Retirement
‘Happier retirement’ the focus of new advice study
A more holistic style of pre-retirement advice is being trialled to help older Australians transition more happily into their retirement years.
‘Happier retirement’ the focus of new advice study
A more holistic style of pre-retirement advice is being trialled to help older Australians transition more happily into their retirement years.
According to a joint statement from Allianz Retire+ and Macquarie University, the “landmark” three-year project will see how advice targeted towards health, wealth, social, cognition, emotional and motivational considerations pre-retirement can enable individuals to better plan for the rest of their lives.
Macquarie University associate professor Joanne Earl will collaborate with Allianz Retire+ on the project, which will work with Australian retirees and financial advisers to measure adjustment or “happiness” in retirement that is attainable through the receiving of holistic advice.
Associate professor Earl will be focusing on the timing and conditions of an individual’s work exit in the project, with the research extending on her previous work, which looked at the importance of resources or “buckets”: health, wealth, social, cognition, emotional and motivational factors.
Her earlier research looked to understand how each bucket impacted on keeping people well in retirement.
As part of the new study, her team will practically apply the resources model and engage clients in training and discussions about planning for retirement, specifically looking to incorporate career, finance and health advice when thinking about retirement.
The new project will track Australians transitioning to retirement and guide them in planning their exit or enable them to reconceptualise their workforce participation.
According to a statement, this will enable transitioning individuals to revise their plans with each new input of advice, and will research the impact of active planning across the different buckets.
The associate professor has noted that “we think the conditions of exit are a really critical part of the retirement planning decision process”.
She cited successive waves of results from the multipurpose household survey to indicate that they know “there were 177,500 people who said they were retired in phase one who were back out looking for work in phase two”.
“The primary two reasons for why this was happening was because they were worried about money and they were bored,” she said.
“That says to me, the question about timing is not as self-evident as you might think.”
Commenting on the research’s method, associate professor Earl said “rather than just financial advice, early on in the process, we’ll be introducing people to careers counselling or careers advice, as well as a medical assessment to challenge their thinking about health”.
“Helping people to go through that decision-making process before they start talking to a financial adviser will give people a lot more information to work with,” she explained.
“Those people that have been through this process should make better-qualified decisions than those people that are in a control group.”
According to Allianz Retire+’s head of product and customer experience, Jacqui Lennon, the research has the potential to redefine the way advice is delivered to retirees.
“This research has the potential to rescript how we approach retirement advice, so as an industry, we are creating confidence for Australians in retirement,” she commented.
“We know from speaking with retirees that when it comes to making decisions about their retirement, it’s never purely a financial conversation.
“It’s emotional, philosophical and financial.”
She considered that this research “should define exactly what trusted advice looks like and will provide insight into what role advisers can play in setting up people for a happy retirement”.
“Post-royal commission, many advisers are struggling to define their value proposition, and with 1,000 Australians retiring a day, there has never been a more pressing need to undertake this research.”
For associate professor Earl, the expectation of the research’s outcome will be that retirees will be able to make more informed choices and will have revised their plans as a result.
“This should lead to them increasing their adjustment in retirement and overall see them having happier retirements,” she said.
About the author
About the author
Retirement Planning
‘Release the Retirement Income Review ASAP’
An industry body has demanded the immediate release of the Retirement Income Review to the public, stating that by not doing so, the government is raising concerns around transparency and policy issue...Read more
Retirement Planning
Will I be able to afford my desired lifestyle once I stop working?
A financial adviser answers this most commonly asked question. ...Read more
Retirement Planning
Women facing double-whammy hit to retirement incomes
Why are Aussie women statistically more likely to be underemployed and have less in super than men? Being a caregiver to both older and younger generations simultaneously plays a huge part, writes Hel...Read more
Retirement Planning
COVID-19 is creating a ‘financially forgotten’ generation
Older Australians are feeling “financially forgotten” by the government during the COVID-19 crisis. ...Read more
Retirement Planning
Accessing the age pension and the impact of super
Services Australia has released a new statement to explain how an individual’s age plays a role in whether superannuation is assessed for the purpose of income and assets tests. ...Read more
Retirement Planning
How to boost retiree savings by 30%
More direct government intervention may be required to better protect, or even bolster, the retirement savings of older Australians, an academic has said. ...Read more
Retirement Planning
Why retirees and soon-to-be retirees need to reassess their finances right now
Investors should brace for the reality of the underlying economic situation to “kick in at some point” – which could have dire consequences for retirees and anyone who is looking to retire in th...Read more
Retirement Planning
Retiring soon and worried about your wealth? You aren’t alone
The economic impact of COVID-19 will have more of a sting for Australians approaching retirement than it will hurt current retirees, analysis of a new survey has revealed. ...Read more
Retirement Planning
‘Release the Retirement Income Review ASAP’
An industry body has demanded the immediate release of the Retirement Income Review to the public, stating that by not doing so, the government is raising concerns around transparency and policy issue...Read more
Retirement Planning
Will I be able to afford my desired lifestyle once I stop working?
A financial adviser answers this most commonly asked question. ...Read more
Retirement Planning
Women facing double-whammy hit to retirement incomes
Why are Aussie women statistically more likely to be underemployed and have less in super than men? Being a caregiver to both older and younger generations simultaneously plays a huge part, writes Hel...Read more
Retirement Planning
COVID-19 is creating a ‘financially forgotten’ generation
Older Australians are feeling “financially forgotten” by the government during the COVID-19 crisis. ...Read more
Retirement Planning
Accessing the age pension and the impact of super
Services Australia has released a new statement to explain how an individual’s age plays a role in whether superannuation is assessed for the purpose of income and assets tests. ...Read more
Retirement Planning
How to boost retiree savings by 30%
More direct government intervention may be required to better protect, or even bolster, the retirement savings of older Australians, an academic has said. ...Read more
Retirement Planning
Why retirees and soon-to-be retirees need to reassess their finances right now
Investors should brace for the reality of the underlying economic situation to “kick in at some point” – which could have dire consequences for retirees and anyone who is looking to retire in th...Read more
Retirement Planning
Retiring soon and worried about your wealth? You aren’t alone
The economic impact of COVID-19 will have more of a sting for Australians approaching retirement than it will hurt current retirees, analysis of a new survey has revealed. ...Read more
More articles
Website Notifications
Get notifications in real-time for staying up to date with content that matters to you.