BlackRock Wins 2011 DALBAR Awards

Business Operations' Boston Retail Service Center won three DALBAR awards for exceptional Retail Shareholder call center customer service, Retail Advisor call center customer service, and client statements.

To win an award, a company is required to exceed a set of criteria; to be number one, they need to exceed the criteria and rank the very highest in the industry. For the first time ever, one firm has received the highest ranking for all three DALBAR categories in the same year - BlackRock.

BlackRock received the “Excellent” rating in three areas: client statement communications, shareholder service center, and advisor service center. Each award is evaluated on broad categories and within these categories, specific attributes are reviewed and given a score out of a possible 100 points.

Client statements are one of the most important ways for a financial institution to demonstrate their understanding of their clients’ needs. Delivering an effective communication can significantly strengthen the existing client relationship. After evaluating the 2011 statements, only three firms received an “Excellent” rating in client statements. BlackRock topped the list with a score of 87.7, followed by Lord Abbett and Federated Funds.

One of the biggest challenges on client statements is maintaining competitive advantage. Each year the bar is set higher which requires BlackRock to be agile in order to anticipate the upcoming industry trends and new regulations.

Evaluations of shareholder and advisor call center services were conducted randomly over a one-year period. Access to call recordings were examined and two areas were evaluated: the level of professionalism, respect, and appreciation for the relationship; and the understanding that financial professionals are busy and want the right information the first time they call.

BlackRock has always performed extremely well on both counts, and as a result has received the Shareholder Service Award and Advisor Service Awards every year since 2001. In 2011, BlackRock again scored exceptionally well. Shareholder Services scored 98.9 out of 100, the highest of 35 firms evaluated. BlackRock Advisor Services scored 99.02, the highest of 26 firms evaluated.

About DALBAR

DALBAR, Inc., the nation's leading financial services market research and consulting firm, conducts thousands of tests to measure how financial companies respond to their customers' needs. DALBAR views the shareholder statement as a communication tool that significantly influences customer behavior. Additionally, DALBAR has the highest standards of customer service delivery and uses a rigorous scoring system when evaluating phone calls and the client experience

BlackRock's determination to be recognized by DALBAR's is driven by our commitment to maintain the highest standards for client statement and customer service solutions for financial advisors and clients.

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