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I am in my 50-60s. I don’t need a financial planner… or do I?

We are getting older
• I need to look at aged care; I don’t know where to start.
• Need aged care for one of us, and don’t want to sell our family home.

Investing
• I’ve just retired and I’m worried my money isn’t going to last long enough.
• I think I have enough super but now I’m not sure.
• I have received an inheritance/ windfall and need help working out what to do with it.
• I want to start a self-managed super fund.

Protecting what we’ve got
• I seem to pay an awful lot for insurance; can you review what I’ve got?
• Do I have wills in place?

Parents are getting older
• Parents need to look at aged care; I don’t know where to start?
• I’d like to help talking to my parents about their wills, I’m worried the arrangements they have in place aren’t optimal!
• It’s likely I’m going to inherit a serious amount, I’d like to plan now how that will work!

Career
• I hate my job but I’m not sure I’ll be able to get another one. How long until I can retire?
• I want to take my career break but not sure I can afford it.
• I plan to retire soon am I going to have enough money?
• I would like to partially retire, but I’m not sure I can afford to.
• When can I retire?
• I’ve been offered a great job, but I will have to take a pay cut (at least for a while). Can I afford to take the job?
• We are looking at a move overseas for work; need to get our finances in order.
• When will I have enough income from my investments that I don’t have to work?
• Can I retire early and still have enough money to live on?

In addition, here are some other areas financial planner Melbourne may be able to help you with:
Goals, values and desires: We empower you to understand and express what you want out of life, visualising and documenting goals, values and desires putting a level of importance and urgency around them – critically- aligning these to your budget.

Debt plan: We coach you through how much your debt is costing you, the differences between good and bad debt, implement a better debt plan to secure financial freedom and reduce financial burden quicker.
Personal Family Protection Plan: We’ve walked a mile in your shoes. Kids, debt, education, the challenges of getting ahead. Making sure you have a sound family protection plan ensures your income, lifestyle and family are number one and your dreams never waiver.

Super is super: “Superannuation” is an ugly word. But super is super! Do you have any idea how it’s being invested? We dispel the myths and help you understand how you can fund your retirement.
Get a bloody will… Got a house? Got kids? Get a bloody will. Sounds simple – but if you have young kids, and family overseas or interstate – you need to consider who will be their guardians if anything happens.

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Financial Advice: Do I Need It?

There are a few things wrong with this equation. Firstly, unless you have adopted good spending habits, bulging pockets are unlikely. Secondly, waiting until you have a certain amount of money behind you means you haven’t thought about one of the biggest game changers when it comes to investing and financial success: time. Warren Buffett dubbed ‘compounding interest’ the “eighth wonder of the world.”What is it? Effectively, the earnings on your money being reinvested and snowballing continuously. This means the earlier you start saving, the more you will save.Most people aren’t confident in making money decisions. They aren’t sure how to invest or exactly where all their money goes… and instead of reaching for help and guidance, they don’t do anything, in the hopes that soon, things will change.Not having a financial game plan is like driving a car towards your destination without a GPS. Yes, maybe you might reach it. Would it be difficult and stressful not really knowing which way to turn? Most likely.Sitting down with someone and mapping out your financial goals means you have a clear roadmap of what you want to achieve, and most importantly, how you’re going to get there! A good financial advisor Melbourne will help you create a cash-flow plan, so you know exactly where your money is going each month and make sure you are putting money towards those things you said were really important (like buying property, paying down credit card etc). They will also help you ensure you are taking care of the important things probably stuck in the back of your mind that you need to do ‘one day’, such as consolidate all your super, make sure it is invested correctly and that you don’t pay high fees, get things like tax minimisation, asset protection, insurance and also estate protection. These aren’t just for rich people looking to make extra money.So, if you haven’t quite got your financial world sorted, don’t wait. Future you will be very impressed with your proactivity.

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Employee Retention Strategy: The Best Tips for Keeping the Best IT Professionals

Goodbyes always hurt! And, an employee leaving your organization can hurt the bottom-line too. It has the potential to decrease the morale of other employees. So, retaining your employees is an important part of managing a successful business.

And, when it comes to an IT professional, keeping him in the business is necessary because of three main reasons:

Low number of talented IT professionals with specialized skills that you require.
Stiff competition between businesses to hire the right talent.
Finding a replacement is time-consuming and costly for the business.

So, it is necessary to retain your employees and make sure that they are motivated to take your business to newer heights. Here are a couple of useful tips that should be part of your employee retention strategy:

Talent is not Enough

When it comes to making a hiring decision, do not focus on talent and skills. Remember that skills can be taught but, a bad attitude is difficult manage. If you hire an IT professional with sought-after skills but bad attitude, he will not be able to work as a team-member. It can cause problems to other employees and increase your attrition rate. So, make a hiring decision that’s good not only for your business but also for your employees.

More Money equals More Satisfaction

If you want to hire the top-rated IT professionals, you need to pay them well. Monetary satisfaction is an important aspect of the employee retention strategy. Consider this: The cost of paying a handsome salary to your current employee is lower than the cost of finding a new employee. It is because when you have to find a new employee, you have to spend money on recruitment. Also, you may lose crucial time in finding a good IT professional and it may cause a big set-back to your business.

Provide a Safe and Encouraging Environment

If your employees are constantly worried about job security, they will not be able to perform well. And, IT is a very creative-engaging field. Your IT professionals need your support in order to provide the best technological support to your business. So, create an environment where your employees can discuss their grievances with you. Also, a good office environment with proper ventilation and adequate lighting can create a great impact on employee morale.

Adopt a Proactive Approach

Providing high-scale pay to employees is not the only way to retain them. Sometimes, IT professionals crave for challenges. Look for signs that depict frustration of your employees. And, provide opportunities for change and growth because professional development is important to every employee. Also, make sure that you recognize talent and hard work. Do not shy away from rewarding your top-performers generously. It doesn’t have to be in the form of increased salary. Here are a few examples to make your employees feel special:

Appreciate the employee for his hard work and dedication.
Offer promotion and provide more responsibility.
Offer a more challenging task and provide resources to achieve it.
Provide opportunities to improve skills-set with the help of training.

If you want your IT professionals to stay with you for the long haul, you need to take care of them. Create a robust employee retention strategy and keep your people happy. Remember that your people are the most useful yet volatile aspect of your business. And, if you treat them right, they will not leave you in the lurch.

Finding a good IT professional is hard for a business. But, Optimal Infosystems make it easy for you. Get unique access to a large data-base of pre-qualified candidates that will make managing IT easy for you. Connect with us today to hire the best IT talent.

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