Financial Coaching 101
Why are you interested in financial coaching?
What is financial coaching? What is it not?
Elements of coaching • Goal-orientation • Encouragement • Accountability to the process • Builds self-efficacy
Who is providing financial coaching? • Findings from first census of financial coaching field conducted in 2015: • • • • •
601 responses from 358 organizations in 47 states At least 1,705 financial coaches serving at least 10,230 clients per month Mostly paid staff, some volunteers Mostly offered as a bundled service or integrated with other services Phone-based coaching is most common (75% of respondents), with in-person coaching next. Other modes of service provision: group coaching, online, other • About 50% of respondents said they used an internal training. NeighborWorks America’s training was second most reported • Most commonly tracked data: clients’ personal financial goals and budgeting • The vast majority of respondents, spanning managers, coaches and funders, believe that coaching is improving clients’ financial situations
Who are the right clients? • Generally, not for clients in crisis • Should be motivated and have mental bandwidth for coaching • Client buy-in and follow through was ranked as the biggest challenge in the 2015 census
Who are the right coaches? • View clients as “whole” • Not afraid of pauses/silence • Inquisitive • Non-judgmental • Supportive
Research • Asset Funders Network: AssetFunders.org for Financial Coaching Census • Center for Financial Security, University of Wisconsin-Madison: cfs.wisc.edu
How to get started • How will it be offered? In-house, partnership, referral • Where in your client flow will it be offered? • What are your training needs?
Example from the field $tand By Me Wanda Lopez
The evolution of …
TIMELINE • 2009 Governor initiates the creation of a financial coaching program in partnership with United Way of Delaware. • 2010 co-active coaching model adopted from the Central New Mexico Community College, Ann Lyn Hall, that assumes customers are “creative, resourceful, and whole.” • Start fundraising to support program development and implementation. RFP to identify partners with footprint in the community or target market. • 2011 program launches with one implementation partner organization, 2 full time coaches, and one state service center site with a budget of $120,000. • 2012-2014 identified additional partners based on their proven outcomes to provide quality services in their communities. • 2015 Office of Financial Empowerment codified into law.
FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT SERVICE PACKAGE Personal Financial Coaching: Budgeting, debt, financial goal setting, savings, and personal money management. Work one-on-one with a personal financial coach. Mind Over Money Workshops: Four 1-hour interactive workshops where participants have fun while they learn about money. Financial Services: Work with credit unions and non-profits to develop and increase access to consumer-friendly savings, loan, and transaction products.
Post Secondary Education Services: Financial planning for postsecondary, FAFSA applications, managing student loan debt. Community Referrals: Debt consolidation, foreclosure assistance, free tax preparation, matched savings programs, home ownership counseling.
State of Delaware, DE Dept. of Health and Social Services, Office of Financial Empowerment
United Way of Delaware
NON-PROFIT IMPLEMENTATION PARTNERS: SERVICE SECTORS West End Neighborhood House: New Castle County
Wilmington Senior Center: 50+
NCALL Research: Kent County
Food Bank of Delaware: Community Partners
Goodwill of Delaware and Delaware County: Sussex County and workforce
LACC: $BM Hispano & childcare
Childcare Partners: Telamon Corp, NCC HeadStart, DE Early Childcare Center
Service Source: Disability
CO-LOCATION, SERVICE PARTNERS, TARGET MARKETS K-12/ DOE – Office of Higher Education School Districts and High Schools: college access
State Agencies, Corporations, Small Businesses, and their workforce: Employee Benefits
50+ : Delaware Aging Network, Wilmington Senior Center, DSAPPD
Del Tech Community College and Wilmington University: student retention
Child Care Centers: DE Dept. of Services to Children, Youth, and Families Employee benefits and Parent Engagement
Immigrants and Hispanics: Delaware Hispanic Commission, ESL classes, non-profits
Military: Dover Air Force Base, Active Duty and Veterans
Aspiring Homeowners: Delaware State Housing Authority, Federation of Housing Counselors
Workforce Development: Adult Education, Goodwill, SNAP E&T, and DOL OneStops
Targeted Constituencies: May 2011 – June 2016 Targeted Programs
Target Market
Program Goals
Strategic Partners
Numbers Served
Employer Based
Low wage workers
$BM as employee benefit to improve financial wellness in the workplace
DHSS, Dover Downs, 63 Childcare Centers, Beebe, Nanticoke, and Christiana Care Hospitals, M&T Bank, Non-profits, ShopRite, Dover Air Force Base, Perdue Farms
2595
Stand By Me Hispano
Hispanic Immigrants
Increase household financial stability and access to mainstream financial services
DE Hispanic Commission, LACC, La Esperanza, DOE/Office of Adult Ed ESL.
