Three simple words summarize Frank Scalese’s motivation for going to work every day: Change people’s lives. With his steadfast commitment to helping others alter the course of their lives, Frank has built one of Long Island’s leading financial service firms.
As the CEO of Blue Ocean Wealth Solutions, Frank is responsible for a team of over 150 financial professionals who come to work each day with passion and enthusiasm to embrace their clients’ financial well-being as their own.
This is because they know just how essential financial decisions are in helping people secure their dreams and protect the ones they love.
The firm works closely with individuals, business owners, and employers to ensure they have access to best-in-class products from MassMutual and other companies and local resources to provide personalized support and solutions.
Frank’s career as a financial services representative began in 1990 when he first graduated from college. He quickly realized that he was leading a life of significance by positively impacting the lives of his clients.
Once promoted into management, Frank was eager to recruit people into the business and has built a large full service financial firm serving the diverse communities of the tri-state area.
Throughout his career, Frank has earned widespread respect and admiration from clients, team members, and industry insiders alike.
His outstanding achievements include being inducted into MetLife’s Management Hall of Fame in February 2016. Under his leadership, Blue Ocean Wealth Solutions has secured a spot on the Top Long Island Workplaces list for six consecutive years since the award’s inception in 2018.
This consistent recognition speaks to the family-oriented culture he has cultivated at Blue Ocean.
Motivated by the ideas in the best-selling book “Blue Ocean Strategy,” authored by Renée Mauborgne and W. Chan, Frank constantly encourages his team to develop unique value propositions that will allow them to create new markets instead of competing in existing ones.
According to the book, the goal is to find and develop “blue oceans” (uncontested, growing markets) and avoid “red oceans” (overdeveloped, saturated markets).
The book’s lessons are so ingrained in the firm’s culture that, in 2015, when several offices were merged, the firm changed its name to Blue Ocean Wealth Solutions.
Frank has taken his message and passion for helping others to an industry-wide level by sharing his time and talents with FINSECA, a not-for-profit organization that advocates for the financial security profession.
In his free time, Frank enjoys spending time with his family, reading, playing hockey, golfing, and supporting charitable efforts.
The cause nearest and dearest to Frank’s heart is the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, an organization he has supported since his son John survived childhood Leukemia. To help other families,
Frank has spearheaded corporate fundraising for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night Walk.
What advice would you give other business leaders?
“To surround yourself with an amazing, talented team. A leader surrounds himself or herself with people equal to or better than themselves, therefore guaranteeing success. That’s our Blue Ocean!”