Financial Empowerment

Headlines bemoan the lack of personal finance being taught in our schools. Most students will graduate with little to no education on personal finance basics. But, with Experian’s help, LifeSmarts is making a difference for students across the country. Together, we are helping students get on the right path to a lifetime of success by equipping them with the financial knowledge and consumer skills they need to make informed, responsible choices.

2,500 university students across 16 cities have been trained by Experian's experts and young volunteers of the social responsibility project ‘Manage Your Future Now’ project. The project, which was launched by Experian to promote self-improvement among university students, female entrepreneurs, and SMEs, reached the milestone in December and the achievement was celebrated at a recent event at the Experian office in Turkey. Coming from 10 cities across the country, 42 participants gathered to share their experiences. Feedback was positive with everyone agreeing that the project has been beneficial in increasing awareness of social responsibility. The participants were presented with a certificate for their commitment and contribution to the project. ‘Manage Your Future Now’ is a partnership between Experian, the United Nations Development Program and the Habitat Association/Center and Credit Bureau. The initiative includes providing training on financial risks, responsible borrowing, financial management and the efficient management of relationships with banks and the financial sector. Didem Köprücü, Human Resources Manager for Turkey and the Middle East at Experian, said: “We are proud that more people are benefiting under the ‘Manage Your Future Now’ project. Our training is improving every year and I would like to thank all the volunteers and young trainers for their valuable contribution. “The third stage of our project in 2016 will cover financial risk management, as well as financial opportunities for entrepreneur candidates. For this stage of the project we plan to reach 3,000 students and entrepreneur candidates across 26 cities. “However, we intend to continue our project, reaching more people every year.” The project aims to reach 3,000 students by the end of March 2016.

Experian Marketing Services’ senior vice president of global marketing, Ashley Johnston, was named the winner of a Gold Stevie® Award for Woman of the Year in Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations at the 11th annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business on Friday, Nov. 14, in New York City. Johnston was also recognized with a Silver Stevie Award for Female Executive of the Year for Business Services Companies with more than 2,500 employees. The Stevie Awards for Women in Business are the world’s top honors for female entrepreneurs, executives, employees and the organizations they run. All individuals and organizations worldwide are eligible to submit nominations – public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small. The 2014 awards received entries from 22 nations and territories. More than 1,200 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted this year for consideration in more than 90 categories, including Entrepreneur of the Year, Executive of the Year, Company of the Year, Mentor of the Year, Women Helping Women, and Communications Campaign of the Year, among others. “This is a well-deserved honor for Ashley and a testament to her ability to inspire and empower our organization to have a positive impact each and every day,” said Matt Seeley, president, North America, Experian Marketing Services. “Throughout the 12 years she’s been with Experian, Ashley’s initiatives have accelerated Experian Marketing Services’ go-to-market strategy globally and evangelized our employees around our brand while also placing our clients directly in the center of our business and growth.” Over the past year, Johnston successfully led a global initiative to bring Experian Marketing Services’ portfolio, go-to-market strategy, culture and client base under a single, consistent global brand, for the first time. As a key part of this initiative Johnston introduced progressive and differentiated programs focused on driving lead generation, client engagement, awareness and sales-enablement support. Most notably, Johnston led the recent launch of the Experian Marketing Suite, a comprehensive, end-to-end marketing solution that enables brands to create and deliver authentic customer experiences every time, in any channel and via any device. The Marketing Suite showcases the power of Experian Marketing Services’ portfolio, which previously had been siloed into four business units, dozens of products, distinct client sets and cultures. Expressing her gratitude, Johnston added, “It’s an honor to be recognized alongside such an impressive roster of accomplished and exceptional women from countries around the world. This award is evidence of the success story of the Experian Marketing Services business and the talent of my team that continues to inspire me each and every day.” Experian Marketing Services was recognized with four Stevie Awards during the 2014 American Business Awards, all for work that Johnston and her team spearheaded, including the Client Summit, The 2014 Digital Marketer: Benchmark and Trend Report, a global internal communications campaign and the cross-channel marketing platform. Nicknamed the Stevies for the Greek word for “crowned,” the awards were presented to winners Friday night during a dinner event attended by more than 400 people at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. The presentations were broadcast live across the U.S.A., and simulcast around the world, by Biz Talk Radio, and will be featured in a television special on Biz TV in January. Stevie Award winners were selected by more than 160 executives worldwide who participated in the judging process this year.

Experian Consumer Services in association with Univision Communications Inc., the leading media company serving Hispanic America, recently launched a Spanish-language, credit-focused product and online financial resource center for the U.S. Hispanic community called Crédito y Más. The new product was developed to improve Hispanics access to credit education and resources. With Crédito y Más, consumers can check their credit score, receive a credit report, and have credit monitoring, among other benefits and access the information in Spanish or English. One of the most valuable features is the Centro de Información™, a robust resource center with articles, videos, financial calculators, a glossary of key credit terms and more.

When it comes to credit, who is winning the battle between men and women? The latest credit trends study, released today from global information services company Experian, compares the financial differences between men and women, revealing that, overall, women are better at managing their money and debt. For the first time, Experian® analyzed credit scores, average debt, utilization ratios, mortgage amounts and mortgage delinquencies of men and women in the United States. While the national credit scores only vary slightly — with a one point difference — other differences between the population of men and women include the following:

• Men have 4.3 percent more debt than women
• Men have a 2 percent higher credit utilization amount
• Mortgage loan amounts for men are 4.9 percent higher
• Men have a higher incidence of late mortgage payments by 7 percent