Jackson Supports National Retirement Planning Week April 8-12 to Promote Financial Education, Litera

Jackson Supports National Retirement Planning Week April 8-12 to Promote Financial Education, Literacy Across the Country

Event is part of Jackson's robust educational campaign, one of the company's top priorities for 2013

LANSING, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Jackson National Life Insurance Company^® (Jackson^®), a leading provider of retirement solutions and educational resources for industry professionals and consumers, has joined the effort to support National Retirement Planning Week^® April 8-12. The national campaign, led by Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) and the National Retirement Planning Coalition, a group of prominent education, consumer advocacy and financial services organizations, aims to educate Americans on retirement planning and financial literacy.

As a member of the IRI board of directors, Greg Cicotte, president of Jackson National Life Distributors LLC, the distribution arm of Jackson, will help to kick off National Retirement Planning Week by participating in a teleconference panel of industry professionals on Monday, April 8 at 10 a.m. Eastern time. The week's theme — "Retire On Your Terms" — is designed to emphasize the idea that comprehensive financial plans need to be properly developed in order to plan for retirement. Throughout the week, the coalition and its supporters will release educational materials and encourage retirement planning through nationally distributed radio, television and print advertisements and a coordinated media outreach program.

"The coalition could not have chosen a more impactful theme for its annual National Retirement Planning Week," said Cicotte. "'Retire On Your Terms' indicates that preparing for your financial future is in your control, and focuses on the importance of starting to plan now. Americans are not starting soon enough and not saving enough. We know the earlier they start planning for retirement, the better off they will be."

The group wants consumers of all ages to realize they need to create a financial roadmap toward retirement. To support these educational efforts, the coalition has collected the latest resources to help consumers and financial professionals focus on long-term financial goals. These tools are available year-round at www.retireonyourterms.org.

"As 79 million Baby Boomers near and enter their retirement years, they will encounter a unique set of challenges unlike those any previous generation has faced," said Cathy Weatherford, IRI president and chief executive officer. "These challenges — including changes in employee benefits, longer life spans, uncertainty with Social Security and Medicare, as well as rising cost of health care — have made preparing for retirement more difficult and could put their future financial security at risk. As a result, many Boomers lack confidence in their ability to meet their retirement goals."

In addition to National Retirement Planning Week, last month Jackson announced two new educational initiatives, the Center for Financial Insight, and a dedicated LinkedIn Group for financial advisors, The Alternative Investment Learning Center, Powered by Jackson, to complement the vast array of educational meetings Jackson has scheduled for 2013, which focus on alternative investment strategies, a growing area in portfolio planning. The Center for Financial Insight is designed to help to bring the financial planning environment into focus for today's investors, offering educational content, ideas and commentary from some of the top thought leaders in the financial services industry. The online resource is for all levels of investors and provides a wealth of proprietary research, informational videos, white papers, industry commentary and "Investor 101" materials.

"The Center for Financial Insight features a number of helpful resources, including a "Retirement Calculator" to determine how much money you need to save for retirement, and a "Nest Egg Calculator" to determine how far your current savings will go," said Cicotte. "These free resources are for anyone interested in taking steps in planning their retirement future."

To learn more about the Center for Financial Insight, visit www.jackson.com/thoughtleadership. Advisors can learn more about the Alternative Investment Learning Center by sending an email to altlearningcenter@jackson.com. Advisors who wish to learn more about Jackson and its alternative education programs can contact Jackson by calling 800-711-JNLD (5653) or visiting www.jackson.com or www.myeliteaccess.com.

About Jackson

Jackson is a leading provider of retirement solutions and educational resources for industry professionals and consumers. The company offers a diverse range of products including variable, fixed and fixed index annuities to retail customers, and fixed income products to institutional investors. Jackson subsidiaries and affiliates provide asset management and retail brokerage services. With $165.4 billion in assets (IFRS),* Jackson prides itself on product innovation, sound corporate risk management practices and strategic technology initiatives. The company, which is focused on thought leadership and education, develops proprietary research, industry insights and financial representative training on retirement planning and alternative investment strategies. Jackson is also dedicated to corporate social responsibility and supports charities focused on helping children and seniors in the communities where its employees live and work. For more information, visit www.jackson.com.

Jackson is the marketing name for Jackson National Life Insurance Company^® , Jackson National Life Insurance Company of New York^® (Home Office: Purchase, New York) and Jackson National Life Distributors LLC.

*Jackson has $165.4 billion in total IFRS assets and $150.9 billion in IFRS policy liabilities primarily set aside to pay future policyowner benefits (as of 12/31/12).

International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) is a principles-based set of international accounting standards indicating how transactions and other events should be reported in financial statements. IFRS is issued by the International Accounting Standards Board in an effort to increase global comparability of financial statements and results. IFRS is used by Jackson's parent company.

Although asset allocation among different asset categories generally limits risk and exposure to any one category, the risk remains that management may favor an asset category that performs poorly relative to the other asset categories. Some of those risks include general economic risk, geopolitical risk, commodity-price volatility, counterparty and settlement risk, currency risk, derivatives risk, emerging markets risk, foreign securities risk, high-yield bond exposure, noninvestment-grade bond exposure, index investing risk, industry concentration risk, leveraging risk, market risk, prepayment risk, liquidity risk, real estate investment risk, sector risk, short sales risk, temporary defensive positions, and large cash positions.

Before investing, investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the product, including its underlying investment options. The current prospectus provides this and other important information. Please contact your representative or the Company to obtain the prospectus(es). Please read the prospectus(es) carefully before investing or sending money.

Jackson National Life Insurance Company is an indirect subsidiary of Prudential plc, a company incorporated and with its principal place of business in the United Kingdom. Prudential plc and its affiliated companies constitute one of the world's leading financial service groups. It provides insurance and financial services directly and through its subsidiaries and affiliates throughout the world. It has been in existence for 165 years and had more than $658 billion in assets under management as of Dec. 31, 2012. Prudential plc is not affiliated in any manner with Prudential Financial, Inc., a company whose principal place of business is in the United States of America.

About the Insured Retirement Institute

The Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) is a not-for-profit organization that for twenty years has been a mainstay of service, commitment and collaboration within the insured retirement industry. Today, IRI is considered to be the authoritative source of all things pertaining to annuities, insured retirement strategies and retirement planning. IRI proudly leads a national consumer education coalition of nearly twenty organizations and is the only association that represents the entire supply chain of insured retirement strategies: Our members are the major insurers, asset managers, broker-dealers/distributors, and 150,000 financial professionals. IRI exists to vigorously promote consumer confidence in the value and viability of insured retirement strategies, bringing together the interests of the industry, financial advisors and consumers under one umbrella. IRI's mission is to: encourage industry adherence to highest ethical principles; promote better understanding of the insured retirement value proposition; develop and promote best practice standards to improve value delivery; and advocate before public policy makers on critical issues affecting insured retirement strategies and the consumers that rely on their guarantees. Visit www.IRIonline.org today to experience the vast resources of the Insured Retirement Institute for yourself.

PR1407 04/13

Jackson National Life Insurance Company
Corporate Communications
Lori Stafford-Thomas, Director, External Comm.
Phone: (303) 224-7542
Email: Lori.Stafford@jackson.com

KEYWORDS: United States North America Michigan

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:

The article Jackson Supports National Retirement Planning Week April 8-12 to Promote Financial Education, Literacy Across the Country originally appeared on Fool.com.

Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 - 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.