NEW YORK, Dec. 16, 2002 — In the wake of accounting scandals and angry investors who watched their portfolios plummet in value due to over-investment in employer stock, many businesses are looking to add financial planning support for their employees.
eAdvisorPlus, a new Web-based tool and telephone contact service just launched by Ernst & Young, is targeted to corporate employers who want to give their employees the option of a contacting a personal financial planner.
“eAdvisorPlus represents the next generation of personal financial
counseling solutions,” said Sylvia Pozarnsky, National Director of Personal Financial Counseling at Ernst & Young. “Employees can use eAdvisorPlus to develop a personalized financial plan and then can talk to a real person, an experienced financial planner from Ernst & Young, who can help them interpret the data and decide on action steps. The result is that employees are better equipped to take control of their finances and achieve their goals.”
An employee can allow the Ernst & Young financial planner to view his or her eAdvisor plan together in real time, similar to a face-to-face meeting.
eAdvisorPlus provides guidanceand advice on a broad range of issues, including stock options, taxes, insurance, investments, debt and spending, as well as life events, including retirement planning and education funding. eAdvisorPlus also evaluates and offers integrated analyses of an employee's current investments within and across all taxable and tax-deferred accounts, and takes into account the holdings of an employee's spouse.
Employers can decide whether to offer investment guidance or allow specific investment advice. An employer can start with guidance only and add the investment advice component later. Employee data input during the guidance-only phase is preserved for easy migration to the investment-advice phase.
Employers who want more information should contact Gary Cohen, Ernst
& Young's eAdvisorPlus National Solution Leader at (404) 817-5229 or gary.cohen@ey.com.
