Managing the Transition to Retirement

A new podcast series from Financial Planning

If work is its own unique time and retirement is too, then what do you call the period in between, those couple of years when one moves from all-consuming industry to a focus on what's next? Those transitory years between work and retirement, and how to navigate them, are the topic of this series of audio podcasts. Over the course of three discussions, we'll plumb the issues and challenges posed by this transition.

Like all transitions, the move into retirement is fraught with both excitement as well as uncertainty. There's the uncertainty about health care costs and who will pay for them, the uncertainty about finding meaningful pursuits, and of course, the uncertainty about making a lifetime of savings last as need as they need to. More and more people are opting for a gradual shift into retirement rather than an abrupt end to their working days. Because this is new terrain for most people, they will likely look to financial advisors to help them navigate this unknown period.

Helping clients meet the challenges that this transition may present can prove a new opportunity for many advisors. We'll be talking to experts who are taking these dynamic changes in stride and can offer ideas about how to turn the unknowns of retirement into business opportunities.

Marion Asnes, Editor, Financial Planning Magazine will moderate the series which includes The Challenges of Financing a Modern Retirement, Creating a Retirement Income Portfolio and Client Communications and the New Retirement Reality.

1. The State-of-the-Art Retirement Portfolio

Advisors are presented with a new opportunity these days - to help clients meet the various challenges that may arise as they transition into retirement, a transition period that will most likely be longer than that of previous generations. In this first program well discuss with leading experts how new optimization software, annuity products and alternative investments, just to mention a few, are playing central roles in today's retirement portfolios.

Industry Experts:

Norman M. Boone, President, Mosaic Financial Partners, Inc.

Norman M. Boone, MBA, CFP has been regularly recognized as one of the nations best financial planners by Worth magazine every year since the lists inception in 1994 including 2007, by Medical Economics magazine four times and recently by Barrons magazine. The January 2007 issue of Financial Planning magazine named Norm one of eight Movers and Shakers of the industry.

Norm earned his Certified Financial Planner certification in 1984, after receiving his undergraduate education at Stanford University and his MBA in Finance from the Harvard Business School.

In addition to managing his financial planning practice within Mosaic, along with his partner and wife Linda Lubitz Boone, Norm founded IPS AdvisorProTM, an online software application which helps financial advisors efficiently create customized Investment Policy Statements. IPS AdvisorProTM was named Best Software of 2006 by Morningstars Technology Editor Joel Bruckenstein. The software is available online at www.IPSAdvisorPro.com. In 2004, FPA Press published their book called Creating an Investment Policy StatementGuidelines and Templates. Norm and Linda have spent many years writing and speaking about the importance of Investment Policy Statements, and earlier joint ventured with Ibbotson Associates on an earlier IPS software product.

Norm has served in various leadership roles throughout his career. He has been a member of the national board of directors of the 30,000 member Financial Planning Association. He helped found the San Francisco Society of the Institute of Certified Financial Planners and has served in many capacities locally, including president of the San Francisco chapter. He chaired the 1995 IAFP Conference for Advanced Financial Planning. Norm is a contributing editor to Wealth Manager Magazine, one of the industrys top trade journals. Prior to founding his own company, Norm spent six years in banking (with Wells Fargo and Hibernia banks) and another four years as the chief financial and administrative officer for two successful operating companies. He served as an officer in the U.S. Army and spent time as a VISTA Volunteer.

Norm recently summited Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africas highest peak. He lives in Oakland, California.

Related Links:

Thomas M. Idzorek, Vice President, Research and Product Development, Ibbotson Associates

Laurence J. Kotlikoff, Professor of Economics, Boston University

Professor Kotlikoff is also Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research, Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Fellow of the Econometric Society, and President of Economic Security Planning, Inc., a company specializing in financial planning software. Professor Kotlikoff received his B.A. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania in 1973 and his Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University in 1977. From 1977 through 1983 he served on the faculties of economics of the University of California, Los Angeles and Yale University. In 1981-82 Professor Kotlikoff was a Senior Economist with the President's Council of Economic Advisers. Professor Kotlikoff has served as a consultant to the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the Harvard Institute for International Development, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Swedish Ministry of Finance, the Norwegian Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Italy, the Bank of Japan, the Bank of England, the Government of Russia, the Government of Bolivia, the Government of Bulgaria, the Treasury of New Zealand, the Office of Management and Budget, the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Department of Labor, the Joint Committee on Taxation, The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, The American Council of Life Insurance, Merrill Lynch, Fidelity Investments, AT&T, and other major U.S. corporations. He has provided expert testimony on numerous occasions to committees of Congress including the Senate Finance Committee, the House Ways and Means Committee, and the Joint Economic Committee. Professor Kotlikoff is author or co-author of 11 books and hundreds of professional journal articles. His most recent book, co-authored with Scott Burns, is entitled The Coming Generational Storm. Professor Kotlikoff publishes extensively in newspapers, and magazines on issues of deficits, generational accounting, tax structure, social security, Medicare, health reform, pensions, saving, insurance, and personal finance.

Related Links:

2. Second Careers for Retirees

No longer does retirement mean going to work one day and then stopping the next. Survey after survey finds that most Americans will incorporate some type of work into their retirement plans, a type of phased retirement.

