KSM COMMUNICATIONS LLC

1
Community Response to the Need for Financial
Education

• Kathy Stokes Murray
• Drafting the Blueprint for Womens Retirement
  Security
• 2006 WISER Symposium

2
Response to the Need

• American Savings Education Council
• Founded in 1995
• Spearheaded by EBRI and the Department of Labor
• Coalition involved 150 private sector businesses
• Focus build awareness on the importance of
  planning and saving for a secure retirement

3
Financial Education Outlets

• In the workplace
• Workers are more likely to save for retirement
  through work than on their own
• Employers that successfully engage workers are
  better able to attract, retain, and retire
  workers
• At large
• Let people know what they can expect from other
  sources, and what they must do for themselves

4
Then and Now

• 1995
• 58 had money saved
• 32 had tried to calculate how much theyll need

• 2006
• 70 have money saved
• 42 have tried to calculate how much theyll need

Source The 2006 Retirement Confidence Survey,
EBRI IB 292
5
Bottom Line

• Behavioral finance offers insights into why
  people dont act in their own best interests
• Automatic retirement plan design helps overcome
  these barriers BUT
• Automatic defaults dont teach people what they
  need to know to succeed in financial planning
• Financial education in the workplace
• remains as important as ever