1743
Stand By Me 50+
Pre and Post Retirement
Ensure maximization of benefits and savings to protect quality of life in retirement
Wilmington Senior Center, Delaware Aging Network, DSAPPD, National Council on Aging, National Community Reinvestment Council
2886
Childcare Partnership
Childcare staff and parents
$BM as employee benefit and service to families
DE Dept of Services to Children Youth and Families, Telamon, Wilmington Head Start, NCC Head Start, 63 childcare centers, Annie E. Casey Foundation, University of Maryland
1339
College Funding Project
High School Students and Parents
Educate and support families in developing and implementing financial plan for college.
DOE Higher Education Office, 34 High Schools (financial aid, scholarships, FAFSA, financial planning for college)
10,861
Community Colleges
College Students
Support students to ensure that they are able to simultaneously cover costs related to college and life.
All Del Tech Campuses
2867
FinanceAbility Start: 10/15
People with disabilities
Educate on the combination of benefits, income, and selfsufficiency.
Service Source, National Disability Institute
123
Workforce Development Partnership
Adults in workforce training
Improve personal financial stability of students to reduce stress, improve performance, retention, and ultimate job placement opportunities.
DOE/Office of Adult Ed ABE, workforce training, apprenticeship, Poly Tech, NCC Vo Tech, Sussex Tech and DOL Employment and Training
106
Millennials: Kiss Your Landlord Good-Bye Start: 4/16
Millennials, aspiring home owners
Improve credit scores, reduce debt, and increase savings to position aspiring home owners to link to attractive mortgages through Delaware Housing Finance Agency (DHFA).
Delaware State Housing Authority, Federation of Housing Counselors, State Board of Realtors, Financial Institutions Prepare Millennials and other aspiring home owners to build credit and establish savings needed for home purchase. Connect them to attractive mortgages through the Housing Finance Agency.
298
Financial Coaching Customers
All Delawareans
Improve overall financial well-being, reduce stress, and enhance overall perspective, attitude, and quality of life.
Total unduplicated customer count served through personal financial coaching (some customers may be served by multiple initiatives described above: ie, Hispanic immigrant working at Dover Downs)
10,758
Targeted Programs
Target Market
Strategic Partners
Stand By Me Hispano
Hispanic Immigrants
DE Hispanic Commission, LACC, La Esperanza, DOE/Office of Adult Ed ESL.
Stand By Me 50+
Pre and Post Retirement
Wilmington Senior Center, Delaware Aging Network, DSAPPD, National Council on Aging, National Community Reinvestment Council
College Funding Project
High School Students and Parents
DOE Higher Education Office, 34 High Schools (financial aid, scholarships, FAFSA, financial planning for college)
FinanceAbility Started: October 2015
People with disabilities
Service Source, National Disability Institute
Workforce Development Partnership
Adults in workforce training
DOE/Office of Adult Ed ABE, workforce training, apprenticeship, Poly Tech, NCC Vo Tech, Sussex Tech and DOL Employment and Training
Millennials: Kiss Your Landlord Good-Bye Start: April 2016
Millennials, aspiring home owners
Delaware State Housing Authority, Federation of Housing Counselors, State Board of Realtors, Financial Institutions Prepare Millennials and other aspiring home owners to build credit and establish savings needed for home purchase. Connect them to attractive mortgages through the Housing Finance Agency.
Childcare Industry Partnership
• Target: Childcare Partnership • Target Market: Childcare staff and parents • Program Goals: $BM as employee benefit and service to families • Strategic Partners: DE Dept of Services to Children Youth and Families, Telamon, Wilmington Head Start, NCC Head Start, 63 childcare centers, Annie E. Casey Foundation, University of Maryland • Customers Served: 1339
Strategy highlights • Alignment: the program was aligned with the Administration priority focus on Early Education + Financial Empowerment • Timing: Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge Grant • Win/Win/Win: partnered with the Office of Early Learning to help early child education organizations achieve their quality rating (STARS) as it relates to the financial goals component. • Sustainability: Embedding the financial coaching program into organizational workflow for sustainability; In Head Start, family service specialists adhere to performance guidelines through coordinated approach with $BM coach.
5 Year Outcome Highlights May 2011 – September 2016:
Statewide network: 30 coaches, 9 non-profit organizations, 9 state agencies, 5 colleges, 3 hospitals, 34 high schools, 63 early education centers Program outcomes: • 11,500+ coached customers • 39,000 coaching sessions • 60,000 served ( including workshops, taxes, College Funding Project) • $4.7million debt reduction • $2.3million increased savings • 47 average credit score increase
The secret recipe for success… Scale: Leverage client access to the program through strategic partnerships.
Impact. Work closely with partners for continuous quality improvement to achieve long term outcomes around financial stability.
Sustainability: Embed financial coaching into existing organizations who own the program as part of their culture to enhance their own goals.