Financial Combat Program

Section 1
Financial Combat Program
Collin Abbott
Tyler Abbott- Team Leader
Sonia Ayala
Laura Champe
Sara Chen
BCOM 3311, Section 501
2014, November 19

(Figure 1 adapted from Choosing a Credit Card. (n.d.), Retrieved November 11, 2014, from http://firstcreditcardsinfo.com/page/75)

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Table of Contents

1.

Section 1
A.) Cover Page ..1
B.) Table of Contents.2

2.

Section 2
A.) Introduction.3

3.

Section 3
A.) Background.5
B.) Mission Statement...6
C.) Vision..6
D.) Problem...6
E.) Purpose....8

4.

Section 4
A.) Schedule10
B.) Course Curriculum/Plan11

5.

Section 5
A.) Staffing..13

6.

Section 6
A.) Budget...14

7.

Section 7
A.) Conclusion.17

8.

Section 8
A.) References.18

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Section 2
Introduction

The Financial Combat Program (FCP) started in the fall of 2014. Bank of Americas
slogan is Think what we can do for you.1 Bank of America started a social responsibility group
in order to help veterans of all ages budget and manage their money more effectively. According
to the veterans affairs committees throughout Dallas County, over half of their veterans enlisted
in the program are in need of budgeting and money management skills. 2 Bank of America has the
resources to help improve the veterans skill sets and become more financially literate and
independent. Implementing this program will help veterans improve their own socioeconomic
status through financial literacy education. Bank of America reached out to the veterans through
the FCP, which holds a series of classes to coach financial stability and money management. In
order for veterans to enroll in the course, they are encouraged to sign up for a Bank of America
checking and/or savings account. It is in the interest of Bank of America that its account holders
are financially literate. The bank accounts that are registered from this event will benefit Bank of
America. The overall improvement in their financial literacy will fulfill Bank of Americas social
responsibility and sustainability obligations.
Bank of America will give veterans $100 if they deposit more than $1,000. These classes
begin Monday, April 13, 2015, and end Friday, April 17, 2015, from 6:30-9:30 P.M. nightly. The
FCP will be held at the Dallas Marriott City Center 650 N. Pearl St. Dallas, TX, 75201.
Strategically, the course starts soon after tax refund checks are mailed so that the veterans have
money to move around and plan with. Dinner will be served at the beginning of class every night
so the participants can mingle and get to know one another and become comfortable with each
other. This encourages an open environment that is conducive to teaching and discussing

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personal finance. With veterans making up five percent or 120,000 of the Dallas county
population this group is in need of financial stability and budgeting courses, because veterans are
twice as likely to become chronically homeless. 3 Bank of America is giving $25,000 to the FCP
and is asking that the Dallas Chamber of Commerce match this donation of $25,000 to help fund
its implementation. The overall success of the FCP will be evaluated using a series of surveys
and statistical data collected by Bank of America from participants new checking accounts.
Because this is a pilot program, the overall majority of veterans have funds to work with. Each
class begins with dinner so that the veterans success will determine future program
establishments and expansion.

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Section 3
Background

The FCP is a program that is being implemented by Bank of America to teach veterans
budgeting basics and how to better manage their money. This stems from Bank of Americas
company slogan Think what we can do for you. Veterans risked their lives to protect America,
and Bank of America created this program as a small way to give back to them and show
appreciation for their service and their business. Since FCP is the first program of its kind at
Bank of America, it will begin as a pilot program; its success will determine its future. Veterans
are believed to make up one-third of the homeless population in Dallas.4 With one in nine
veterans in the DFW area living in poverty.5 On average in the Dallas area, veterans are more
likely to have more debt than non-veterans.6 Table 1 below shows the percentage of the
population that veterans make up in terms of the National level being the United States, the
Texas Level, and locally in Dallas. The 57% is taken form the average number of veterans that
struggle with budgeting and financial stability.7 This table displays in specific detail the number
of veterans out of the population of veterans facing financial instability. This social need is
needed and the FCP can benefit the veterans who are struggling with poverty and debt by giving
them the financial skill set to teach budgeting and money management to reduce these numbers.
Percentage

100%

57%

United States Veterans

21,200,000

12,084,000

Texas Veterans

1,593,072

908,051

Dallas Veterans

120,073

68,441

Table 1

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Mission Statement
The FCP serves Dallas veterans by providing personal finance education for those who
have served the United States.
Vision
Bank of America strives to ensure that veterans in Dallas have a basic and concrete
understanding of personal finance to prevent financial hardship and homelessness.

