The Cincinnati Business Courier recently confirmed what many inside The Kelley Financial Group have known for years: The Network Office of Northwestern Mutual, in business since 1865, and currently run by Managing Partner Shawn Kelley, is one of the best places to work in Greater Cincinnati.

The Cincinnati Business Courier officially named The Kelley Financial Group a first-time winner in the medium-sized company category in its “Best Places to Work” program. The Kelley Financial Group joins an elite list of companies who have been named winners.

Shawn Kelley, Managing Partner of The Kelley Financial Group, was interviewed by Cincinnati Business Courier Publisher Doug Bolton on the Jan. 7 broadcast of "BusinessBeat" for the award.

“It’s not the first time a company has won the first time it’s entered, but it’s quite rare. We congratulate The Kelley Financial Group on their win, and look forward to having them on-board for many years to come,” Bolton said.

“Winning our ‘Best Places To Work’ competition isn’t easy. The competition is fierce. It’s considered quite the feather in the cap by many businesses in our community, and an affirmation that companies are doing things right," Bolton said.

“This program recognizes the voice of the worker. Winning for the first time – during their first year of engagement – is a clear reflection on the job that Shawn Kelley and his leadership team have accomplished,” Bolton added.

Kelley attributes winning the award to his organization’s longstanding, three-point philosophy on people and operations:

- Find the best people possible;

- Put them in position to win – for themselves, and for the organization;

- Set them free to do what they do best.

“It’s a three-step process. Once we get the absolute best people we can find, we then determine how their individual and professional strengths best fit the organization,” Kelley said. “Where are they best suited to achieve success? Finally, we want to liberate our people to do what they do best, to empower them, so that they have responsibility for certain tasks.

“When it’s done right, our people don’t have to be told specific tasks. They already know how to accomplish the goals and objectives we have set forth,” Kelley added. “That’s what produces a happy and productive workforce, a workforce fully educated in our game plan.”

While unemployment remains high across the country, Northwestern Mutual network offices have been recruiting and training new financial representatives at a fast pace. Over three years (2009 to 2011), The Kelley Financial Group is seeking to recruit 100 financial representatives, part of a nationwide initiative to recruit thousands of Northwestern Mutual financial representatives.

Known as “The Bible of Business News” in the Queen City, The Cincinnati Business Courier is a weekly must-read, chronicling the diversity of industries in the Tri-State region – southwestern Ohio, northern Kentucky and southeastern Indiana – since 1984. Its “Best Places to Work” program is amongst the most popular in the corporate arena of Greater Cincinnati.

The representatives for the Kelley Financial Group of Northwestern Mutual (http://kelleyfinancial.nmfn.com) provide Life Insurance, Disability Income Insurance, Annuities and Long-Term Care Insurance, as well as an array of investment products to help clients protect their financial futures. In addition, some representatives are licensed to provide a variety of related products, which can help solve personal, retirement, estate and business needs.

The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company – Milwaukee, WI (Northwestern Mutual) – the industry leader in total individual life insurance, long-term care insurance, and disability insurance dividends paid to participating policyowners – has helped clients achieve financial security for more than 150 years. Though dividends are not guaranteed, are reviewed annually and are subject to change, the company has paid life insurance dividends every year since 1872. As a mutual company with over $1.2 trillion of life insurance protection in force, Northwestern Mutual seeks to share, as appropriate, its gains with policyowners and deliver consistent and dependable value to clients over time.

Subsidiaries include Northwestern Mutual Investment Services, LLC, broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, member FINRA and SIPC; the Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company, limited purpose federal savings bank; and Northwestern Long Term Care Insurance Company; and Russell Investments.

To contact The Kelley Financial Group, please call (513) 366-3600, visit http://kelleyfinancial.nmfn.com or send an e-mail to Mr. Kelley at shawn.kelley@nmfn.com.

The official, online version of the press release announcing The Kelley Financial Group winning The Best Places To Work Award is at: http://bit.ly/KelleyFinancialNamedBestPlacesToWork.

Mr. Kelley's appearance on the Fifth Third BusinessBeat can be viewed on YouTube at: http://bit.ly/KelleyFinancialOnBusinessBeat.

The actual win - and presentation of the award by Courier Publisher Bolton - can be viewed here: http://bit.ly/KelleyFinancialWinsBestPlacesToWork.

For media inquiries regarding The Kelley Financial Group, please contact Mr. Andy Hemmer, President of AndyHemmer.com PR/Writing Services at (513) 604-5428 or andy@andyhemmer.com.