At Pardot we noticed that many of our team members were asking questions about whether or not to put money in the 401k plan (which even had a company match). Then, as other financial questions came up, we realized that there was a real financial literacy challenge in the company, and, no, not just with the millennials.
To help, we hired a financial literacy coach that met individually with everyone interested and taught a six week course exclusively for employees during work hours (every Friday at 1pm). In fact, the first program was so successful that we did it again a second time. Pardot paid directly for the program and the financial literacy teacher didn’t sell any products or services.
Here are a few thoughts on financial literacy in startups:
- While many people focus on big exits and love to talk about the future value of equity, the reality is that the financial basics aren’t well understood
- Financial literacy can help people for the rest of their life by helping them make better financial decisions
- More investment in people, especially to help them at a personal level, endears them to the company
- Company benefits come in all forms and aren’t just related to good insurance and free food
Financial literacy is a real challenge and startups have the opportunity to help educate their employees. For many people, it’ll make a profound difference.
What else? What are some more thoughts on financial literacy in a startup?
David Cummings on Startups 