Dave Lindorff

Mary Callahan Erdoes is not as much of a household name as Warren Buffett or Jamie Dimon, but as J.P. Morgan Asset Management's chief executive, she has undeniable influence on Wall Street.

Sometimes the very challenges millennials introduce — whether it is seeking more benefits, demanding flexible schedules or asking for frequent feedback on performance — can turn banks into better places to work for employees of all ages.

Citizens Bank of West Virginia in Elkins boosts morale by having employees deliver surprise gifts of thousands of dollars each year to residents of its hardscrabble town (pop. 7,000).

HERNDON, Va. — If you ever meet Jim Christy, a financial advisor at Northwest Federal Credit Union, you can talk to him about almost anything.

Advisor Ryan Beal gave away most of his clients-and then built back up-to focus exclusively on cops and firefighters. Their personalities and senses of humor are similar to his own, plus they have good retirement packages. And he gets to ride on a fire truck to boot.

HENRON, Va. — If you ever meet Jim Christy, a financial advisor at Northwest Federal Credit Union, you can talk to him about almost anything.

For many employees faced with the prospect of having to save for rising health care costs and for retirement, it's important to understand that it doesn't necessarily have to be an either/or decision.

When financial advisers are working with clients to figure out their retirement strategy, they need to factor in inflation into the mix. But the question is, how does one decide what inflation is likely to be years into the future when there are so many different ways to measure it even in the present?

The tech team at Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services this week has come up with a new way to help prevent independent financial advisers from enjoying their vacations: a new smart phone app that allows them to open client accounts and do electronic trading for clients from anywhere.

Wealth management firms are risking losing clients to competitors, losing a chance to gain new business through client referrals and are missing opportunities to deepen relationships with existing high-net-worth investors, according to a new study by Aite Group, an independent Boston-based research and advisory firm focused on the financial services industry.

Even if they bite the bullet and stay on the job well past retirement age and late into their 70s, most Baby Boomers and the Gen-Xers who follow them will not have enough savings to cover their basic retirement expenses and out-of-pocket health costs.

Giant financial institutions and wirehouses that spent fortunes attracting and retaining top-producing brokers and wealth managers over the past few years may be about to get socked with a big wave of departures this year and, especially, in 2012.