Industry Experts:

Susan E. Galvan, MA, Galvanic Communications LLC

With a lifelong interest in human development and behavior as a foundation, Susan has worked as a professional counselor, educator, trainer, minister and administrator. She has initiated and developed a wide range of projects and programs, with a special emphasis on emergent models in the fields of psychology, education and human development. Susan was Co-Founder and CEO of the Kinder Institute of Life Planning.

Founder of Galvanic Communications LLC, Susan brings all of her education and experience together as CEO and Trainer of Trainers in an innovative program that trains financial planners and other professionals in Life Planning. The EVOKE Method of Life Planning provides in-depth training and mentorship to financial planners seeking to integrate a more holistic approach into their financial planning practice, focusing on specific skill sets, profound life goals and a methodology conducive to deepening trust and commitment in these professional relationships.

Susan has presented workshops at both local and national FPA gatherings and at the CFP Conference in Melbourne, Australia. She has also been a guest numerous times on radio programs discussing the Seven Stages of Money Maturity® and Life Planning. She authored regular columns in two magazines, “Worthwhile” and “Advising Boomers,” in addition to articles in the Journal of Financial Planning and Wealth Manager. Her book on Life Planning, Lighting the Torch, was published by FPA Press in October of 2006, and is available through Amazon.com.

Her Master's thesis is on the Seven Stage Theory of Process and the evolution of human consciousness. As an educator and trainer, as well as public speaker, she can easily translate difficult concepts into more accessible language and frameworks. As Chair of a Master’s degree program she designed and initiated in Consciousness Studies, Susan taught extensively in the areas of psychology, spirituality, philosophy and ethics. She also taught approximately 200 adults how to teach other adults effectively, of whom many have gone on to teach in the California Community College system. In addition, for five years she directed an internship training program of Marriage, Family and Child therapists (MFCC's) for state licensing in California.

Related Links:

Galvanic Communications

Michael Haubrich, CFP, Financial Service Group, Inc.

Michael Haubrich is known for creatively blending traditional financial planning with current thinking and tools to meet the work and life realities of today’s clients. Since starting Financial Service Group, Inc. in 1981, Michael has been a relationship-focused, industry innovator who is passionate about his fiduciary responsibility.

In 2006, Michael introduced Career Asset Management (CAM) to the financial planning and career counseling professions. He has been a frequent speaker on the concept leading sessions at the FPA Retreat, NAPFA National and numerous NAPFA regional and FPA chapter conferences. CAM, called “game changing” by industry experts, has also been the subject of several news articles in Financial Advisor, Investment Advisor and Financial Planning magazines along with numerous newspapers including Chicago Tribune and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Michael is past president of the Greater Milwaukee chapter of International Association for Financial Planning, currently the Financial Planning Association. He is a member of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors and a board member of the Racine-Kenosha Estate Planning Council. Active in the community, Michael serves on the boards of directors for the UW-Parkside Benevolent Foundation and Careers Industries.

Michael has been in the financial services industry since 1979. He is president of Financial Service Group, Inc., a Registered Investment Advisory firm with more than $125 million of assets under management.

Michael received his Bachelor degree in finance with high honors from the University of Wisconsin – Parkside, where he also served as an adjunct faculty member teaching personal finance.

Related Links:

Financial Service Group

Stephen M. Pollan - Best Selling Author, Financial Advisor, Professional Coach

Stephen is a consultant who also serves as a professional coach, financial adviser, career counselor and practicing attorney. He is a best-selling author who brings more than four decades of real-world experience to helping clients with the "business of living." He has counseled, guided and mentored hundreds of people — including corporate leaders, world-class athletes, and professionals in the arts — and, in the process, has earned national recognition as a trusted adviser.

Stephen has counseled his clients on virtually every aspect of their lives, including investing, personal relationships and parenting. His philosophy is straightforward: He believes that attitude and persistence are the foundations for success. He applies a holistic approach, and customizes his services for each of his clients.

Empathetic to the anxiety that new clients may feel about their life direction or a crossroads decision, Stephen mitigates such concerns through sound reassurance. In this way, he has earned the reputation that's reflected by a sign on his desk: "Professional Fear Remover." Stephen Pollan's advice and counsel are based on his extensive professional training and also drawn from the sum total of his life's experience. Stephen is a respected author whose numerous books on meeting life's challenges include three bestsellers.

Stephen appeared nationally as "The Answer Man" on CNBC for six years, responding to viewers' live personal finance questions. He's also a frequent guest on the Today show, Good Morning America and other programs. Besides television, Stephen contributes regularly to national publications such as U.S. News & World Report, Worth, New York and he has an upcoming monthly column in Money titled "Finding the Right Words."

Related Links:

Stephen Pollan Main Site

3. Building a Retirement-Focused Practice

Some advisors believe that a retirement-focused practice involves concentrating mainly on the merits of retirement saving and planning. While accumulating wealth is a primary goal of the enterprise, de-cumulation is important to consider as well.

How do clients spend down their savings in the most sophisticated and prudent manner? Here, many advisors are looking for guidance. According to a McKinsey survey, 80% of those polled say they are not completely confident in implementing an income distribution program for their clients. The same McKinsey study found that two-thirds of advisors wonder whether an aging clientele may reduce their compensation.

At the same time, assets controlled by households in the income and preservation stage are predicted to grow by two-thirds by 2020. This growth can create a great opportunity for advisors who possess the expertise and experience to service retirees.

So how do advisors gain the knowledge they need to effectively service this clientele? Further, how do they reposition their businesses to maximize profits, thereby aligning their interests with those of their clients?