Gloria Hatcher-Mays is the Manager for Affordability Programs with the City of Seattle, focusing her work on the development of municipal financial empowerment systems and socio-economic mobility.
The Seattle Financial Empowerment Center has integrated financial coaching and the City University of New York Personal Finance course to create the first comprehensive model for entry level performance of Financial Coaching. We have learned that emphasizing only technical skills results in graduates who struggle to work effectively with clients under duress. Creating professional tracks that build skills over time has proven a best practice and led to greater outcomes for the FEC.
The professionalization of financial counseling requires defined core competencies and criterion must be established that are tied to academic credentialing and educational credits. Identifying staff who will have competency and capacity to perform on both a social services level and a financial management level is a challenge in recruiting appropriate staff for financial coaching centers. While it is highly likely you will find candidates with some required attributes, it is much more difficult to find individuals with all competencies necessary to work in this field.
Financial Coaching training is centered on the following objectives that will help candidates become proficient in building the core competencies:
During the training there are several coaching demonstrations set up in triads, where there is a coach, client and observer. Each candidate actually participates in all three of these role plays to get multiple views of the coaching process. At the conclusion of these demonstrations, the participants are each given an opportunity to provide feedback on the experience from their vantage point.
This training exercise also fosters peer learning as each candidate is provided an observation rating based on the coaching demonstration. This “learn by doing” format is most effective in the training environment to help each candidate demonstrate core competencies in a practice environment. The candidates get constructive guidance from the trainer based on the demonstration observations that can be used to foster the development of competencies that need to be further developed.
The financial management skill component was developed by the City of New York in partnership with City University of New York as part of their Personal Finance course. This is a college-level curriculum that is credit bearing with specific academic milestones which represent the core financial knowledge competencies required of an entry-level coach.
Performance Evaluation & Milestones of Professional Development for Coaches
Underlying credentials and professional experience before training are key, such as successful course completion and successful results on examinations for the curriculum. These are the first performance evaluation points for the financial coach. The tools utilized to assess financial counselor competencies are combined approaches that focus on service delivery, client surveys, and changes in participant’s baseline and engagement. In addition, counselors are regularly assessed on mathematical aptitude, coaching strategies, community-based resources, integration programs and knowledge of consumer rights and laws.
Examples of credentials for entry-level to senior-level counselors include:
In addition, all counselors must also have intermediate use of technology, public engagement and presentation competencies. The first year coach is required to complete a minimum of 1,000 hours of financial coaching experience.
We are now looking ahead to establishing a credential that acknowledges the integration of social service and technical financial management skills using a blend of competencies from the Master of Social Work degree and the Certified Financial Planner certification track. If common standards for financial counseling/coaching were adapted on a national basis, it could create more consistency of clients’ successful progression towards their goals. Using this approach, we have seen a marked improvement in interactions between coaches and their clients as represented by the outcomes the client achieves.
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QUALITY:
Training, professional development, and certification for practitioners and programs.
CONSISTENCY:
Service delivery models and the underlying data systems that support them.
COMMUNITY:
Local, state, and national stakeholder networks that support and develop practitioner efforts.
This organization discusses the importance of professional training drawing from their experience with housing counseling.
Brooke Linkow
Manager of Financial Capability, NeighborWorks America
info@cfefund.org
44 Wall Street, Suite 605
New York, NY 10005
646.362.1645 phone
646.590.8743 fax
The Seattle Financial Empowerment Center has integrated financial coaching and the City University of New York Personal Finance course to create the first comprehensive model for entry level performance of Financial Coaching. We have learned that emphasizing only technical skills results in graduates who struggle to work effectively with clients under duress. Creating professional tracks that build skills over time has proven a best practice and led to greater outcomes for the FEC.
The professionalization of financial counseling requires defined core competencies and criterion must be established that are tied to academic credentialing and educational credits. Identifying staff who will have competency and capacity to perform on both a social services level and a financial management level is a challenge in recruiting appropriate staff for financial coaching centers. While it is highly likely you will find candidates with some required attributes, it is much more difficult to find individuals with all competencies necessary to work in this field.
The Seattle Financial Empowerment Center has identified core competencies and requirements. When conducting recruitment for new coaches, these criteria are applied to determine the starting point from which development as a coach will occur. Additionally, entry-level coaches are required to have a bachelor’s degree or educational equivalent. After completing coursework for both social service competencies and financial management competencies, financial empowerment coaches must successfully pass a written exam and a practicum demonstrating their ability to translate the coursework into practice as a coach.
Financial Coaching training is centered on the following objectives that will help candidates become proficient in building the core competencies:
During the training there are several coaching demonstrations set up in triads, where there is a coach, client and observer. Each candidate actually participates in all three of these role plays to get multiple views of the coaching process. At the conclusion of these demonstrations, the participants are each given an opportunity to provide feedback on the experience from their vantage point.
