The RCA is proud to share it’s latest research results. The Great Disconnect: Bridging Gaps In Retirement Expectations, Results, & Services
You can access a pdf copy of the results here:
We refer to our research approach as “Solution Based Research” because we don’t just want to highlight issues and trends without providing some practical application and next steps for addressing them… as well as innovating new products as services.
To that point, next month we will be launching a series of events designed to address and support people in the retirement transition. As you will see in the report, four of the most significant findings were:
Starting next month our coaches will be hosting virtual Identity & Purpose Labs. These events are designed to foster community and connection through group exercises and discussions that have been shown to help people fill missing voids and move toward new opportunities that provide impact.
Additionally, we are launching the Retirement Coaches Association Advisor Alliance (RCAAA) and Retirement Coaches Association Talent Alliance (RCATA). These are industry specific initiatives designed to help clients / employees plan for the non-financial aspects of life after work. Members organizations have access to training, tools and resources designed to help people replace their work identity, fill their time, stay relevant and connected, as well as keep mentally and physically active.
Members of this innovative and cutting-edge group not only understand the concept of retirement is no longer a one-time, workplace event that focuses on paycheck replacement. They know the new retirement leverages work-life balance and wellness initiatives by treating it as a multi-phase journey that educates and upskills clients / employees for a more personal and positive transition.
This new approach to retirement gets rid of old and outdated thoughts and feelings, as well as policies and perks that foster an ageist view of career transition, reduce workplace satisfaction, and negatively impact talent management.
Form more information on the research, upcoming events, and new industry alliances, please contact us at Retirement.RCA@gmail.com.
Just Days away from the New Year, the Retirement Coaches Association has released its 5 Retirement Mega Trends for 2025. A group of global thought-leaders and innovators came together to discuss and debate the key factors that are reshaping retirement and will play a significant role in the year ahead and beyond. Here is what the RCA Think Tank identified:
1) The New X Factor In Retirement: As the first round of Gen “X” turn 60 in 2025, a new type of retirement is taking shape. One where Gen “Xers” won’t fully retire but instead use part-time, gig, and seasonal work to deviate from the traditional retirement their grandparents and parents experienced. The Gen X population followed their script of going to school, getting a good job, and working hard. But as they begin to turn 50, 55, and 60, they are realizing they want to continue having an impact and aren’t ready for full, traditional retirement. Retirement will become plural for Gen X as they will be more likely to experience retirements(s) from different roles and feed their desire to be social and independent as the “latchkey generation”. After all, they were the first cohort to experience the effects of high divorce rates and more single parent households.
2) Embracing Wisdom Workers: Traditional retirement ages like 62 and 65 foster an ageist view of older adults in the workplace. Reality is, age alone doesn’t determine mental or physical capacity. More companies will recognize the importance of stage rather than age and usher in a new era of older worker adults who are willing to switch from salary to contractor status and provide mentoring at a discounted rate to foster generativity (or giving back to future generations). A good example of this was a recent newspaper ad from Loreal on how they have more than 13,000 employees over age 50.
3) New Public Policy: The RCA is working on and expects innovative public policy that recommends both government and large public companies to provide non-financial retirement coaching to support better mental and physical health in older adults. We need to combat the long hours of TV watching and incidents of isolation and depression in older adults that research continues to highlight. The best time to help with this and establish better habits is in the 3-5 years leading up to actual retirement. The Social Security Administration should be the first agency to adopt a new “Retirement Orientation” program available to those who are applying for retirement related benefits.
4) Retirement Lifestyle Planning Will Gain In Popularity: The number of retirement coaches employed by financial advisory firms and fortune 500 companies will skyrocket. Organizations are beginning to recognize the value of applying social science, research, and proven frameworks like positive psychology and behavioral economics to the retirement planning process. Non-financial specialists will be in place and help companies better manage their talent, embrace wisdom workers, and combat mental health issues by addressing everything, from empty-nest-syndrome and encore careers, to entrepreneurship and caregiving in retirement.
5) Wisdom Over Wealth: Legacy Notebooks become must haves and do’s. As people realize that passing on wisdom is more important than passing on wealth, capturing the stories of older generations in writing, video, or other media will become the next cool thing to do like pickle ball and ancestry.com. Commonly called an ethical or spiritual will, the goal is to capture mom or dad’s key life lessons, lists of fun and favorite things, as well as hope and dreams for future generations to name a few. There are a host of ways to accomplish this including tools like conversation cards, the “I’m writing a book about you” themed notebook with pre-set questions to ask, as well as media companies who send equipment to capture video and then edit it down for you.
The Retirement Coaches Association was founded in 2017 with one simple mission, to modernize the world of retirement planning by helping people develop a plan for the non-financial aspects of life after work. We believe the current retirement planning model is insufficient because it focuses primarily on money instead of helping people replace their work identity, fill their time, and stay relevant and connected, as well as mentally and physically active.
The RCA has become a recognized international organization setting the standards for the Retirement Coaching industry by publishing 6 best-selling books, presenting dozens of CE credit worthy webinars and trainings and hosts the only non-financial focused conference in the industry.
Press & Media Contacts
Amie Laura, Business and Marketing Director
517-518-1812
retirement.rca@gmail.com
Retirement Intelligence is the new, more comprehensive measure of retirement readiness and the “X” factor that has been missing from traditional planning conversations and decisions.
Until now, there hasn’t been a tool or process to help people understand and plan for the mental, social, and physical aspects of the transition. The RQ profile is a landmark approach to assessing personal retirement readiness and serves as the new narrative for retirement planning, decision making, and transitioning. The RQ Experience:
Retirement Intelligence is a framework for understanding an individual and not only appreciating their world, but also gaining insights from it in an effort to better prepare them for their retirement transition. The purpose is to make retirement more understandable and meaningful, which can be accomplished by assessing and increasing RQ.
