Want to attract more women to work in retirement? Read this

We’ve all seen the stats about female representation in the financial services industry. Almost half of financial services employees are women, which sounds pretty good. But if you take a closer look, you’ll notice that as we climb the career ladder, women become underrepresented. In 2018, only 33.5% of advisors were female and a mere 15% of executive leaders were women. When we focus on women who specialize in the retirement sector, their confidence in their career trajectories mirrors these results. According to Women in Pensions Network, only half agree their career path looks promising, and one in three don’t believe they have enough education to advance. 

The need for change is way overdue. And given that March is Women’s History Month, I wanted to highlight the important role women continue to play in the 401(k) space by honoring some of the incredible female advisors we get to work with every day at Vestwell.

Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to sit down with Courtenay Shipley at Retirement Planology, Kristen Deevy at Pensionmark, Katrina Bell at Zuna, and Deane Mayerhofer at Strategic Retirement Partners to understand what drew them to retirement, who inspires them, and what advice they have for others.

Why retirement?

First, I wanted to understand what attracted these women to work in retirement. While I fell into this industry (I’m a lawyer by trade), I understand the critical role advisors play in helping their clients plan for their futures.

Kristen agreed; her brother introduced her to the industry when she was looking to make a career change and she quickly realized that she loved incentive-based pay, as well as the opportunity to work with so many different people, from other advisors to plan sponsors and participants. 

For Courtenay, the draw was being able to educate people by simplifying the complex and helping them plan for the life they wanted. In her first job out of college, she learned all about state pensions and 403(b) plans. The educational piece excited her, along with the opportunity to help people plan for financial independence.

Deane also shared what got her hooked, noting how the retirement plan industry offers a unique opportunity for ownership and creativity because it is a “learn as you go” career. 

The power of mentorship

All four women recognized that they wouldn’t have gotten to where they are today without support and guidance from others.

Katrina’s biggest piece of advice for women looking to work in retirement: Get a mentor. When she started in the industry in the 1990s, there were very few women advisors. She credits her career path to one of her first supervisors, who encouraged her to pivot from marketing to advising since it’s where “money and freedom lived.” 

Kristen also cited a manager early on in her career who had a huge impact on her trajectory. Prior to becoming an advisor, Kristen was a vice president of lending and operations at a credit union. At just 26 years old, she had a tremendous amount of responsibility overseeing 30 employees and two branches. Her mentor showed her how to lead and make difficult decisions, while encouraging her to creatively solve problems.

Similar to Katrina, Kristen recommends finding a mentor and joining female networking groups, like Women in Pensions Network. While it’s easy to view those in your field as competition, Kristen knows the bonds they formed far outweigh any negative impact. She sees meeting these other women as a great opportunity to learn from and support each other.

Courtenay also noted the inspiration she found from fellow females, sharing that in one of her first roles, there were only two women brokers at her firm — the rest were assistants. She’s thankful for these trailblazers who showed her it was possible to grow into roles that had typically been held by men. Reflecting on her past, she shared that after hearing a successful woman speak at an industry conference, she realized that there are many paths that will lead to the same place. She understood that trailblazers have different perspectives than their peers, and there is an incredible amount of value in diverse and non-traditional thinking. 

Deane said that we often find mentors in unexpected places. She mentioned that she pulls inspiration from a number of women who all have similar characteristics: confidence, authenticity, and fearlessness. She suggests sticking with people who give you energy and challenge your thinking. 

Supporting women = everyone’s job

As part of an underrepresented group, these women know that being a woman in the industry isn’t always easy. To help find success, Deane encourages other women to find their voice and not be afraid to use it. She also suggests that women surround themselves with strong, confident leaders who challenge their thinking. She believes that we should be inviting men to the conversation, too, about elevating women in our industry. 

Similarly, Courtenay echoed the responsibility of everyone around us to make a change in the industry — and not just women. She said that all of us should be asking the question “Who have you helped that doesn’t look like you or isn’t like you?” This will facilitate conversations across a wide variety of candidates and employees, and help create an atmosphere where unlikely friendships and connections can happen. 

Kristen advocates for women to find forward-thinking companies that foster innovation. She also believes that women who can adapt will be most successful in this industry. In an ever-changing workplace, she’s found that her ability to adapt to a changing industry has given her a competitive advantage.

Katrina also understands that women can be more risk averse than men, and she’s encouraging the industry to rethink pay structures to provide more stability. She hopes this will open the door for more women to consider a career in retirement. 

One thing is clear after the year we’ve just had: Work/life balance is not clear cut and it differs for everyone. Deane urges women to think about it instead as “work/life integration.” She also urges those in leadership positions to create work environments that promote integration for employees. 

The retirement industry is far more creative and nurturing; after all, being an advisor is not only about selling, but more importantly, it is about helping people. We’re honored to work alongside the women changing peoples’ lives one day at a time.

Allison Brecher, General Counsel with Vestwell, has over 20 years of legal and regulatory experience, handling high profile and complex litigation involving employee benefits, ERISA, regulatory matters, data privacy and electronic discovery. For more information, please visit www.vestwell.com.