CFP Board launches program to attract more women planners

The CFP Board Center for Financial Planning is creating a pilot program known as the Financial Planning Re-entry Initiative (FPRI) aimed at expanding the pool of female financial planners. Working in partnership with iRelaunch, a firm that develops career-reentry programming, the FPRI expects to establish re-entry internships at financial services firms for experienced, professional women seeking to return to the workforce. The Center and iRelaunch said they will support firms in developing and executing customized internships for this predominantly female talent pool, and the CFP Board Career Center will post professional re-entry internships as they become available. "Among our priorities at the Center for Financial Planning is to address the lack of diversity within the financial planning profession as well as the need for pathways into the profession," said Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis, executive director at the CFP Board Center for Financial Planning. "Through the FPRI, the Center seeks to apply a successful workforce development model in other sectors to create a scalable re-entry model for personal financial planning. The Center applauds the FPRI pilot firms for their commitment to diversity and workforce development in the profession." Firms participating in the Center's initial FPRI pilot include: Edelman Financial Services and United Capital, both of which are sponsored by TD Ameritrade Institutional; Fairport Asset Management and Yeske Buie, sponsored by Schwab Foundation; and Fidelity Investments. iRelaunch said the financial planning pilot is modeled after similar successful programs in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) sector. Re-entry internship program "conversion rates," or the percentage of re-entry interns who convert to long term hires, are 50% to 100%, it said. Men returning from a career break also are eligible to apply for and participate in the FPRI program.