Find women where they are to win midlife talent

“I stumbled into it.”

That’s what women told me all summer long as I interviewed them about their experiences transitioning into financial advisory and investing careers from any manner of unrelated professions.

They had a general idea that their aptitude for untangling financial messes for family and friends could translate to a job. But they weren’t sure what that job was called, or where to find out more about it, or how to find out if their life and career skills could set them up for success as a financial — counselor? or coach? Whatever the job title turned out to be, they hoped that it would be grounded in helping people, not a testosterone-drenched death match for sales and commissions.

Almost to a woman, their general investigations snapped into focus when someone — often, a professional colleague or friend — told them that financial advisory was what they were looking for. With search terms defined, women put themselves on the fast track to gain qualifications and to find points of entry.

Advisory and investing career opportunities are not as easy to find as the industry thinks they are. With millions of women in a great career reset, this industry has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to introduce itself to midlife women looking for something different, better and sustainable. Now is the moment to go meet nurses, teachers, customer service reps, paralegals and other midlife women where they are and show them that this industry offers what they want and need.

Midlife women are driven by financial realities to seek out careers that let them work longer, achieve their financial goals with sustainable higher earnings and enable them to fulfill their caregiving responsibilities along the way.

Women make less — especially as they age — and live longer. They expect to work well past the traditional retirement age of 65. Reverberations from the Covid-19 pandemic and more acutely, from this year’s stock market erosion, are forcing midlife Americans of all income levels to adjust their retirement expectations.

This confluence of factors means that midlife women can expect a greater return on their investment in a career shift, including the time and money it costs to earn advisory credentials. A 45-year-old woman who spends two years to take courses, pass exams and gain entrée to the profession can reasonably expect to craft a high-paying career that synchronizes with her personal responsibilities and enables her to keep working into her early 70s. That’s a strong business case — and one that the industry isn’t making.

Employers have an equally strong business case for hiring midlife women. The way forward is clear.

A spokesperson for LinkedIn told me that financial services is not a destination for midlife career transitioners of any gender. That means that employers that do exert themselves will encounter little direct competition.

Returnships are a proven model that scale for employers of all sizes. Every employer in this industry can send ambassadors to introduce nurses, teachers and corporate managers to advisory and investment careers. Apply proven outreach strategies: attend their networking events; send speakers to their meetings; write short pieces for their newsletters; host local informational sessions. Explain your business model in plain English so women can both understand the options and choose the models that are congruent with their goals and values.

Take a cue from the Lucy Shair Foundation and craft ways for midlife women to transition into the profession without undermining their own families’ financial security. Pay them while they are learning. Cover the cost of their courses and exams.

If the industry continues to recruit within its own echo chamber, it will miss this chance to draw in qualified, motivated midlife women — and will have only itself to blame for perpetuating the gender gap.