeMoyne College in Syracuse, NY in 2007. Lauren holds FINRA registrations, Series 7, 24, 63 and New York State Life, Accident & Health licenses.

Regional Director

LinkedIn Profile

John has developed a strong passion for mentoring new and experienced financial professionals and helping them build strong and stable financial planning practices based on a solid foundation of teaming and management support. John believes that building a connection and relationship with each financial planner is the key to a productive partnership in order to fully support their practice. John resides in Williamsville, NY with his five children and two cattle dogs. John’s spare time is all dad work.

Regional Director

Linkedin Profile

Branden started with Prudential as an intern in Spring 2015 while attending Oswego State University where he earned his MBA with a concentration in Management. As an advisor, Branden qualified for the President’s Conference 4 out of 5 years, was the agency Rookie, Junior and Senior of the Year, 5 time Master’s council qualifier, 3 time Life Concierge qualifier, and signature services leader’s council member. Branden was the 2019 Prudential Advisors Eastern Territory Senior of the year and most notably, 2019 Prudential Advisors National Senior of The Year. In 2020, Branden took the management role in Rochester, NY. Since taking the role, the Rochester branch has grown from 5 advisors to over 20. He says, “There’s no better feeling than putting a client in a better financial position. As a manager, being able to put advisors in a better financial position, as well as their clients, gives me double the satisfaction.”

Regional Director

Dan started in the financial services industry in 2013. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science from SUNY Oneonta in 2014 with a Major in Finance and minor in Sports Management. In his first full year at Prudential, he earned his RICP® designation, was rookie of the year, and qualified for Conference and MDRT. At the age of 25, he completed his Financial Planning studies through The American College and became a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®). When he first started in the business, he had a great mentor and now that he has been successful, he wants to be that mentor and help support his financial professionals. Dan lives in Baldwinsville, NY with his wife Jackie and daughter Scarlett. He is a HUGE New York Rangers fan and enjoys playing golf, watching sports, and the company of friends and family.

Chris Johnson

Financial Advisor

"I have been a financial professional and broker for almost 15 years and I proudly continue to provide extensive knowledge and advice to my clients as their trusted Financial Planner and Investment Advisor. Through the years I have witnessed vast changes not only to the investment landscape, but equally in products and services offered by various custodians. Prudential has provided me and staff with the proper infrastructure and platforms to allow our clients to receive the highest degree in effective and efficient asset management. This allows complete transparency in our fiduciary responsibility to our clients that allow us to focus on their own priorities, goals and objectives with precision and thoroughness."

Patrick Topper

Financial Planner

“The Prudential Advisors family has given me the tools, knowledge and confidence to grow in my professional and personal life. Prudential Advisors helped me grow through lead programs, seminars, workshops, trainings, and client solutions. They have given me the ability to cultivate my practice as well as identify opportunities to grow my clients’ wealth and financial literacy. Without their support, I wouldn’t be where I am today.”

Myra Miller

Financial Advisor

“Being in the financial industry for 18 years, I must say that the leadership at Prudential are top notch. They have the most hands-on managers and the best support team. They have provided me all the tools and resources to build a successful practice.”

Laurie Hasso

Financial Planner

"I came to Prudential in 2019 from a GA system, with nearly 40 years of experience. I was attracted to the managerial system, the value proposition, including excellent health benefits, multiple retirement savings plans, paid Social Security and unlimited leads. No regrets here.”

There are approx. 2,800 financial professionals with Prudential Advisors, aligned to 24 offices nationwide.

In 2023, we distributed 0.9 million leads and referrals to our financial professionals.*

23,000 Prospect Leads 712,000 Unaligned Leads

141,000 Referral Leads 3,000 Aligned Leads

Prudential Advisors AUM growth over the past 5 years*

Achieved Gross Dealer Concession (GDC) payout (by product)*

*As reported by Prudential Advisors Planning & Analysis team.

With our robust offering of over 15 turnkey lead and referral programs, you have access to a quality source of leads to help supplement your overall prospecting efforts and open doors to new client relationships.

Taking care of clients is your top priority, so why should you be limited to proprietary solutions? At Prudential Advisors, we are committed to enabling you to deliver the most appropriate advice and solutions. All products align to one payout grid.

Access to several top-industry productivity tools including: Clientlink (powered by Salesforce), eMoney, Morningstar, and a robust managed money platform powered by Envestnet. We also offer access to email and social media marketing tools and external leads from SmartAsset.

As a statutory financial professional or an independent financial professional, you can count on fair compensation. In fact, as an independent financial professional, you’ll receive up to 90% payouts on anything you sell. As a statutory financial professional, you will receive a full benefits package, including company-sponsored benefits.

We believe teaming is not just a program. It's a way of doing business. Financial professionals, advisors and planners who join teams are more efficient and more productive and have higher assets under management (AUM) per client.

Join Prudential Advisors and your transition will be supported by a close partnership with local office leadership, operations personnel, and dedicated resources from our Transition & Onboarding Solutions team.

Business Models

Statutory Financial Professional

Join us and get the best our office has to offer as well as benefiting from the relationships, reputation and support of Prudential. With local leadership and a global powerhouse, we both have your back.

Independent Business

We welcome independent financial professionals who want to work with us. You can enjoy upsides like no product quotas, ongoing local office support and access to Prudential expertise, including leads support and marketing.

Start a New Career at Pru

Interested in starting your career in finance or looking for a career change? Prudential offers guidance to help you recognize your needs and goals including tips to help you take your next step.

Fast Start Meeting

We love to kick off every year with our annual Fast Start Meeting. We invite a panel to discuss a range of topics across the business, and love seeing our Financial Professionals come together to share ideas and practices.

Investment Day Meeting

We had a great time at our Investment Day Meeting at Del Lago Resort. Our speakers shared a wealth of knowledge regarding several different investment platforms.

Women's Study Group

Our first official Women’s Study Group was an exciting in-person event at the Sherwood Inn on Skaneateles Lake. The study group, sponsored by our management team, has a great mix of experience and skill sets.

Interested? We'd love to hear from you.

Whether you're an experienced financial planner, financial advisor or financial professional thinking of moving your practice, a recent grad, or a professional who is interested in a career change, you can contact us confidentially. Our Managing Director is the first step, so please reach out.

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