Data & Research June 11, 2015

Millennials Have Financial Priorities Ahead of Retirement Saving

Forty-five percent of “younger” respondents to a recent survey said they have student loan debt.
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The latest Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor Poll finds 32% of “younger” Americans believe paying off credit card and student loan debt is the best use of the money they have right now.

The survey classified respondents into two groups, including “younger” Americans who are ages 18 to 24 and those ages 25 to 29 who answered that they were still “getting started” in life.  “Older” Americans are age 30 and older and those ages 25 to 29 who did not consider themselves to be still getting started.

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There were several other financial priorities that ranked above saving for retirement for younger survey respondents. Twenty-one percent said building an emergency financial fund is the best use of their money, while 15% selected “saving ahead for major purchases like a car,” 14% chose “saving to buy a home or paying off a mortgage,” and 10% picked “investing in a retirement account.”

Forty-five percent of younger respondents indicated they have student loan debt compared to 28% of older respondents who had student loan debt when they were first getting started.

When it comes to saving for retirement, investing and managing debt, nearly half of younger respondents (46%) indicated they know what they should be doing and they are following a plan. But, more than one-third (36%) said they know what they should be doing, but can’t afford it, and 15% said they don’t know what they should be doing financially.

Asked what would be the most helpful source of financial advice, half of younger participants said financial education in public schools, and more than one-quarter said financial education classes in the community. Only 12% said a professional financial adviser would be the most helpful source of financial advice, and only 6% chose their employers.

The most common “ideal age to retire” selected among younger respondents was age 60 to 65, selected by 43%. One third think they will be able to retire in this age range, while 34% expect to retire at age 65 or later. Nine percent said they expect to never retire.

Diversions June 11, 2015

A Good Manager Is Hard to Find

Only one person in 10 has the rare talent that makes a great manager, a Gallup poll says.
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Few people—about 10% of people who work—have the qualities that make outstanding leaders, “and organizations have a hard time finding it,” according to a report from Gallup.

In fact, Gallup contends, most managers working in the U.S. today are unsuited to the role. The very ability that likely made people succeed in their previous, non-managerial roles is not the one that creates a great manager, according to Gallup’s “State of the American Manager: Analytics and Advice for Leaders” report.

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Great managers possess a rare combination of five talents, Gallup suggests. They motivate their employees, assert themselves to overcome obstacles, create a culture of accountability, build trusting relationships and make informed, unbiased decisions for the good of their team and company.

The sought-after talent combination that characterizes great managers exists in only about one in 10 people. Another two in 10 have some of the five talents and can become successful managers with the right coaching and development.

Companies that hire managers based on talent realize a 48% increase in profitability, a 22% increase in productivity, a 30% rise in employee engagement scores, a 17% jump in customer engagement scores and a 19% decrease in turnover. Gallup finds successful managers place more emphasis on employees’ strengths than their weaknesses—and that a strengths-based approach is associated with greater levels of employee engagement and well-being, and team productivity and profitability.

Gallup based its report on decades of talent research, a study of 2.5 million manager-led teams in 195 countries and analysis from repeatedly measuring the engagement of 27 million employees. It examines the crucial link among talent, engagement and vital business outcomes, such as profitability and productivity. 

Other findings include:

  • 18% of current managers have the talent required of their role, while 82% do not;
  • More than half (54%) of managers with high talent are engaged, compared with 39% of managers with functioning talent and 27% of managers with limited talent;
  • Female managers are more likely to be engaged than male managers (41% vs. 35%, respectively); and
  • People with a female manager are also six percentage points more engaged, on average, than those who work for a male.

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