This training exercise also fosters peer learning as each candidate is provided an observation rating based on the coaching demonstration. This “learn by doing” format is most effective in the training environment to help each candidate demonstrate core competencies in a practice environment. The candidates get constructive guidance from the trainer based on the demonstration observations that can be used to foster the development of competencies that need to be further developed.
The financial management skill component was developed by the City of New York in partnership with City University of New York as part of their Personal Finance course. This is a college-level curriculum that is credit bearing with specific academic milestones which represent the core financial knowledge competencies required of an entry-level coach.
Performance Evaluation & Milestones of Professional Development for Coaches
Underlying credentials and professional experience before training are key, such as successful course completion and successful results on examinations for the curriculum. These are the first performance evaluation points for the financial coach. The tools utilized to assess financial counselor competencies are combined approaches that focus on service delivery, client surveys, and changes in participant’s baseline and engagement. In addition, counselors are regularly assessed on mathematical aptitude, coaching strategies, community-based resources, integration programs and knowledge of consumer rights and laws.
Examples of credentials for entry-level to senior-level counselors include:
In addition, all counselors must also have intermediate use of technology, public engagement and presentation competencies. The first year coach is required to complete a minimum of 1,000 hours of financial coaching experience.
We are now looking ahead to establishing a credential that acknowledges the integration of social service and technical financial management skills using a blend of competencies from the Master of Social Work degree and the Certified Financial Planner certification track. If common standards for financial counseling/coaching were adapted on a national basis, it could create more consistency of clients’ successful progression towards their goals. Using this approach, we have seen a marked improvement in interactions between coaches and their clients as represented by the outcomes the client achieves.
The Seattle Financial Empowerment Center has integrated financial coaching and the City University of New York Personal Finance course to create the first comprehensive model for entry level performance of Financial Coaching. We have learned that emphasizing only technical skills results in graduates who struggle to work effectively with clients under duress. Creating professional tracks that build skills over time has proven a best practice and led to greater outcomes for the FEC.
The professionalization of financial counseling requires defined core competencies and criterion must be established that are tied to academic credentialing and educational credits. Identifying staff who will have competency and capacity to perform on both a social services level and a financial management level is a challenge in recruiting appropriate staff for financial coaching centers. While it is highly likely you will find candidates with some required attributes, it is much more difficult to find individuals with all competencies necessary to work in this field.
The Seattle Financial Empowerment Center has identified core competencies and requirements. When conducting recruitment for new coaches, these criteria are applied to determine the starting point from which development as a coach will occur. Additionally, entry-level coaches are required to have a bachelor’s degree or educational equivalent. After completing coursework for both social service competencies and financial management competencies, financial empowerment coaches must successfully pass a written exam and a practicum demonstrating their ability to translate the coursework into practice as a coach.
Financial Coaching training is centered on the following objectives that will help candidates become proficient in building the core competencies:
During the training there are several coaching demonstrations set up in triads, where there is a coach, client and observer. Each candidate actually participates in all three of these role plays to get multiple views of the coaching process. At the conclusion of these demonstrations, the participants are each given an opportunity to provide feedback on the experience from their vantage point.
This training exercise also fosters peer learning as each candidate is provided an observation rating based on the coaching demonstration. This “learn by doing” format is most effective in the training environment to help each candidate demonstrate core competencies in a practice environment. The candidates get constructive guidance from the trainer based on the demonstration observations that can be used to foster the development of competencies that need to be further developed.
The financial management skill component was developed by the City of New York in partnership with City University of New York as part of their Personal Finance course. This is a college-level curriculum that is credit bearing with specific academic milestones which represent the core financial knowledge competencies required of an entry-level coach.
Performance Evaluation & Milestones of Professional Development for Coaches
Underlying credentials and professional experience before training are key, such as successful course completion and successful results on examinations for the curriculum. These are the first performance evaluation points for the financial coach. The tools utilized to assess financial counselor competencies are combined approaches that focus on service delivery, client surveys, and changes in participant’s baseline and engagement. In addition, counselors are regularly assessed on mathematical aptitude, coaching strategies, community-based resources, integration programs and knowledge of consumer rights and laws.
Examples of credentials for entry-level to senior-level counselors include:
In addition, all counselors must also have intermediate use of technology, public engagement and presentation competencies. The first year coach is required to complete a minimum of 1,000 hours of financial coaching experience.
We are now looking ahead to establishing a credential that acknowledges the integration of social service and technical financial management skills using a blend of competencies from the Master of Social Work degree and the Certified Financial Planner certification track. If common standards for financial counseling/coaching were adapted on a national basis, it could create more consistency of clients’ successful progression towards their goals. Using this approach, we have seen a marked improvement in interactions between coaches and their clients as represented by the outcomes the client achieves.
44 Wall Street, Suite 605 New York, NY 10005 646.362.1645 phone 646.590.8743 fax
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44 Wall Street, Suite 605, New York, NY 10005
646.362.1645 phone 646.590.8743 fax