If you walked into the average bookstore, you'd think that women rule the roost when it comes to personal finance. From Suze Orman's now-classic Women and Money to the more recent (and more colorfully titled) Bitches on a Budget, there's no shortage of do-it-yourself financial advice tailored to women.
Apparently, though, when women make the momentous move from self-help to seeking professional advice about investing and retirement, things go rapidly downhill. A recent study by the Boston Consulting Group revealed that women perceived themselves as receiving wealth management services at a level of quality that is inferior to that received by their male counterparts.
According to the study, women are the key decision-makers when it comes to 27% of the wealth worldwide: that's $20 trillion! But despite the massive chunk of power they wield, 55% of the women surveyed in the study said they felt their wealth manager could do a better job of advising them. Almost a quarter of the respondents said private banks needed "significant improvement" in the services they offer to women.
"The dissatisfaction stems from the unshakable perception that men get more attention, better advice, and sometimes even better terms and deals," according to study co-author Peter Damisch. "We heard this sense of subordination time and time again in our interviews."
This perceived disparity in service arose from several key disconnects in the relationships and communications between women and their financial advisers. Manisha Thakor, Chartered Financial Analyst and women's financial literacy advocate, offers some steps savvy female investors can take to avoid being under-served by their wealth managers and investment advisers:
1. Find your adviser and get your financial education from women-run resources.
The financial services industry is dominated by males and therefore the "DNA is structured around the male experience," Thakor explains, adding that she sees many firms making an effort to change this. Most financial advisers are men, who may not inherently understand the whole-life nature of the average woman's financial plans and needs. They also may have very different communication styles than their women clients.
Thakor recommends women use women-created resources like LearnVest and DailyWorth to educate themselves in order to avoid the intimidation factor when talking about investment products with their advisers. She also encourages women to consult Garrett Planning Network, founded by Certified Financial Planner Sheryl Garrett, to locate a local certified financial planner who works on an hourly-fee-only basis. Taking these steps, Thakor explains, may alleviate the concern expressed by many women in the BCG study that they were not being taken seriously or talked to on the same level as male clients by their financial advisers.
2. Expressly state your ideal career trajectory, then ask how you should alter your investment plans accordingly.
In the BCG study, women stated that their investment advisers fundamentally misunderstood what was actually important to them, and recommended a too-narrow range of inappropriate investment vehicles as a result. Many said their advisers assumed they had a lower risk tolerance than they actually did, or that their advisers focused on short-term results and disregarded their long-term goals, which often included time out to care for a child or parent.
Thakor offers women a script of sorts to remedy this communication disconnect. "Go in and say: "I want to be a mom and I may take X amount of time out of the work force," she advises. Then ask, "How do we adjust how much I need to save and how I should invest to compensate for this?"
3. Start saving early.
Your daily dose of news and tidbits from the world of money in politics:
FEC NO LONGER ENFORCING ELECTION LAW?: Following an August story on OpenSecrets Blog chronicling organizations skirting Federal Election Commission disclosure laws, the Campaign Legal Center and Democracy 21 sent a letter to the FEC begging one question: Who is enforcing FEC law if the FEC isn�t?
The letter focuses on contention over �reasonable interpretation� of what constitutes �express advocacy� in the context of a statement by the FEC that an advertisement urging the public �help� a candidate is not express advocacy, since it does not directly tell the public to �vote for� a candidate.
While the letter cites OpenSecrets.org data, the Center for Responsive Politics remains neutral on the issue.
The groups are seeking clarification and a legal explanation, given that advertisements not demonstrating express advocacy are not subject to laws requiring public disclosure of advertising funding.
Meanwhile, a new report by non-profit advocacy group Public Citizen delves deeper into campaign finance information disclosure in the wake of the January Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission Supreme Court ruling. The report contends that the identities of the people and organizations behind political advertisements are becoming less clear, particularly among �Republican-oriented� groups.
The report shows the percentage of groups reporting donors decreasing from 98 percent and 97 percent in 2004 and 2006, respectively, to 49 percent in 2008 and only 32 percent thus far in the 2010 election cycle.
�The Supreme Court has unleashed a flood of new corporate spending on election ads and the public can�t even tell who is behind a given ad,� explained David Arkush, director of Public Citizen�s Congress Watch division, in a Wall Street Journal article.
