For Employees and Employers Alike
Financial education—or the lack thereof—has become a glaring issue for businesses and their employees. Many employers offer 401(k) plans or ESOPs (Employee Stock Ownership Plans), yet their employees struggle with the basics of planning for their future. For NorthStar Financial Group, the realization of this gap in financial literacy was the catalyst for launching their Financial Fitness Program.
“Over the years, we’ve constantly heard from business owners that their employees weren’t getting the support they needed with their retirement plans,” Sr. Financial Advisor and Owner/Partner Jay Stibbe said. “There is a need for financial education. That’s why we are so passionate about Financial Fitness.”
What is the Financial Fitness Program?
NorthStar’s Financial Fitness program is a structured financial education service designed to remove liability from employers who, traditionally, can oftentimes find themselves giving financial advice informally. This might seem innocent, but if an employee experiences losses, the employer could be held liable. That’s one reason why working with a group like NorthStar Financial Group is important.
“Owners and HR professionals are often the first point of contact for employees with financial questions, but they’re not licensed financial advisors,” Sr. Financial Advisor and Owner/Partner Jon Anas said. “If they try to help, they could inadvertently give investment advice, which is a liability risk. We step in to provide unbiased, fiduciary guidance to ensure employees get the right answers without putting the company at risk. We are also able to save the company time because if they have our financial fitness program as a resource, they can say no to the frequent requests they get from financial advisors who want to come in to promote their business.”
The other benefit of the program is that it helps your employees, which, as an employer, you care about!
“Employers have a genuine connection to their employees doing well,” Anas said. “They become part of a family with them. It’s not like they stop caring about these people when they retire. So, it’s better to have educated employees that are saving enough so that they can be financially successful.”
The program functions through a combination of methods tailored to meet the needs of different organizations. These include:
- Consultations with business owners to assess their current employee benefits and identify gaps.
- Customizable education formats, including video snippets, in-person lunch-and-learns, and live webinars.
