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V O L . X X V I N O. I X M AY 5 , 2 0 2 0 14 W E A LT H M A N A G M E N T / R E T I R E M E N T F rom college history major to wealth manage- ment, Tracey Daigle's route to a financial plan- ning career was indirect — and unexpected. After working at a bank, her in-laws' farming busi- ness, running a home daycare and then at a small con- struction firm that laid her off, she found her true call- ing at Robinson Smith Wealth Advisors in Portland. "Everything that has gotten me here makes me better at what I do now," says Daigle, a certified financial planner who also serves as chief compli- ance officer and became an equity owner in the five- person firm last year. "I've been a mom, I've worked with my husband and his family, I've been laid off, I've changed jobs and done very different things," she says. "at gives me a broad base to understand people, and that's a lot of the job." ough wealth management remains a male-dom- inated and macho-image industry, Daigle is among a growing number of women in Maine making their mark in the profession. While many are in Portland, they're also in places like Waterville, where Golden Pond Wealth Management financial advisor Katie Brann is eager to see others enter the field. "I feel like girls grow up knowing that they can be nurses and teachers, but no girl ever thinks about a career in banking," she says. "Just like we have ini- tiatives to promote women in STEM, I would love to see something like that for women in finance." 'Problem of attraction' Nationwide, wealth management remains a man's world. Out of 86,239 certified financial planners counted by the Washington, D.C.-based CFP Board, less than a quarter (23.2%) are women. It commissioned a study in 2013 to look at why that is, and outlined potential solutions. Researchers pointed to the main problem as one of attraction, not retention: "All else being equal, women simply are less knowledgeable about financial planning and CFP certification than men. If they don't know these opportunities exist, they certainly cannot pursue them." Yet even when there is awareness, research- ers noted that women may harbor misconceptions about what the profession entails. Many believe it to be primarily about investments, sales and produc- tion, and that it requires significant math skills, not appreciating that softer skills or relationship-build- ing and understanding of family dynamics are just as important, the report found. To remedy the situation, the CFP Board in its Women's Initiative recommends educational efforts starting with school-age girls, as well as encouraging women in MBA and other business programs to con- sider financial planning as an alternative career to more traditional paths of investment banking and manage- ment. It also suggests making women leaders in the profession more visible to broad female audiences and using national women's professional networks to get the word out about financial planning as a great career for women. ose efforts are already having an impact, with the CFP seeing 4,000-plus new female profes- sionals since 2016, a 53% jump since 2013-15. Women at the helm In Maine, women lead a handful of wealth manage- ment firms. One that stands out is Spinnaker Trust, a Portland-based firm led by Amanda Rand, who succeeded founder Dick Curran as president and CEO in 2018. e firm, which started with six people in 2001, now manages $2 billion in assets for a global clientele. Out of 33 employees today, 24 are women — including five of seven executive leadership team members. "It wasn't by design," says Rand, from her home office in Falmouth, saying that Curran was gender- blind from the beginning. "He surrounded himself with the smartest people at the time [and] a lot of them happened to be women." Rand says that gender-blindness remains part of the culture, with women "all over the company" in different roles. "We're lucky we did that in the early stage of the business," she says. "Smart women tend to know other smart women, and that referral network starts to feed on itself." Rand got into wealth management not via a busi- ness school or banking background, but as a history major turned Harvard-educated attorney specialized in estate planning. Estate planning remains an impor- tant part of her job. Her favorite part is working with advising families — many of whom are in their third generation as Spinnaker clients. She says that while Spinnaker has loads of adept male advisors, women may be more inclined to be a steward and gentle guiding force for clients — which becomes even more important during the turbulence brought F O C U S P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y G O L D E N P O N D W E A LT H A DV I S O R S P H O T O S / C O U R T E S Y F. L . P U T N A M P H O T O S / C O U R T E S Y C O R N E R S T O N E F I N A N C I A L P L A N N I N G S O U R C E : CFP Board, Washington, D.C. Certified Financial Planners: U.S. gender breakdown 86,239 TOTA L FEM ALE 23.20% M ALE 76.80% Though wealth management remains male- dominated, there are a growing number of women in Maine with significant leadship roles. Katie Brann, financial advisor at Golden Pond Wealth Management P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y BO S T O N F I N A N C I A L M A N A G E M E N T At Boston Financial Management in Portland, managing director Abby Psyhogeos, left, is grooming associate wealth manager Katie Exchange as her successor. Ellen Flaherty, left, and Meghan Civiello of F.L. Putnam Investment Management Co. Cornerstone Financial Planning is run by Jill Boynton, left, and Susan Veligor. More Maine women make their mark in wealth management B y R e n e e C o r d e s

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