Retirement Fulfillment – Are Financial Advisors Delivering?
According to surveys, 88% of financial advisors report offering non-tradition guidance like financial coaching or lifestyle alignment, only about 46% provide truly holistic planning that covers the full spectrum of human and life-transition needs beyond pure portfolio management.
Recently I asked a group of pre-retirees whether their financial advisor is offering them a holistic approach to retirement – one than encourages exploration and direction beyond money related questions. The majority answered in the negative!
Pension plans, RRSPs, estate plans and IPPs are one side of retirement. These topics are common, but what about a retiree’s shrinking social network and the possibility of loneliness or depression?
Today’s financial advisor is being called upon serving clients on more than asset accumulation, allocations and wealth transfer. Besides money issues, they will assist clients with answers and information on the importance of a positive attitude, how to build a balanced health and leisure strategy, managing time, assessing living space against future needs, and more.
Not only are clients expecting such information, but they are also very appreciative for advice. Obviously, clients have concerns, want to talk about “personal space needs” and maybe even get some direction on how to manage a husband’s retirement and the effect it has on one’s daily routine.
As a financial advisor, what can you do to better meet the needs of clients? One action is to shift and be prepared to meet client demands.
Suggested actions:
- Be open and receptive to client concerns. This increases the trust and understanding within the client relationship
- Share observations and practices of successfully retired persons (i.e. creating a realistic and well-rounded vision of retirement, and creating and implementing a plan to make it happen)
- Read books and articles about life after work, and provide the same to clients
- Offer workshops that deal with all aspects of retirement, not just financial
- Connect with a retirement specialist and ask questions outside of the advisor’s comfort level
- Refer clients to a retirement specialist just as is done when estate, accounting or legal issues occur.
As your clients enter the second longest phase of life, you can play an instrumental role in helping them get it right from a holistic point of view. You hold a powerful position and can take pride in your client’s success.
The added value can be monumental. Those who assist clients in building a successful and stimulating retirement reap great dividends. Happy clients are likely to live longer and enjoy greater social circles. Word of mouth is a powerful thing!
On the positive side, one person I spoke with said, “I’ve been asked to move my accounts to a different firm, but I won’t. My financial advisor understands what I’m going through as I prepare for retirement. She shared her knowledge with me, gave me books and articles and sponsored a workshop. It’s because of our relationship that I’m staying!”