Retirement planning is a complex process that can be hard to understand and even harder to implement. The idea of retirement is becoming less certain in the current economic climate, with rising debt and the impact of inflation continuing to reduce the real-value of savings. It only takes one unexpected event such as an illness, job loss or market crash to leave people without meaningful savings.
Despite these challenges, there are strategies that individuals can use to address their retirement savings gap and make substantial progress in achieving their financial goals for the future. One important way individuals can begin working toward retirement security is through human interest. This approach focuses on understanding human behavior to design better investment products and enable more effective decisions about saving money for retirement.
This article will discuss the benefits of using human interest practices when attempting to close a retirement savings gap and provide tips on how individuals can start working toward better financial security for themselves in the future.
Overview of Retirement Savings Gap
Retirement savings gaps have been steadily increasing among small businesses in the US. This problem affects not only business owners, but also their employees. As a result, Human Interest, a personal finance platform, has taken on the challenge of closing the retirement savings gap. They have raised $40 million in Series C funding to do this.
In this article, we’ll explore the retirement savings gap further and examine how Human Interest attempts to close it.
Retirement Savings Gap in the US
In the US, there is a large retirement savings gap between those who have saved adequately for retirement and those who have not even begun saving. As many as two-thirds of Americans may lack adequate funds to retire comfortably, and it seems that the gap is deepening every year. This lack of financial preparedness arises from several factors.
The first is a lack of budgeting and financial planning. Many don’t realize the importance of proactively considering their retirement plans. Additionally, access to the tools and resources needed to plan for retirement can be challenging for some individuals, especially those living in rural areas or inner cities where public transportation isn’t available to reach financial advisors.
The second factor contributing to the retirement savings gap is a disconnect between people’s understanding of personal finance and their ability or willingness put it into practice. Despite knowing why saving for retirement is important, many individuals don’t take proactive steps towards doing so due to fear or complacency.
Finally, employers play an important role in creating access to workplace plans like 401(k)s and IRAs, critical tools for saving towards retirement goals. However, many employers do not offer such benefits or make them affordable enough for employees to participate. This results in a decrease in lowest income households being able to make contributions sooner when they are most able too which prevents them from taking advantage of compounding interest on their contributions later on in life when needed.
Closing the retirement savings gap requires innovative approaches that bridge these different issues into one cohesive solution approach—an emphasis on human-centric interaction that encourages long-term saving behavior with efficient use of limited resources by providing tailored planning advice coupled with easy access to automated investment options. With this type of interactive service, more individuals can secure their futures confidently and responsibly by being empowered with the knowledge needed alongside with access to start investing no matter what stage they are at financially.
Factors Contributing to Retirement Savings Gap
The retirement savings gap is the difference between what an individual needs to save for retirement and what they have saved. This can be caused by numerous factors, including:
-Low income levels – Inadequate income makes it difficult for individuals to save the necessary amount for a comfortable retirement. According to a 2020 study from the Federal Reserve, 40% of Americans would not be able to cover a $400 emergency expense without borrowing funds or selling assets.
-Limited access to financial advice – Without guidance on the right strategies and resources, workers struggle to make informed decisions regarding retirement planning.
-Inadequate Retirement Plan Contributions – Rates are typically too low, causing retirees to lack sufficient savings when they age.
-Misunderstanding of Social Security Benefits – There is often confusion surrounding eligibility requirements and how much money will benefit a retiree in their old age.
-Economic Volatility – The stock market’s fluctuations can result in losses or failsafes not paying out as expected, narrowing the gap between what was saved and what is needed for retirement.
-Lack of Flexible Retirement Products and Services – Financial institutions struggle to keep up with rapidly changing consumer demands, placing retirees at risk due to inadequate access to products or services suitable for their specific situation.
Human Interest Raises $40M Series C To Close Retirement Savings Gap for SMBs
Human Interest has raised a $40 million Series C round to close the retirement savings gap for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).
Human Interest is bringing an innovative technology to the market that offers SMBs a personalized and intuitive digital experience, while providing employers access to easy-to-use tools and resources to manage their retirement plans. This funding round speaks to the usefulness and importance of Human Interest’s technology, which is aimed at providing the resources and education to close the retirement savings gap.
Let’s examine the benefits of using Human Interest to close the retirement savings gap.
Overview of Human Interest
Human Interest is an online platform dedicated to helping small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) save for the future. The company provides a robust platform that automates benefits processing, retirement savings, and payroll. Human Interest’s services act as a one-stop shop for SMBs seeking to simplify their retirement savings process, making it easier for them to provide employees with meaningful benefits.
Raising $40 million in Series C funding round led by venture capital firm Norwest Venture Partners and accompanied by Sorenson Ventures and investor M12 (formerly Microsoft Ventures), Human Interest is committed to closing the retirement savings gap for SMBs across the U.S. This funding comes at a time when many Americans are ill-prepared for retirement, with an average household having saved less than half of what they will need to maintain their standard of living in retirement according to the Economic Policy Institute.
Human Interest works off a subscription model – giving customers access to the software on a monthly or yearly basis – and offers more products such as financial planning services and employee surveys within its user base. In addition, the company plans on using its newfound capital infusion to increase its platform’s capability, expand customer reach, hire new talent, and develop more tailored services focusing on specific industries such as healthcare or hospitality.
