MADISON, N.J. – ERA Real Estate, a global real estate franchisor, has named ERA Team VP Real Estate head-quartered in Chautauqua, led by Bill Soffel, a finalist for its 2013 Gene Francis Memorial Award for Top All-Around Company. The award will be presented at the ERA 2014 International Business Conference, held March 24 to 27 at L.A. Live in Los Angeles, Calif.

“Bill and ERA Team VP Real Estate exhibits and practices a strong business acumen,” said Charlie Young, president and CEO of ERA Franchise Systems LLC. “This is a company that takes business planning very seriously and sticks to that plan. They are focused, determined and very engaged in using the resources available to them in order to provide great customer service, which is evident in their high customer service survey ratings. In addition, they are active in their community and pay attention to growing their business through operational performance and innovative recruiting.”

The Gene Francis Memorial Award, named after ERA Real Estate co-founder Gene Francis, is the highest honor given to an ERA company, and reflects the qualities most respected throughout the global ERA system and the real estate industry. Known for his forward-thinking business acumen as well as his philanthropic spirit, Francis established a defining culture of service to which all ERA companies aspire.

ERA Team VP, with eight locations in the Southern Tier of Western New York and Northwestern Pennsylvania, and more than 80 independent sales associates, earned finalist nominations in 2010 and this year by maintaining high personal and ethical standards, demonstrating a strong business sense and modeling a commitment to ERA Real Estate and its community – all while driving measurable growth in transactions, sales volume, per person productivity and sales rate.

“We’ve been very determined to grow our business organically, even unveiling a new cafe style office space in Lakewood to attract new agents and clients,” said Soffel. “And, as always we remain focused on achieving our goals by concentrating on doing a few key things to the best of our ability. This way of operating has positively impacted our business. We’ve worked hard for this honor and are looking forward to joining our peers on stage this year.”

2013 Gene Francis Memorial Award finalists also include:

ERA Landmark Real Estate in Bozeman, Mont.

ERA Shields Real Estate in Colorado Springs, Colo.

ERA King Real Estate Company, Inc. in Anniston, Ala.

ERA Sellers Buyers and Associates, El Paso, Texas and ERA Pargin Realty, Albuquerque, N.M.