If you’ve read about the alarming gender gap we’ve recently identified between men’s and women’s financial literacy, you might already know some of the risks it poses to plan sponsors from both a financial perspective and from a long-term cultural perspective. As employers continue to put more of the responsibility for funding and managing benefits onto their employees, it will be even more important for women to effectively manage their benefits in order to reach their long-term retirement goals. Here are some of the key findings on the gap:

• 64 percent of women reported having a general knowledge of stocks, bonds and mutual funds (versus 84 percent of men)
• 25 percent said they felt confident their investments were allocated appropriately (versus 42 percent of men)
• Only 12 percent of women were confident they’ll be able to replace at least 80 percent of their income in retirement (versus 19 percent of men)

You can find the full report here.

This gap is a big concern since women already face more significant financial obstacles than men in planning for retirement. On average, women live three to five years longer, earn less, receive a lower monthly benefit from Social Security, and tend to have higher health care costs throughout their lives. Yet women are behind in virtually all areas of financial planning as well as overall financial knowledge and confidence.

What this means to Plan Sponsors