How Human Interest is Closing the Retirement Savings Gap
Human Interest is a leading provider of retirement savings solutions for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Through its secure cloud-based platform, Human Interest helps employers offer retirement products that are simple and secure for their employees, so they can more easily save for their future.
The company has recently completed a $40 million Series C funding round, with investments from existing investors Bain Capital Ventures and Greylock Partners and new investors General Atlantic, RRE Ventures, and Recruit Strategic.
This influx of capital will enable Human Interest to accelerate product development, increase customer acquisition efforts to serve more SMBs in the US, and hire additional technical and customer service teams to support growth.
Human Interest’s system simplifies starting a retirement plan by allowing employers to easily create plans online instead of manually gathering paper forms or dealing with banks or insurance companies. Human Interest offers further support through its dedicated customer service team, which is available 24/7. This helps employers remain compliant while providing employees an easy way to start saving early in their careers. Human Interest also sets itself apart by providing employee education services; helping employees understand the basics of investing to choose a suitable retirement plan.
By leveraging technology to simplify and ease employer benefits management processes, Human Interest is driving compliance with government regulations while closing the retirement savings gap for millions of SMBs across the United States.
Benefits of Human Interest for SMBs
Human Interest, an online retirement services provider, recently raised $40M in Series C funding to help close the retirement savings gap for SMBs.
Human Interest offers a wide range of services that provide SMBs an easy and affordable way to save for retirement.
This section will discuss the benefits of Human Interest for SMBs to help them understand how it can help.
Increased Access to Retirement Savings Options
As the retirement savings gap grows, strategies like expanded access to employer-sponsored retirement plans are becoming increasingly important. Employers have been creating innovative options for employees to save for retirement, and one of the most effective has been the increasing use of human interest.
Human interest is a key component of many different retirement savings plans, and it can play an important role in ensuring that employees can build a secure financial future. Human interest refers to investments made on behalf of employees that enable them to gain higher returns than they would through traditional investments. This means employers are providing their employees with access to higher earning opportunities within their organization.
In addition, as workers are given greater access to embrace personal interests as part of their retirement plan, they become more likely to participate in the organization’s plan – with increased participation leading to increased cost savings for small businesses over time. With both long-term and short-term benefits, human interest helps SMBs close the retirement savings gap by making it easier for employees to save money for their futures.
Lower Costs of Retirement Savings Plans
Many small and medium business owners are increasingly facing the challenge of providing sufficient retirement savings plans for their employees. Human interest can help businesses tackle this challenge by helping reduce the costs associated with these plans, allowing for more money dedicated to providing adequate retirement savings.
Human interest is a term used to describe how someone feels when learning about or making decisions involving another person’s life. A study by Bunker Hill Retirement Plan Services found that using human interest helped people increase their 401(k) contributions by up to 12%. This suggests that by leveraging human interest and stories of people’s experiences, businesses can make employees more receptive to participating in a retirement savings plan, thus encouraging higher contributions while keeping costs low.
In addition, using personal stories as part of a communication strategy can also help encourage employee engagement in a retirement plan. This is especially important for SMBs where there likely aren’t enough resources or personnel available to regularly engage their employees about their pensions and long-term future financially. By creating an emotional connection between employees and the cause of investing in a pension plan, SMBs can prime them for employer consent or increased contribution levels when needed. This could ultimately result in much lower operational costs since less time and money would need to be spent on employee education efforts for retirees or those nearing retirement age.
Improved Financial Security for SMBs
Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) face a serious retirement savings gap. As the cost of living rises, SMBs struggle to provide their employees with a secure financial future. Human interest is a powerful tool that SMBs can use to address this issue. Human interest stories have the potential to evoke an emotional response from people and create a sense of connection with their financial goals, therefore closing the retirement savings gap.
For example, by sharing encouraging stories of how their employees have achieved financial security under their plan, SMBs can highlight the importance of retirement planning and motivate workers to save for their futures. In addition to emotionally connecting people with their money, this approach may also open up conversations about how individuals can maximize their benefits and leverage new products or services that will help meet their specific needs. Finally, by being open and honest about how SMBs’ services can ensure workers’ long-term financial security, these business owners can build trust between themselves and those who rely on them for income.
Several studies have found that using human interest positively impacted workplace satisfaction scores and increased feelings of safety and security amongst employees. In addition, this approach could potentially reduce anxiety when making better decisions surrounding retirement planning, enabling both employers and employees alike to be proactive when handling finances related to job changes (such as adjusting 401(k) allocations or finding other sources of income). This may help close the gap between what workers are saving today and what they will need to spend comfortably through retirement age.
Conclusion
Using human interest strategies can help close the retirement savings gap. Taking a targeted approach that engages employees personally and emphasizes the long-term benefits of saving can make a difference in workplace retirement plan participation rates and retirees’ lives.
Employers who use their influence to provide education, resources, and developing creative solutions to inspire employees to save will make strides in helping plan participants achieve successful retirement outcomes. Moreover, through human interest strategies employers can bridge the reality gap between employees’ saving goals and actual saving behaviors by guiding them toward more thoughtful decision-making.
Ultimately, creating an emotionally connected tradition around saving within the workplace environment will pay dividends for decades to come.
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