Schedules & the RMA® Certification Faculty

 

 

The Institute is committed to delivering world-class experiences that our members have come to expect and enjoy.

 

RMA Faculty

That is why we partner with the most recognized and admired retirement experts in the country. From industry influencers and practitioners to professors from the countries most admired universities, we purposefully partners and engage with individuals who are redefining the industry and champion our curriculum. They passionately bring their insights and strategies to the surface, providing you turnkey solutions that you can implement immediately into your practice.

Class Schedules 

On-Demand RMA® Certification Track
         
Application Deadline Self Study Capstone* Curriculum Review Schedule Exam 
Ongoing Enrollment

4-6 months
Individuals will receive platform instructions and access upon successful enrollment.

16 hours Self-Paced On-Demand

On-Demand recordings available 24/7, available for 12-months.

Coming Soon!

Online Exam Contact
sconfer@i-w.org
to schedule

*View Capstone details 
Open Enrollment - Apply now


If you would like a more structured schedule to earn your RMA® certification, we have several class options to choose from in 2023. Simply select the schedule that best works for you and email Stephanie Confer at sconfer@i-w.org for more information. The scheduled class options include the following: a kick-off call, check-in emails, live webcast check-in, open office times. If a structured, live program is not for you, see the self-paced, on-demand option above.

Curriculum Review

The Institute offers a test prep class for those embarking upon the RMA program.

Coming Soon!

*Available to new and existing RMA® candidates only. Have questions? Email Sconfer@i-w.org.

​The RMA® Certification Core of Body of Knowledge


The Retirement Opportunity:  ​

  • The Retirement Landscape: Knowledge of critical retirement demographics and current trends, and the role of the client and advisor   ​

  • Retirement Mindset and Behavior: Knowledge of the evolution of retirement approaches, and understanding the behavioral science related to finance, aging, retirement, cognitive decline and family dynamics to positively impact client actions ​

  • The Ethical Advisor: Knowledge of business standards, regulatory requirements, ethics concepts and the code of professional responsibility ​

  ​The Retirement Client:  ​

  • Client Discovery and Analysis: Understanding the essentials of a prudent, client-oriented advisory process, and ability to create, implement, monitor and adjust retirement plans ​

  • Assessing Retirement Readiness: Ability to create scenario planning models and an optimized retirement income plans, prioritizing essential issues, assessing available capital for funding goals, utilizing assets and liabilities for creating income ​

  • Retirement Risk Management: Knowledge of approaches to risk management, and risk concepts, categories, assessments and strategies​

​Retirement Technical Design:  ​

  • Retirement Portfolio Allocations: Ability to structure the appropriate planning approach, including goals-based planning to build a repeatable retirement income planning client engagement process ​

  • Key Retirement Planning Decisions: Key knowledge of strategies for Social Security and Medicare and withdrawal policies, rules and risks ​

  • Implementations Strategies: Knowledge of portfolio allocations, product selection, and insurance, lending and investment vehicles, specific to delivering sustainable retirement income plans ​

  • Life in Transition: Ability to prepare for and address special situations, considerations and aging issues ​

  • Retirement Policy Statements: Understanding , monitoring, communicating the Retirement Policy Statement to provide clients with a road map for taking actions for their retirement income plan 

Learn more about your RMA® certification program instructors

 

Dana Anspach


Dana Anspach, CFP®, RMASM, is founder and CEO, Sensible Money, LLC, founded her fee-only registered investment advisory firm with the goal of providing the type of planning needed to align her client’s finances for their transition out of the work force. She is the author of Control Your Retirement Destiny and Social Security Sense.

 

 

 

Francois Gadenne


Francois Gadenne, CFA®, RMASM, is founder of the Curve Triangle Rectangle Institute. Previously, he was co-founder, chairman and executive director of the Retirement Income Industry Association. For more than 30 years, Mr. Gadenne has led teams that build successful technology solutions for the financial industry. His background combines a history of entrepreneurship, staff and line experience at financial service organizations, and corporate strategy consulting. He is a graduate of the Ecole Superieure de Commerce de Paris and earned an MBA, J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University. He also earned a certificate of director education from the National Association of Corporate Directors.

Michael Guillemette


Michael Guillemette, Ph.D, CFP®, assistant professor, department of personal financial planning, Texas Tech University, focuses his research on client risk assessment and the demand for insurance. Quoted frequently by national media, Professor Guillemette previously served as an assistant professor at the University of Missouri. He earned a bachelor’s degree, University of Georgia, and a master’s degree and doctoral degree in personal financial planning, Texas Tech University.

