Financial Resources for Women

Written by Jan Jaben-Eilon Tuesday, April 19 2011

Snapshot: Linda Descano
Linda Descano is president and CEO of Women & Co., a division of Citi that provides women with financial resources and a community for building their financial knowledge, exchanging financial insights, and assessing tips and tools for creating financial strategies based on the realities of women’s financial lives. Women & Co. celebrated its 10th anniversary last year.

Descano joined Women & Co. as chief operating officer and was appointed president in 2007. From 1999 through 2002, she was a director and portfolio manager in Citi’s private portfolio group where she co-managed customized investment portfolios for individuals and institutions and oversaw the firm’s socially responsible investment program. Prior to embarking on a career in finance, Descano spent several years working in environmental consulting.

She has spoken at hundreds of conferences about personal finance, investment, and leadership, and she has been quoted and featured in major media including SmartMoney, The Huffington Post, and The Wall Street Journal online. A member of several professional associations, she is also passionate about education and science. She endowed the Nina Anna Scholarship in honor of her grandmothers, Nina Gaspari Pennachietti and Anna Fortunato Descano. A native of Philadelphia, she attended Temple University. She lives in Jersey City, N.J., with her husband.

Womenetics: Please explain what Women & Co. provides to women.
Linda Descano: We consider Women & Co. a place where wisdom, wealth, and women meet. Backed by Citibank, Women & Co. is a rich, multimedia financial resource and community for all things related to women and money. For over 10 years, we’ve been providing financial education and insight for managing the unique realities of a woman’s financial life. Women & Co. is a community of women who have come together to build financial knowledge, share financial insights, and learn from the experiences of other financially minded women.

Womenetics: How much is membership, and what do members receive for that money?
Descano: Members of Women & Co. receive access to education and resources on an array of financial, investment, and lifestyle topics, which are delivered through podcasts, seminars and workshops, newsletters, as well as our content-rich website. Our site is a vibrant online destination that features insights from women across the Women & Co. community, blog discussions, and results from our proprietary research. Starting April 18, all the education and resources on our website will be accessible without logging in. Membership will also be free to everyone. So tell a friend and pass it on.

Womenetics: What is unique about women who are interested in their financial health?
Descano: Our members include women from all walks of life, including executives, business owners, moms who work inside and outside the home, as well as single, married, divorced, and widowed women. But what all of these women share is a view that there’s always more to learn when it comes to money; and they have a common desire to build their financial knowledge, share financial insights, or learn from the experiences of other financially minded women.

Womenetics: Women live longer and have longer retirements. How does that impact their financial decisions?
Descano: You’re absolutely right in that women’s financial realities are unique, because we:

• On average, outlive our spouse/partner by five years.
  
• Are more likely to take time out of the work force to care for a loved one.
  
• Spend more years in retirement and tend to require more long-term care.

All of this makes it particularly important for women to have a plan, start saving early, save more as they earn more, and plan carefully for those “time out” periods.

Womenetics: How does Citi benefit from this division?
Descano: Women & Co. is a program of Citibank that drives customer loyalty and consideration intention.

Womenetics: How do women share their knowledge through your website? Is it solely web based?
Descano: We foster dialogue among our members through our online channels such as our blog. We also post member stories and video interviews where members can share their knowledge, tips, and ideas with the community.

Womenetics: How did you go from environmental consulting to finance?
Descano: As an environmental consultant, I specialized in due diligence for real estate deals and other transactions. This work led to similar work for one of Citi’s predecessor companies, Salomon Brothers, and my career path at Citi. My passion for women and money really developed when I went through my divorce. In my first marriage, I really didn’t pay attention to the household finances.

It wasn’t until we were going through our divorce that I realized how much debt we had amassed on a joint credit card, which I had to pay off as the “breadwinner” in the family. Then throughout my business travels, I heard from women about how divorce, their husband’s death, or job loss left them financially devastated.

Reflecting on my own financial wake-up call, I realized how important it is for women to stay educated and involved in the household finances and to have a Plan B. So I began looking for opportunities to help women become financially savvy. I’m also proud to say that before saying “I do” the second time around, my now–husband and I had a very frank conversation about money and set up clear “rules of the road” about how to handle “our” money, “his” money, and “my” money.

Womenetics: What is the most important advice you give women about their finances?
Descano: Knowing what financial moves to make, when to make them, and understanding all that can affect the health of our finances can be consuming. One way to help sort through all the details is to create a financial plan. Knowing what you’re aiming for today, five years, or 15 years from now, will help determine what steps to take to help you reach those goals. Also a financial professional can help your plan stay in sync with your changing life. Women need to stay educated and involved in their finances, especially when most of us will wind up solely responsible for our finances at some point in our lives, whether due to divorce, outliving our partner, or because we stay single.

Womenetics: When you were young, were you good in math? And did you enjoy it?
Descano: Yes! I've loved math ever since I can remember. Since it was one of my favorite subjects in school, I always received top grades in it and even looked for extracurricular ways to use my math skills. Throughout high school, college, and grad school, I took nonrequired math courses for fun, and in high school I also participated in math competitions.

Jan Jaben-Eilon was a founding staff writer of the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Since then, she has been the international editor of Advertising Age magazine and has written for such publications as The New York Times, International Herald Tribune, Washington Journalism Review, and Consumer Reports. She is the author of soon-to-be-published (There is) Life After Cancer. Jan and her husband have homes in Atlanta and Jerusalem.