Introducing MapMyFinances, MassMutual’s holistic financial wellness tool to help workers improve their financial lives

SPRINGFIELD, Mass., Mar 18, 2019 – As part of its mission to help all Americans achieve financial wellness, Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual) is introducing a new workplace financial and benefits planning tool to help workers assess and balance their short- and long-term financial needs.

The MapMyFinances tool is available automatically at no cost through employers that use MassMutual’s 401(k) or other defined contribution retirement plan services, voluntary insurance benefits or both. The tool provides users with a personalized financial wellness score to help them assess their overall financial situation and provides guidance¹ to help workers prioritize their coverage choices based on their family situation and budget.

“MapMyFinances is breakthrough financial wellness technology designed to help all Americans secure their financial futures and protect the ones they love,” said Tina Wilson, Head of Investment Solutions Innovation. “Whether you’re starting your career, preparing to retire or somewhere in between, MapMyFinances can help you make the best choices about saving for retirement, protecting your family and securing your financial future.”

Financial Wellness Score
The new tool, which replaces MassMutual’s MapMyBenefits, provides users with a personal financial wellness score to help them ascertain their relative financial health. The score is compiled through a series of questions about the user’s family situation, budget and personal finances, including retirement savings, healthcare, life insurance and other protection benefits; and debt such as college tuition, credit cards, mortgage, car loans and others.

Based on the data provided, the tool analyzes the user’s personal financial needs budget, and then sets priorities accordingly, creating a to-do list of simple, actionable steps to improve his or her financial wellness score. While healthcare coverage is typically a top priority for most people, other financial needs such as retirement savings; life, disability, accident and critical insurance coverage; college savings; debt reduction and others vary depending upon the person’s family situation and budget. The priorities are updated as users input new data to reflect life changes such as the birth of children, children entering college and others.

Retirement and Protection Benefits
MapMyFinances connects to an employer’s available benefits, including retirement plans, health plans and other insurance protection. Employers can choose to offer MassMutual financial products such as a defined contribution retirement plan as well as life, accident or critical illness insurance. The technology platform can also connect to products and services not offered by MassMutual.

“Later this year, MassMutual will be announcing the availability of additional financial benefits and services through MapMyFinances to help workers solve other pressing financial needs such as debt management, medical and emergency savings, tuition reimbursement and budgeting,” Wilson said. “We will continue to enhance the MapMyFinances tool as well as our offerings to help more Americans achieve financial security.”

The Need is Acute
Wilson pointed out that many Americans – especially middle-income workers – have acute financial needs.

Thirty-seven percent of respondents to MassMutual’s Middle America Financial Security study reported feeling “not very” or “not at all” financially secure, while the majority (54 percent) described themselves as “somewhat secure”². The internet-based research polled 1,010 working Americans ages 25-65 with annual household incomes of between $35,000 and $150,000 and who participated in making household financial decisions.

Money worries accompany many Middle Americans to work.  Four in 10 study respondents (40 percent) said they worry about money at least once a week while at work. Half (51 percent) of Americans who are less affluent – those earning less than $45,000 – reported bringing their financial concerns to work at least once a week and 20 percent said daily, according to the study.

Overall, nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of the respondents to the study said a financial emergency or major expense was one of their top worries. Overall, 22 percent of respondents cited debt as their top financial problem with more millennials and Generation Xers saying so. As Middle Americans age, healthcare costs rise in importance, becoming the No. 1 concern for baby boomers.

“Sadly, financial struggles weigh heavily on many middle-income Americans,” Wilson said. “With the introduction of MapMyFinances, MassMutual is working to lighten their loads and help guide them to the path towards greater financial security.”