Mom is the C-Suite
As an advisor in my early years selling life insurance, I would talk to young families about the value of their respective positions. We would talk through the tragedy of losing one parent or the other and try to put a cost on that terrible “what if” situation. What would help to financially replace that person’s role in the family? If they were working outside of the home, we’d discuss salary and benefits. If there was one stay at home spouse, I’d often talk through the cost of daycare, cooking, cleaning and all of the time management that went into running a family. I knew the value was high, and I never wanted to discount that role.
These sometimes-uncomfortable conversations are part of our jobs as financial advisors. In fact, Advisor Magazine last year published “What’s the Economic Value of Mom?” saying an average of nearly $94,000 annually is the price. They name recent pay increases for professions like taxi drivers, private detectives and counselors to get to their number.
Now that I’ve been a parent for over 16 years my perspective is different-I have real-life experience to lean on. I’ve watched my wife blossom into a wonderful mother to our two kids. Blossom is really not the word, more just innately make things happen-all of the things.
In preparing for this article, I started to think about the family unit as a business and the parents as the executives running the business. A quick search on Investopedia tells me C-level executives play a strategic role within an organization; they hold senior positions and impact company-wide decisions (Bloomenthal). C stands for “Chief,” so a C-level executive is in charge of an entire department. So which C-level positions does each parent hold in my household according to the definitions on Investopedia?
CEO - Chief Executive Officer
This is the highest-ranking role in a company. CEOs oversee all business operations and decisions and are responsible for the success of the organization.
Yep, that’s the mom. Need I say more?
COO - Chief Operating Officer
COOs are responsible for the proper execution of all business plans and strategies. In other words, they ensure that the company runs like clockwork.
Wait, that’s the mom, too. Who typically ensures the business is running? The keeper of the calendar? Who makes sure people know their schedules and their responsibilities? In our house, Mom.
CFO - Chief Financial Officer
A CFO manages all financial aspects of the company. They’re responsible for long-term budgeting and risk analyses, but also oversee the company’s financial reporting and overall financial status.
Certainly that’s me. I’m a financial advisor for goodness sake! But, nope. That’s really more my wife. Where I take the long view of our financial well-being, she’s paying the monthly bills, budgeting, and researching any major purchases.
Chief Marketing Officer
This is the person who’s responsible for building and implementing marketing strategies.
That’s more her, too. She’s representing the family on school and activity committees, ensuring the annual holiday card gets in the mail, and promoting the kids’ successes on social media.
CTO - Chief Technology Officer
CTOs are in charge of the tech stack that helps a company grow: they research and implement new systems, oversee security and set up infrastructure.
That’s not her! But that’s not me, either. Our kids are older than 10 now, so that’s them. They are the ones to make the TV work, show us shortcuts on our phones, and make suggestions on technology advancements. “We need this or we need that,” is often the directive.
So, what am I? What’s my role in this company we call our family? Maybe I’m the support staff. Maybe I’m a consultant. Or maybe I’m just the lucky guy who gets to work here. Regardless, on this Mother’s Day, I celebrate my wife, the chief of our family. I celebrate all of the moms I know. And I remember my mom, who’s been gone since 2016 but who was the chief of a family with five kids. That’s like running a Fortune 500 organization!
This year when you celebrate mom and all she does for your family, remember to truly appreciate the full spectrum of her daily contributions. The real economic value of a mom is priceless.
Mike Murphy LUTCF, FSS
Partner | Wealth Advisor
[1] “What’s The Economic Value of Mom?” Advisor Magazine. May 07, 2020. https://www.lifehealth.com/whats-economic-value-mom/
[2] “Younger women are twice as likely to make their families’ financial decisions as in previous generations.” CNBC. August 26, 2020. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/26/young-women-are-making-more-of-their-families-financial-decisions.html#:~:text=Share-,Younger%20women%20are%20twice%20as%20likely%20to%20make%20their%20families,decisions%20as%20in%20previous%20generations&text=Married%20women%2045%20and%20younger,from%20Merrill%20Lynch%20Wealth%20Management
[3] “C-Suite.” Investopedia. Bloomenthal, Andrew. February 24, 2021. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/c-suite.asp