Women Wanted as Financial Advisors

Why are top firms such as Securian Financial Group actively recruiting women to become Financial Advisors? And why is this a benefit to women?

Women control at least half of the wealth in this country, 80% or more of the household purchases and often prefer a woman financial advisor to a man by 3 to 1.

By 2010, just a few years away, it is predicted women will control 60% of the wealth in this country. With only 20% of the financial advisors of the female gender, there is a shortage of women to fill these "wealth holders" needs.

A Financial Advisor career is a good option for women because it provides high pay, great flexibility (for those soccer moms), and a high level of control. You don't even need a degree in finance. Sherri DuMond, national recruiting vice president for Securian Financial Group and a former financial advisor, says good listening and communications skills are the most important qualities to possess. And we all know women are better at those than men.

Read below about some upcoming opportunities to learn more about how to become a Financial Advisor.

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Women Wanted: For great careers as financial advisors

Flexibility, unlimited earnings potential and the opportunity to positively impact lives.

Those are job attributes that should be especially appealing to women. And they are indeed the attributes of a career as a financial advisor – yet only 20 percent of the nation’s financial advisors are women.

A 2006 survey from Money magazine and Salary.com ranked “financial advisor” as the third best job in America, based on growth, compensation and job satisfaction, yet the playing field in this industry is dramatically uneven for women.

One company is working to change that. Securian Financial Group (www.securian.com), based in St. Paul, MN, with affiliated firms across the country, is hosting recruiting events in various cities to raise awareness. Upcoming events are being held October 9th in San Mateo, California (call 650-227-0364 for information or to register) and October 17th in Houston (call 713-622-1150, ext. 153.)

“Most women don’t even know about this career option, so we are working to spread the word and introduce them to this career,” explained Sherri DuMond, national recruiting vice president for Securian Financial Group.

“Women are naturally good at this job because they usually have good people skills and good listening skills,” said DuMond. “There is tremendous opportunity for the right people to be successful.”

Especially when you consider the tremendous potential in the marketplace. Women will control an estimated 60 percent of the wealth in the United States by 2010 and we currently influence more than 80 percent of financial decisions in the household, according to the Insurance Advisory Board. In addition, there are 10.6 million privately-held, women-owned businesses in this country.

Couple these statistics with the fact that women often prefer to work with a female financial advisor, and you have incredible opportunity. A survey by Opinion Research Firm and Securian Financial Group documents the demand. Women surveyed who are currently without advisors and who have a gender preference indicate that they would prefer a female to a male advisor by almost three to one (27 percent versus 9 percent).

So those of you who are looking for a career change or are just starting out in your working life should give this job a good look. My hope is to some day report in a future blog that 50 percent of all financial advisors in the country are women.