The Problem
With over 100,000 veterans in Dallas County alone, many face personal financial
hardships due to various factors.8 For example, a large part of the homeless community in Dallas
consists of veterans. Veterans in Dallas are not only at risk for homelessness, but also poverty,
unemployment, and debt. We wish to help stabilize the future of veterans by providing them with
a basic financial education. The evidence below shows the need of budgeting for veterans.
Figure 3, below, shows the unemployment rate for veterans remains incredibly high,
around 7 percent, and was higher than it is for non-veterans in the same demographic group in
2013. The jobless rate for all U.S. veterans was just 4.5 percent in 2014, slightly lower than it is
for the population as a whole. With the drop in unemployment, it is more important than ever to
assist these veterans, as they are more likely to have a steady income. A steady income makes it
necessary to have a basic set of financial skills to ensure security. This evidence supports the
need for a combat program to educate veterans with their finances.

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Figure 3

Figure 4

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Figure 4 shown above displays that the veterans receiving benefits are greater than those
not receiving benefits. Since there are more veterans receiving fixed incomes, there is a need that
arises to teach budgeting and money management techniques to those that have fixed incomes so
that they can sustain themselves.
Purpose
Our objective at Bank of America is to support veterans with their basic financial
knowledge and help them establish a healthy foundation on spending and saving money. As
Bank of America, we extend our service to the public by providing Dallas veterans with five
days of in depth education on responsible personal finance. It includes courses in basic personal
finance, budgeting, responsible credit card and loan usage, investments, and retirement planning.
Our efforts will be evaluated based on three surveys, one to establish a baseline, and two follow
up surveys, as well as statistical analysis of the checking and/or savings accounts veterans open
with Bank of America.
The effectiveness of the program will be determined by a series of surveys and statistical data
collected by Bank of America from participants new checking accounts.
Survey 1 (First Day)
Determine baseline of personal financial competency in areas of budgeting, credit cards
and loans, investments and retirement, and financial confidence.
Survey 2 (30 Days after Course)
Gage budgeting habits, credit cards, loans, investments and retirement knowledge, and
overall financial confidence.
Survey 3 (6 Months after Course)

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Gage budgeting habits, credit cards, loans, investments and retirement knowledge, and
overall financial confidence.
Statistical Analysis 1 (30 Days after Course)
Use data gathered from newly opened Bank of America accounts to analyze overall
spending habits when compared to survey response.
Statistical Analysis 2 (6 Months after Course)
Use data gathered from newly opened Bank of America accounts to analyze overall
spending habits when compared to survey response.
Once analysis of the surveys and statistics are completed, it will be determined whether or not
the program will move beyond this pilot.
Bank of Americas goal is to decrease the homeless veterans rate in the Dallas area by
proactively engaging them in personal finance education, while increasing the number of Bank
of America clients by offering these courses to veterans in exchange for opening a Bank of
America checking or savings account. Furthermore, according to recent research, veterans who
reported having money to cover basic needs were significantly less likely to have post
deployment adjustment problems such as criminal arrest, homelessness, substance abuse,
suicidal behavior, and aggression. 9 Educating veterans to make healthy financial decisions is
Bank of Americas way of giving back to those who fought for the United States by helping to
facilitate a smooth adjustment into civilian society for the recently returned and lending a hand to
older veterans that are in need of money management skills.

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Section 4
Schedule

Table 2 shows the specific dates, times, and activities that will be held during the FCP.