LADY GAGA AND HARRY REID TEAM UP: What do Lady Gaga and U.S. Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) have in common? Hint: not fashion sense. Still, the pair teamed up earlier this week via Twitter to voice support for the repeal of the military�s �Don�t Ask, Don�t Tell� policy for gay service members.
Reid began the correspondence with a tweet saying �@ladygaga There is a vote on #DADT next week. Anyone qualified to serve this country should be allowed to do so.� The pop star responded by writing �God Bless and Thank you @HarryReid, from all of us, like u, who believe in equality and the dream of this country. We were #BORNTHISWAY.�
While there is no record of Gaga herself making campaign contributions to Reid, the senator has done well fund-raising with her colleagues in the television, movies and music industry, who have donated $436,250 to Reid during the 2010 election cycle.
From 2009-2010, Reid is second to only U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) in campaign contributions from people and political action committees associated with this industry.
BLOOMBERG�S PERSONAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION RECORD BROKEN: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg may be notable for massive contributions to his own campaigns, but this billionaire media mogul-turned-politico�s record for the largest personal campaign contribution in U.S. history has been shattered by California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman, a Republican.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported another $15 million donation Tuesday, bringing Whitman�s total personal contributions for the 2010 governor�s race to $119 million. A recent Rasmussen poll shows Whitman, former chief executive officer of eBay, slightly ahead of Democratic challenger Jerry Brown, the state�s former governor and current attorney general.
Bloomberg set the former record of $108 million in personal contributions in his mayoral re-election bid last year, when he spent about $185 per vote, as OpenSecrets Blog previously reported.
Have a news tip or link to pass along? We want to hear from you! E-mail us at press@crp.org.
big white booty problems
ICM And WME And CAA <b>News</b>… – Deadline.com
ICM's talent department signed Emmy nominee and TV standout (Malcolm In The Middle) Jane Kaczmarek, who had been represented by WME. She's managed by Adena Chawke and Lisa Wright at Greenlight Management. Also joining ICM from WME is ...
Early Critics Weigh in on Benu : Good <b>News</b>/Bad <b>News</b> : Eater SF
After slaving away in the internationally acclaimed French Laundry kitchen with one Thomas Kellar for years, Corey Lee is on his own now at Benu. If you've never heard of...
After Months of Speculation, Anisette Brasserie Bids Au Revoir <b>...</b>
Unfortunately, we called it. In an additional bout of shutter news, months and months after rumors swirled that Alain Giraud's Anisette Brasserie was about to call it quits, his...
ICM And WME And CAA <b>News</b>… – Deadline.com
ICM's talent department signed Emmy nominee and TV standout (Malcolm In The Middle) Jane Kaczmarek, who had been represented by WME. She's managed by Adena Chawke and Lisa Wright at Greenlight Management. Also joining ICM from WME is ...
Early Critics Weigh in on Benu : Good <b>News</b>/Bad <b>News</b> : Eater SF
After slaving away in the internationally acclaimed French Laundry kitchen with one Thomas Kellar for years, Corey Lee is on his own now at Benu. If you've never heard of...
After Months of Speculation, Anisette Brasserie Bids Au Revoir <b>...</b>
Unfortunately, we called it. In an additional bout of shutter news, months and months after rumors swirled that Alain Giraud's Anisette Brasserie was about to call it quits, his...
big white booty
ICM And WME And CAA <b>News</b>… – Deadline.com
ICM's talent department signed Emmy nominee and TV standout (Malcolm In The Middle) Jane Kaczmarek, who had been represented by WME. She's managed by Adena Chawke and Lisa Wright at Greenlight Management. Also joining ICM from WME is ...
Early Critics Weigh in on Benu : Good <b>News</b>/Bad <b>News</b> : Eater SF
After slaving away in the internationally acclaimed French Laundry kitchen with one Thomas Kellar for years, Corey Lee is on his own now at Benu. If you've never heard of...
After Months of Speculation, Anisette Brasserie Bids Au Revoir <b>...</b>
Unfortunately, we called it. In an additional bout of shutter news, months and months after rumors swirled that Alain Giraud's Anisette Brasserie was about to call it quits, his...
No comments:
Post a Comment