Wealth Manager's
Jane Berryman, a principal and vice president at Raymond James & Assocs. in Philadelphia, designed and for the past decade has been teaching and promoting an eight-week course at Temple University called Financial Planning for Women that emphasizes the importance of saving and investing. The course, which has been written up in area press, has been cited as one of the best CE programs for working adults in the region.
Lynn Nasman, president of LRN Associates Ltd. in Garden City, N.Y., played an integral part in developing the Financial Fluency Program for Barnard, the women's college of Columbia University. In fact, Nasman was featured on the cover of the Winter 2009 Alumnae Magazine for her work on the program which seeks to empower the financial lives of both college seniors and alumnae.
Kathy Beck Barnes, president of Barnes Investment Advisory Inc. in Phoenix, Ariz., created Feminine Finance, a program to empower women through the understanding of money, in 1983. Over the past 25 years, Feminine Finance has grown to comprise classes, newsletters, weekly TV spots on the Fox News network as well as articles for CNBC.com's Women's Center.
Susan Werner Thoreson, a vice president and financial advisor at MorganStanley in Portsmouth, N.H., has presented seminars such as "Successful Women Invest in Themselves" as part of the Southern New Hampshire Leadership Conference. A strong believer in education, Thoreson serves as treasurer for the Women's Fund of New Hampshire where she has also presented workshops. One–based on the book by David Bach–was entitled "Smart Women Finish Rich."
The slogan of Granite Financial in St. Cloud, Minn.–an independent advisory firm that operates under the Securities America umbrella–is "Retirement and Estate Planning for Women." And Patricia Hinds, CFP, who is both a registered representative and an IAR, says Granite's ideal clients are "established women age 50 to 70." But Hinds doesn't confine her educational commitment to women "of a certain age." Her PR podcast–"Women-centric Financial Planning Can Help Eliminate Stress and Bag Lady Fears"– is catalogued on iTunes. And she researched and wrote a white paper addressing the wealth management concerns of professionals and business owners who are women. In June, she'll make a presentation about the special needs of women investors and women advisors at the Annual Securities America conference in Dallas.
In Cleveland, Ohio, Heather Ettinger runs a practice group on financial literacy for women entitled "Women in Transition." Ettinger, a partner, executive vice president and senior advisor at Fairport Asset Management, also presents "Solutions for Women," her trademarked educational program, to clients and their friends. "Our clients want education and communication, and I feel like I work 25 hours a day to deliver that," Ettinger says.
Another kind of commitment that held a top spot among survey respondents was their dedication to community and professional development. Volunteering to community groups and speaking to women's organizations, as well as service to their own professional associations, were high on most respondent's lists of "things I do." A few examples:
Elizabeth Talbot, executive director and the first female partner of the Colony Group in Boston, sits on the executive committee of Rosie's Place, a well-known non-profit provider of services to poor and homeless women in and around the city. As a former president and treasurer of the Rosie's Place board, Talbot put her financial skills and expertise to work for the community.
Theresa Waddell, CPA and CMPC, serves as co-branch manager with her husband Christopher, a CFP, of Raymond James Financial Services in Vienna, Va. As advisors to multi-generational families, the couple has carved out a niche among those with special needs, helping them navigate through the maze of benefits–SSI, Medicaid, housing assistance–that must be negotiated to ensure a future for their disabled children, siblings and grandchildren. The Waddells have published articles about the subject and appeared in major print media and on TV. By the way, Theresa points out that roughly 75% of caregivers for older or disabled family members are women.
