DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 10, 2026--
EFG Companies has been named one of theDallas Morning News ’ 2026 Top Workplaces, marking the company’s third appearance on the list and its second consecutive year receiving the honor. EFG Companies ranked 11 th among 39 recognized small workplaces in North Texas. For more information, visithttps://bit.ly/486ozUy.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261110362679/en/
Unlike awards determined by a panel of judges, Top Workplaces recognition is based on confidential feedback from the people who know an organization best: its employees. The survey, administered by Energage, measures employees’ perspectives on leadership, appreciation, meaningful work, compensation and benefits, and other factors that shape the workplace experience. Survey responses are compared to national benchmarks across 30 million employees in multiple markets over the past two decades.
“Being recognized once is an achievement and earning this distinction in consecutive years shows our culture isn't a moment in time,” said Jay Hartmann, Chief Operating Officer, EFG Companies. “Our employees’ ideas, accountability, and commitment to our clients are what make EFG Companies a different kind of workplace and a stronger business.”
The recognition comes as EFG Companies approaches its 50th anniversary in June 2027. During that time, the company has grown from its automotive roots into a national provider of consumer protection programs for vehicles and residences, serving more than 1,100 client accounts across all 50 states and Puerto Rico.
At EFG Companies, employee engagement is a business advantage rather than a human resources metric. Team members are encouraged to challenge conventional thinking, act with an ownership mentality, and develop solutions that strengthen client performance and customer experience.
The 2026 recognition continues a 12-year record of national workplace and business honors for EFG Companies. The company has earned 16 Gold Stevie Awards from the American Business Awards and has been accredited by the Better Business Bureau since 2009, maintaining an A+ rating.
About EFG Companies
For nearly 50 years, EFG Companies has provided consumer protection programs for vehicles and residences across seven market channels. The company’s strategic intent is to build sustainable market differentiation and profitability for its clients and partners, including dealers, lenders, manufacturers, independent marketers, and agents. EFG’s award-winning engagement model is built upon the belief that the company serves as an extension of its clients’ management teams, providing ongoing F&I development, training, product development, compliance, and nationally recognized product administration with an ASE-certified claims team. Learn more about EFG at: www.efgcompanies.com
EFG Companies has been named one of the Dallas Morning News’ 2026 Top Workplaces, marking the company’s third appearance on the list and its second consecutive year receiving the honor. EFG Companies ranked 11th among 39 recognized small workplaces in North Texas.
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Alex Ovechkin said Tuesday that athletes from Russia just want to represent their country, but the Washington Capitals' captain and NHL career goal-scoring leader declined to weigh in on the decision to allow his home nation back into international hockey tournaments.
“I don’t know how it’s going to work out, but I’m pretty sure if you ask the fans, the fans want to see the best players out there,” Ovechkin said after his team's morning skate ahead of playing the Ottawa Senators in Canada's capital city. "The fans want to see young generation players who are going to be future stars, future NHLers. But you know it’s not up to us.”
The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled late last month that the International Ice Hockey Federation must reinstate Russia, beginning with the world junior championship set to open in the Canadian province of Alberta on Dec. 26. Russia has been excluded from participating in the sport internationally since it invaded Ukraine in 2022.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Russia will not be allowed to play at the world juniors, and the government may opt not to issue visas.
Wayne Gretzky, the league's all-time points leader, said he understood Carney's stance, adding, "I think a lot of the players and the people of Canada feel the same way.”
Ovechkin passed Gretzky in goals in April 2025, with the “Great One” in attendance for the final days of the chase. Asked about Carney’s stance, Ovechkin said, “It's his thoughts, his decision.”
Several prominent hockey countries, including Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic, have voiced opposition to Russia's readmittance, even going so far as to say their national teams will not take the ice against Russia as long as the war is ongoing.
Canada’s secretary of state for sport, Adam van Koeverden, said last week the decision to bar Russia stems from accusations the Kremlin has used sporting success for “propaganda” purposes to garner domestic support for the war in Ukraine — a charge Ovechkin denied when prompted about it Tuesday.
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress is organizing a demonstration outside the Canadian Tire Centre called “No War Crimes in Hockey” to protest Ovechkin’s support for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Ovechkin publicly backed Putin in 2017 when he launched a social movement called “Putin Team.” At the time, he told reporters from The Associated Press and The Washington Post, “I just support my country.”
When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Ovechkin said, “Please, no more war,” when asked about the invasion. Asked about his relationship with Putin, Ovechkin said: “He’s my president, but I’m not in politics. I’m an athlete.”
Ovechkin also appeared in an ad earlier this year for a political party aligned with Putin. He told reporters in September that he was asked to participate and agreed to do so.
Speaking after the annual fall general managers meeting in Toronto, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said he and Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly met with new IIHF President Franz Reindl about the CAS decision and cast doubt on the ability to make a change to the world juniors on such short notice.
"Obviously there’s been some strong reaction to the CAS decision, and at the end of the day the IIHF is going to have to work through it because a number of the federations have said they’re not going to play,” Bettman said. "Ordering the IIHF to change the junior world championship in a month, obviously practically a real difficult problem. The Canadian government saying that Russian teams can’t come in anyway is very complicated.”
With the league and NHL Players' Association set to stage a World Cup of Hockey in February 2028, a call needs to be made “at some point” on Russian participation and what that may or may not look like. That does not appear to be coming any time soon.
“We’re going to have to evaluate what is the right thing to do at the right point in time, taking into account everything that is and isn’t going on in the world,” Bettman said. “There’s no easy answer to that, but we’re committed to making the best possible decision when we need to.”
See AP’s full NHL coverage here
Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin looks on during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
