Although some estimates show that 15 to 20% of all financial professionals are women, there is a growing demand for females in the financial services industry.1 In America, women control about $14 trillion in assets. A female financial professional may be appropriate for a woman's financial needs by providing a different perspective that may be less prominent in the economic realm. Here are five possible advantages that female financial professionals may have over their male counterparts.
A Personal Connection
Finding a financial professional may be like embarking on a new relationship. This connection involves building trust and rapport between the financial professional and the client. This process may be easier when both are the same gender and have the possibility of shared life experiences.
Suppose a client is too intimidated by a financial professional to ask questions to clarify things they may not understand. In that case, it can make it challenging to build a relationship based on trust.
Comprehensive and Long-Term Advice
Some women want comprehensive financial advice, not just segmented recommendations that deal with specific issues. Instead of selecting services from an impersonal menu, some clients may favor a more personable financial professional who creates a plan catered to a client's preferences and needs. Developing a long-term relationship with a trusted financial professional may be a good way to get holistic advice from someone who has watched a client's financial journey for years.
Empathy
One thing that may help women financial professionals build client relationships is empathy. Those seeking financial advice may be going through a transition or difficult time, such as a divorce, retirement or losing a loved one. Showing empathy and providing guidance may be the appropriate balance for some clients. Understanding that a client may not be ready to make major changes may also help avoid pushing them away inadvertently by moving too quickly.
Delegation Ability
Female executives tend to know when to delegate responsibility in and out of the office. When it comes to turning over financial decisions and management to someone else, some women may be more comfortable entrusting these responsibilities to another female professional. Women financial professionals may understand what other women deal with regularly, from workplace sexism to socioeconomic concerns, and may provide advice that takes these factors into mind.
Environmental and Social Commitment
Many female financial professionals focus on networking and relationship-building in their communities. This style may make female financial professionals skilled in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investing or investing with a socially and environmentally responsible mindset. Around three in every four nonprofit workers are women, so having a financial professional committed to ESG principles and investment philosophies may create a better potential fit from the start.2
1 https://www.ngpf.org/blog/question-of-the-day/question-of-the-day-update-what-percent-of-financial-advisers-are-women
2 https://www.aauw.org/app/uploads/2020/03/women-in-leadership.pdf
Important Disclosures
The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.
Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) / Environmental Social Governance (ESG) investing has certain risks based on the fact that the criteria excludes securities of certain issuers for non-financial reasons and, therefore, investors may forgo some market opportunities and the universe of investments available will be smaller.
All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however LPL Financial makes no representation as to its completeness or accuracy.
This article was prepared by WriterAccess.
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