 

 

Michael Kitces


Michael E. Kitces, MSFS, MTAX, CFP®, CLU®, ChFC®, RHU, REBC, CASL, CWPPTM, is director of research for Pinnacle Advisory Group, a private wealth management firm, and publisher of the e-newsletter The Kitces Report and the blog Nerd’s Eye View at www.kitces.com, which is dedicated to advancing knowledge in financial planning. He is a writer and editor whose work has appeared in Financial Planning, Journal of Financial Planning, Journal of Retirement Planning, Practical Tax Strategies, the Wall Street Journal, and BusinessWeek. He co-authored The Annuity Advisor with John Olsen and Tools & Techniques of Retirement Income Planning with Steve Leimberg. He was recognized as one of five financial planning “Movers and Shakers” for 2006 by Financial Planning magazine and one of 20 “Rising Stars in Wealth Management” by Institutional Investor News for 2007. He serves on the editorial review board for Journal of Financial Planning and on numerous boards and committees for the Financial Planning Association and the Society of Financial Services Professionals. He is a co-founder of NexGen, which aims to ensure the transfer of wisdom, tradition, and integrity from the pioneers of financial planning to the next generation of the profession. Michael earned a master’s degree in taxation from the University of Tulsa, a master’s degree in financial services from the American College and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Bates College.

 

Marcia Mantell


Marcia Mantell, RMA®, NSSA®, President, Mantell Retirement Consulting, Inc.,  regularly partners with financial institutions in the U.S. and Canada to help support the customers they serve across the retirement spectrum—from a focus on saving, to the transition into retirement, and then, how to organize and manage income to last a lifetime.  She has helped the country's foremost financial services firms and advisors increase their knowledge of complex retirement concepts and regulations. She has a remarkable ability to translate those concepts into everyday language that educates and motivates real people to take the right steps to achieve the retirement they desire.
 

 

Arun Muralidhar


Arun Muralidhar, Ph.D., co-founder, Mcube Investment Technologies LLC, co-founder and client service manager, AlphaEngine Global Investment Solutions, is a nationally-recognized leader in pension reform, asset allocation and currency management. The author of Innovations in Pension Fund Management and A SMART APPROACH to Portfolio Management, and co-author of Rethinking Pension Reform, and editor, European Pension Reform, assists institutional investors in asset allocation, currency management, and external management oversight through customized investment advice.

 

John Nersesian


John A. Nersesian, CIMA®, CPWA®, CIS, CFP® is head of advisor education for PIMCO, providing advanced wealth management and investment consulting education to financial professionals. Previously, he was managing director of wealth management services for Nuveen Investments from 2000 to 2018. Prior to this, he was a first vice president at Merrill Lynch Private Client Group, where he was also a leader of advanced training for financial consultants. Mr. Nersesian served as a board member of the Investments and Wealth Institute (IWI, formerly IMCA) from 2006 to 2017, and as chairman for the 2014-2015 term. He is a faculty member for the IWI Certified Private Wealth Advisor (CPWA) and Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) education programs held at Yale University and The University of Chicago. He has 35 years of investment and financial services experience and holds an undergraduate degree in business and economics from Lehigh University. He has earned the CFP, CIMA and CPWA designations.

 

Robert Powell


Robert Powell is a longtime financial journalist and a regular contributor to TheStreet.com, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, and MarketWatch. He serves as editor of The Street’s Retirement Daily and as editor of the Retirement Management Journal, a peer-reviewed professional journal. He was instrumental in developing the Retirement Management Advisor℠ designation. Previously, he served as editor of Retirement Weekly; managing director of Dalbar, where he was responsible for all aspects of the firm's publishing company: Mutual Fund Market News, Variable Annuity Market News, The Journal of Mutual Fund Services, Registered Investment Advisor, Visionaries, and Advice, Trust & Money; and managing director of Acadient, an online financial education company. He has also served as host or co-host of several television, radio and internet chat programs, including “Consumer Portfolio” on Boston Cablevision, “Talk of New England” on New England Cable News, “The Money Manager” on WMEX-AM Boston, and “FundWire” on AmericaOnline. The co-author of Decoding Wall Street and author of 20 Tips for Retirement Investors, Mr. Powell earned a bachelor's degree from Marquette University and a master's degree from Boston University.