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www.HartfordBusiness.com July 17, 2017 • Hartford Business Journal 25 Amber Kendrick Q&A: What do you do in your current job? I am a 401(k) plan advisor. I help America's workforce retire on their terms with dignity and independence. I do this by work- ing with our retirement plan sponsor clients and their employees. I specialize in designing a retirement plan for companies that meet their unique goals and objec- tives and promote retirement readiness for employees. What are your goals in your current job? My ultimate goal is to act as a steward to our retirement plan clients by helping them navigate through managing a work-based retirement program for their employees. Another continuous goal throughout the year is to build brand awareness for our firm. What's your biggest passion? I am passionate about educating and empowering employees to understand the importance of saving for retirement. Saving in a 401(k) plan can be overwhelming. We all know we need to do it, however where do we start? I love when I sit down with employees and after a session together the light bulb goes on. I think advisors can sometimes come across as intimidating. It is my goal to build trust. What are your future professional aspirations? To become a mentor to other young women in the retire- ment plan industry. Female advisors face unique challenges and to help other women navigate through those challenges would be extremely rewarding. I would also love to be a contributor to an industry pub- lication such as NAPA Net, Employee Benefit Advisor Magazine, etc. I would specifically like to discuss par- ticipant behaviors and engagement (or lack thereof). How are you involved in the community? I am a member of the Academy of Finance advisory board, the Glaston- bury Chamber of Commerce, Women in Pensions Net- work (WiPN), United Way's Women's Leadership Council and HRACC (Human Resource Association of Central Connecticut). I have engaged in volunteering and public speaking within the community. One of my favorites has been empowering our youth by educating them on personal finance topics. I've been a public speaker for Manchester Community College, Academy of Finance Work Based Conference, and Girl Scouts of CT. What do you hope Greater Hartford will be like in 10 years? I am hopeful that Hartford will be a place that will drive young professionals to live, work and play. I think that Hartford is growing to be a place where young professionals want to build a life where they can raise their children and spend time enjoying local activities. It would be fantastic to see Hartford's edu- cation system, small businesses and tourism thrive so that people will want to stay permanently in Hartford and grow pride for their home city. List four reasons why you deserve to be a 40 Under Forty: I have been recognized as one of the top female retirement plan advisors in the industry by the Nation- al Association of Plan Advisors in 2015 and 2016. I have been recognized in Employee Benefit Advisor Magazine as one of the nation's rising stars in benefit advising. I have worked very hard to build a success- ful division of our firm in less than three years. And finally, I wake up with a purpose and love contributing to society in a positive way. I was born in Alabama and have lived in Colorado, Connecticut and North Carolina. Between those states by the time I was 16, I had lived in nine different houses. We moved around a lot growing up. Age: 33 Company: C.I.G. Retirement Plan Consulting Title: Director, Retirement Services Town where I live: Haddam Town where I work: Glastonbury College: East Carolina University FUN FACT Rachel Bader Q&A: What do you do in your current job? I am in a strategy role focusing on Travelers multinational accounts. What are your goals in your current job? My goals are to collaboratively develop winning strategies for Trav- elers multinational accounts and create an environ- ment for success to realize those strategies. What's your biggest passion? I'm passionate about the concept that constant growth is transformative over time — it's more about the journey and continuous development than any one thing. How this plays out is continuing to take on challenging opportunities at work, meaningfully contributing to my community, traveling and having diverse experiences, and staying fit and active. What are your future professional aspirations? I love solving problems and identifying and creating things that will position the company for future success. My aspirations are to lead important strategic initiatives that transform a part of the company in meaningful (and successful) ways. How are you involved in the community? When I ini- tially moved to Hartford I joined HYPE and partici- pated in Leadership Greater Hartford's Quest Pro- gram. I later served on The Children's Museum board and just recently joined the Knox board of directors. I've always been committed to serving youth and work with JAG, CT Youth Forum and Model UN. My husband and I also work with IRIS and JCARR to help resettle refugee families in the New Haven area. What do you hope Greater Hartford will be like in 10 years? I hope Hartford will be a safe, inviting, diverse, and fun city for people who live and work here and a destination for others. Just to pick two, I hope Knox's mission to build stronger, greener, healthier, and more beautiful neighborhoods in Hartford and Travelers community priorities of academic and career success, thriving neighborhoods, and culturally enriched com- munities are realized. List four reasons why you deserve to be a 40 Under Forty: Successful contributor at Travelers — most proud of work on startup type initiatives and cultivat- ing (and benefiting from) collaborative and high-per- forming teams. Continued commitment to community — very excited to be joining Knox's board and current work resettling refugees. Strong focus on personal growth — looking forward to challenging myself at an executive education program at Columbia Busi- ness School this summer. Not a reason, but would be remiss not to mention, most excited my husband and I are welcoming our first child this summer. I'm a very positive, high- energy person — in a previous role they would play "Walking on Sunshine," as I walked up to give any presentation. Age: 34 Company: Travelers Title: 2nd Vice President Town where I live: Cheshire Town where I work: Hartford College: Bentley FUN FACT 40 Under Forty 2017