The diverging experiences we encounter in our lives understandably shape our attitudes towards wealth. It is commonly agreed that millennials entered the work force around the time of the last financial crisis in 2008, which has resulted in a different approach to the finances than the generation before them.
Millennials have, therefore, developed a tendency to become more fiscally conservative, with a predilection towards saving, and which is more akin to the behaviour of the baby boomers in the post-war era.
While millennials are savvy savers, it is not for the longer term. They have a focus on the immediate shorter term goals such as a holiday or luxury items as opposed to saving for retirement, which for them is too far in the distance. Experiencing the here and now is their driving force. It will come as no surprise that millennials are the generation who heavily rely on technology and they keep their money in a variety of accounts, which makes them inherently vulnerable to cyber-attack.
The parents of millennials would have been driven by job security, job longevity and saving for a comfortable retirement. Millennials do not have the same focus on staying in one job for the long term; they are arguably risk-takers with an entrepreneurial, self-sufficient driving spirit.
Looking beyond events that shape their stance, millennials have had exposure to a fundamentally different social landscape due to technological innovation and advances in communications. The youngest of the generation, rather frighteningly, have no memories of life before connectivity.
They have instant access to online trading and free reports, which results in their need to verify the information they obtain and ask question after question, instead of having blind faith and absolute trust in their advisers.
As millennials are the largest adult segment, with expectations that their wealth will grow significantly in the coming years, it is no surprise that wealth managers are starting to focus their attention on supporting this growing market. While the millennials are focused on creating their own wealth, they will also inherit the baby boomer wealth, thus perpetuating the future wave of wealth planning opportunities.
Research suggests that millennials are also more socially responsible, so would be looking increasingly at impact investing options in order to satisfy their social consciences along with achieving their desired financial return. This is a topic that is discussed in board rooms, start-ups and living rooms across the globe. With the force of the millennial might behind it, it is clearly a movement that will continue to grow.
So what is best for a millennial – a robo-adviser or a human adviser? The truth is our average millennial will require a hybrid of the two. The straightforward approach that digital transparency brings combined with the reassurance and guidance from an experienced wealth adviser would be the ideal. The client ‘experience’ matters more to millennials than it has to any prior generation, therefore obtaining the correct balance is key to retaining their business.
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Mary joined Nedgroup Trust in 2020 as a senior trust manager. She has been in the industry for 16 years, having started her career at KPMG. She has progressed through the ranks from assistant administrator through to senior trust manager, and now runs her own complex portfolio of clients. Mary also publishes a wide variety of articles.
She completed her STEP Diploma in 2012 and went on to gain recognition by attaining the STEP Certificate in Foundation Law and the STEP Advanced Certificate in Trust Disputes, both of which she passed with distinctions.
Mary joined Nedgroup Trust in 2020 as a senior trust manager. She has been in the industry for 16 years, having started her career at KPMG. She has progressed through the ranks from assistant administrator through to senior trust manager, and now runs her own complex portfolio of clients. Mary also publishes a wide variety of articles.
She completed her STEP Diploma in 2012 and went on to gain recognition by attaining the STEP Certificate in Foundation Law and the STEP Advanced Certificate in Trust Disputes, both of which she passed with distinctions.
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