By Phil Bollin, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™
Engineers and technical professionals are known for their precision—but when it comes to their finances, the numbers aren’t always as straightforward. While they may be high-earners, their unique compensation and investment packages often require custom strategies to help them lower their tax exposure and provide long-term financial stability.
The fact is engineers and technical professionals are highly skilled professionals, so their financial planning demands a unique perspective and considerable experience. At Bollin Wealth Management, we appreciate these specific needs and offer our skills and experience to help them pursue their long-term financial goals with clarity and confidence.
Below we outline the top three financial planning challenges engineers face as they work toward their financial goals, along with some straightforward solutions that help our clients cultivate long-lasting wealth.
1. Managing Taxation
We can all agree that taxation is a concern for most professionals, especially engineers. Their high-income potential comes with potentially high-tax liabilities. When it comes to managing taxes, many engineers find themselves grappling with uncertainty around how to keep income taxation manageable today and in the future.
Engineers are concerned about the best strategy to take advantage of low tax rates today, but also how to adjust their financial plan as their income—and income tax burden—grows.
What’s more, tax laws can be complex and subject to change. Financial strategies for engineers must be adaptable and buffer the effects of higher future tax rates. They also need to anticipate changes in compensation and retirement packages that are unique to the profession.
2. Frequent Employment Changes and Potential Career Volatility
Frequent career shifts may be necessary for engineers to earn higher compensation, but they can also complicate retirement planning. What’s more, engineers may worry about how to manage cash flow if there are long periods between paid engagements. When they are saving for retirement and other goals, this career volatility can pose a real challenge.
Technical professionals and engineers need strategies specifically tailored to those times when expenses continue to mount but work is minimal. With that in mind, engineers will be able to navigate periods of volatile employment or economic turmoil without making costly mistakes that could jeopardize their savings goals.
They’ll also want to coordinate retirement resources and assets, so they can take advantage of both employer-sponsored and self-funded long-term savings plans. This approach helps provide relief that can smooth out times of underemployment.
3. Optimizing Retirement Savings and Other Goals
Engineers and technical professionals typically take every opportunity to participate in company-provided retirement plans, while also building up their own savings on the side. The challenge becomes whether they are optimizing these programs—or just going through the motions.
The fact is this: traditional wisdom about how to save may not work best for high-earning professionals. When it comes to optimizing savings, financial planning for this group requires a very specific perspective and the right experience. While they know they need to invest, it can be challenging to decide between the account types and investment plans for their unique situation.
That’s why it’s incredibly important for engineers to understand the role of the various savings options available to them. Each presents its own pros, cons, and unique opportunities for growth. For some, that means reaching out to a financial professional to provide skilled guidance and objective advice.
Rely on a Financial Engineer
Engineers often admit they don’t have a lot of free time, and when they do have a moment to spare, the last thing they want to do is spend it working on a financial plan. That’s why we at Bollin Wealth Management are here to help.
Whether you’re feeling uncertain about your financial plan as you get closer to retirement or are searching for direction at the start of your career, we would love to help you tackle these three challenges—and any others!
If you think we’d be a good partner to help with your financial planning needs, we invite you to schedule a meeting online, call (419) 878-3934, or email phil@bollinwealth.com.
About Phillip
Phillip Bollin is CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional at Bollin Wealth Management, a fee-only financial planning and investment advisory services firm that provides comprehensive wealth management solutions, delivered under the fiduciary standard of care.
After working with a variety of firms in the financial services industry who didn’t put clients first, Phillip resolved to provide clients with a better financial planning experience. He founded Bollin Wealth Management in 2004 to provide best-in-class financial planning solutions with a fiduciary focus. He accomplished this by marrying the best practices of financial planning with the problem-solving methodology he learned in his career as an engineer. He’s passionate about guiding clients to be better stewards of their financial resources.
Phillip holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Detroit, an MBA from the University of Michigan with specializations in finance and corporate strategy, and the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ designation. Outside of work, Phillip is a dedicated Rotarian, avid fan of the University of Michigan, and enjoys home improvement projects. To learn more about Phillip, connect with him on LinkedIn.