JERSEY CITY, N.J., Nov. 29, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Pershing LLC, a BNY Mellon company, has been awarded the Gold Class certification in 2012 as a Customer Service Organization in recognition of its world-class customer service and quality management processes. Pershing achieved the highest score CSIA has ever awarded to an organization, and is now the first Gold Class certified financial services company in the U.S., and only the third company ever to achieve this certification. This is also the third consecutive year that the CSIA has honored Pershing for excellence in customer service.

"Customer service is at the center of everything we do at Pershing and is consistent with BNY Mellon's 'client-first' focus," said Edward Piscina, managing director and chief quality officer at Pershing. "Achieving the best assessment score of any company ever is a testament to the innovative and dedicated service we deliver to our customers."

The CSIA Gold Class certification is the result of an extensive assessment of Pershing's customer service operations—measuring how the firm has improved both its service practices and management education throughout the year. Some noteworthy enhancements include:

• Establishing a "first call resolution" metric to drive delivery of real-time solutions to customer inquiries
• Implementing text analysis software to examine and improve online customer service interactions
• Publishing customer care standards on Pershing's website; and instituting an associate scorecard to help employees understand their performance

The International Council of Customer Service Organizations (ICCSO) is the global body for customer service groups. It oversees the CSIA, which in turn, is charged with developing and upholding service standards. The International Customer Service Standard follows rigorous judging criteria and is the only customer service certification recognized around the world.

"The goal of the CSIA is to ensure all customer service organizations and their team members feel great about what they do," said Christine Churchill, Executive Director and Founder of CSIA. "We are pleased to once again award Pershing with the Gold Class certification for the firm's consistent devotion to customer service through new implementations and improving existing practices."

In January 2012, Pershing was awarded the 2011 International Service Excellence Award in the Large Business Category by the CSIA in recognition of its global service leadership and demonstration of excellence in customer communications, responsiveness to customer feedback, participation in charitable initiatives and high marks in employee engagement.

Pershing LLC (member FINRA/NYSE/SIPC) is a leading global provider of financial business solutions to more than 1,500 institutional and retail financial organizations and independent registered investment RIAs who collectively represent approximately 5.5 million active investors. Located in 23 offices worldwide, Pershing and its affiliates are committed to delivering dependable operational support, robust trading services, flexible technology, an expansive array of investment solutions, practice management support and service excellence. Pershing is a member of every major U.S. securities exchange and its international affiliates are members of the Deutsche Borse, Australian Stock Exchange, Irish Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange and Toronto Stock Exchange. Pershing LLC is a BNY Mellon company. Additional information is available at www.pershing.com.

BNY Mellon is a global financial services company focused on helping clients manage and service their financial assets, operating in 36 countries and serving more than 100 markets. BNY Mellon is a leading provider of financial services for institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals, offering superior investment management and investment services through a worldwide client-focused team. It has $27.9 trillion in assets under custody and administration and $1.4 trillion in assets under management, services $11.6 trillion in outstanding debt and processes global payments averaging $1.4 trillion per day. BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK). Additional information is available on www.bnymellon.com or follow us on Twitter @BNYMellon.

SOURCE BNY Mellon