Yearning for Security

Americans are on edge when it comes to retirement and looking for help figuring it out. Recent guests on my WealthTech on Deck podcast are pushing forward to address fears and broaden investors’ horizons.

• Matthew Gray , head of employer markets at Allianz Life , described the recent alliance between wealth and retirement benefits titan Empower and Allianz offering a fixed index annuity option in defined contribution plans. It looks and feels like a pension, by design.
• Nassau Financial Group knows that middle-income investors are looking for ways to maximize their income in retirement. Jan Buchsbaum , the company’s chief product officer, and Mark Fitzgerald , its national sales manager, shared their path to developing products and advisor technology to do just that.

'Invisible' and Looking for Advice

Two guests brought to mind the gender-reversing reboot of the “Matlock” TV series. The wily title character, played by Kathy Bates, takes advantage, as she says, women of a certain age are “invisible.”

• Lacy Garcia , founder of the Willow wealthtech platform for advisors, understands “Madeline Matlock.” Garcia is training advisors how to grow their practices by working with women and next-generation investors who are often overlooked and under-estimated.
• Psychologist, gerontologist and author Ken Dychtwald warns advisors that retiring clients look to celebrities like Harrison Ford (82), Martha Stewart (83), and yes, Bates (76) as role models. Failing to ask clients about their retirement hopes and dreams puts them at risk of losing their business, he said.

Thank you for making the WealthTech Insider part of your journey to the future of tech-enabled human advice. If you have an idea for a future podcast or column, email me!

Jack Sharry

Managing Director

SEI LifeYield