October is Financial Planning Month

For over 175 years, New York Life has been a strong proponent of women in the workforce. From hiring its first female employee in 1885 to appointing its first female director in 1947, New York Life has been a trailblazer in its commitment to diversity and inclusivity. Today, women make up 58% of New York Life’s workforce and 36% of its board.

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) and WebCE have completed an educational partnership agreement to supply NAIFA members with online CE-based education for insurance and financial advisors. The offering is comprehensive and spans pre-licensing exam preparation for insurance and securities exams through company-mandated training for workplace training and firm element. NAIFA will enable its members to attain continuing education for licensure, certifications, and designations through the partnership.

NAIFA member and CEO of Females and Finance Sheryl Hickerson announced the launch of a new website for the organization.  

Eyewitness News 9 from WSOC-TV, a station in Charlotte, NC, recently broadcast a special report, “Talking About Race and Money.” The Personal Finances segment of the broadcast (beginning at the 13:10 mark) features Delvin Joyce, CLU, ChFC, Managing Director with Prudential Financial and Chair of NAIFA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Council (loyal member since 2010).

NAIFA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Impact Week media coverage garnered positive media attention. Four articles from INN highlighted the event from different perspectives to include why DEI is a critical issue in the finance industry, planning for long-term care in the black and brown communities, and advancing women in the financial service industry. All four articles hit key points which were communicated throughout the DEI Impact event and aligned with the message NAIFA wanted to convey.

Stephen Kagawa, the Founder and CEO of The Pacific Bridge Companies and NAIFA’s 2020 Diversity Champion, has published a new book, Aloha Financial Advising: Doing Good to Do Better for Your Clients and Yourself.

NAIFA CEO Kevin Mayeux and President Tom Michel issued the following statement:

NAIFA’s 2021 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Week is a virtual event featuring three days of programming, April 6-8. Presentations and discussions will focus on increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion within the insurance and financial industry and providing needed products, services, and advice to traditionally underserved communities.

Mary Greene is a Black woman who became a financial advisor with Prudential after working for several Fortune 500 firms in other industries. Prudential offered four things she says are necessary for young advisors to make it: Name recognition among prospective clients, a strong training program, solid support from her manager and managing director, and a feeling of confidence that she “could flourish and really bring some great things to the clients because of the needs of the African American community.”

John Merrick and Alonzo Herndon were successful turn-of-the-twentieth-century entrepreneurs who recognized that Black families had a growing need for life insurance. They also saw that need was not being met in the Jim Crow South. Both men were born into slavery, Merrick in North Carolina and Herndon in Georgia. Both, coincidentally, made their first entrances into the business world as barbers who prospered and opened multiple shops.