Deals & People June 18, 2013

The Standard Appoints Two Plan Consultants

Mike Flahaven and Brian Forneris are newly appointed retirement plan consultants for the central sales region of StanCorp Equities Inc., a subsidiary of StanCorp Financial Group Inc.
Reported by

Flahaven will support retirement plan advisers in northern Illinois and Wisconsin. He has worked in retirement plan services for nearly 30 years. Before joining The Standard, he was a regional sales director for One America/AUL Retirement Services. He also has held management and sales leadership positions at Firstar Bank Trust Company, Royal American Bank Investment Services and First Colonial Bank Investment Services.

Flahaven holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of Illinois and a master’s of business administration in marketing from Dominican University. He holds the Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) and Certified Retirement Counselor (CRC) designations, and FINRA Series 7, 24 and 63 securities licenses. He holds state insurance licenses for Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Minnesota and Iowa.

Never miss a story — sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters to keep up on the latest retirement plan adviser news.

Forneris will support advisers in Michigan, northern Ohio and northern Indiana. He has worked in financial services for more than 10 years with a focus on retirement plans. Before joining The Standard, he was a senior sales representative in retirement services for Principal Financial Group, where he also served as a sales representative, benefit and planning counselor, and senior account executive. He served for four years in the United States Navy in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, where he received an honorable discharge in 1996.

Forneris is a graduate of Western Illinois University. He holds the Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) and Certified Retirement Plans Specialist (CRPS) designations, and FINRA Series 6, 7, 63 and 65 securities licenses. He holds state insurance licenses for Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York.

The Standard provides financial products and services, including retirement plans products and services, individual annuities and investment advice.

 

Data & Research June 18, 2013

Security About Retirement Ticks Up

Overall, Americans are more secure than one year ago about their ability to retire comfortably, a survey found.
Reported by

According to the COUNTRY Financial Security Index, 58% of Americans are confident in their ability to retire comfortably, compared to 54% who said so last June. However, those nearing retirement (ages 50 to 64) are more pessimistic about their financial security.  

At 38%, Baby Boomers were the least likely of any age group to rate their financial security positively. This is down two points from December.  

Never miss a story — sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters to keep up on the latest retirement plan adviser news.

Married Americans are more confident in all aspects of their financial security, compared to their unwed counterparts. Forty-nine percent of married Americans rate their overall level of financial security positively, compared to 36% of unmarried Americans.  

Married couples are also more confident in their ability to retire comfortably (63% vs. 51%). They are also more likely to save (56% vs. 47%) and say their financial security is getting better (24% vs. 18%).  

The COUNTRY Index was created by COUNTRY Financial and is compiled by Rasmussen Reports, LLC, an independent research firm, based on a national telephone and online survey of at least 3,000 Americans.

«