Date

Agenda

Time

Meet and Greet/Icebreaker

6:30-7:15

Dinner

7:15-8:00

Introduction to Personal Finance

8:00-9:30

Dinner

6:30-7:15

Budgeting 101

7:15-8:30

Create Your Budget

8:30-9:30

Dinner

6:30-7:15

How to Use Credit

7:15-8:30

April 13, 2015

April 14, 2015

April 15, 2015

All You Wanted to Know About

8:30-9:30
Loans
April 16, 2015
Dinner

6:30-7:15

Investing 101

7:15-8:30

Retirement 101

8:30-9:30

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April 17, 2015

Dinner

6:30-7:15

Keynote Speaker

7:15-8:30

Test Your Knowledge

8:30-9:30

Table 2
Course Curriculum/Plan
The following five points describe the classes and the content discussed for each class in the
FCP.
1)

Introduction to Personal Finance

What is personal finance?
Financial terms
How to manage money wisely
How to make good financial decisions
Set financial goals

2)

Budgeting 101
Budgeting Basics
3 Traits for budgeting
Basic budget worksheet
How overspending breaks your budget
Try using cash to keep spending under control
How to create a Budget

3) How to use Credit

How to establish credit
Your FICO credit score

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Improving a poor credit score
How to get your free credit report
Find money to pay off debt
Making more than the minimum payment
Seeking help for spending and debt problems
Understanding loans
4) Investing 101
What is investing?
The concept of compounding interest
Types of investments
Portfolios and diversification
5) Retirement 101
401(k) planning
IRAs and tax advantages
Asset allocation funds
Stocks and bonds

12

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Section 5
Staffing

Bank of America is responsible for all the hiring and vetting of personnel. Personnel for
the pilot program will include the following groups:
Instructor (1)
The instructor's mission is to organize and implement the FCP. Identify, choose and
implement different teaching methods for all students with various educational and professional
backgrounds and transfer theoretical and practical financial literacy information to program
participants. It is important that the instructor is able to engage and involve participants so they
leave with a lasting knowledge of personal finance and are able to maintain a degree of financial
stability after the classes end. The instructor, Duane E. Lee, will be provided by the Cannon
Financial Institute, one of the worlds leading global consulting and professional development
firms. 10
Compensation: $2,000
Volunteers (4)
Volunteers from Bank of America are needed to assist the instructor and veterans during
class sessions, Monday through Friday. They will apply via application and if selected will be
required to take an eight hour training course prior to the beginning of the pilot program to
ensure they are adequately prepared to facilitate the class. Every eligible Bank of America
employee that volunteers in the program will be awarded three days of paid time off (PTO).
Compensation: PTO

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Section 6
Budget

Table 3 shows the costs of the categories and subcategories in the budget for the FCP.
Budget Item

Amount

SubTotals

Personnel
Instructor

$2,000

Volunteers

$2,000

Total Personnel Expense

$4,000

Food and Venue

200 capacity conference room

$10,000

Catered Food

$10,000

Total Food and Venue Expense

$20,000

Training Materials and Supplies

Handouts and Training Material

$1,000

Supplies

$1,000

Total Training materials and Supplies

Advertisements

$2,000

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1000 Flyers and 50 Posters

15

$1,000

Veterans Associations Announcements

$0

Total Advertisements

$1,000

Bank of America Offer

Exclusive Checking Account Offer $100 for signup with a $1000

$20,000

Checking Account
Total Bank of America Offer

$20,000

Miscellaneous and Contingency Funds

Contingency and Backup Funds

$3,000

Total Miscellaneous and Contingency Funds

$3,000

Total Budget:

$50,000

Table 3
The number of veterans participating in the FCP will be 200. The overall cost per veteran
will be $250. This program is very beneficial for each veteran and teaches them budgeting skills
and financial stability. This program will also help give them a good start in creating a bank
account through Bank of America. When looking at the cost per veteran this is a very low
number when compared to other financial classes that are offered to anyone.
The venue will be the Dallas Marriott Center in Dallas, TX. The week-long conference
will be held at one of the many conference rooms available there and will seat all 200 veterans

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comfortably. The cost for the room reservation will be $10,000. The price includes: set up, tear
down, tech support, tables, chairs, speakers, and stage construction.11
The food for this event will be catered by Jasons Deli. The total cost of the food will be
$10,000 for all five nights given that each veterans meal costs $10 and there will be 200
veterans each night. The food options of over 25 made from scratch recipes include: pastas,
salads, potatoes, soups, fruit trays, vegetable trays, and desserts.12
The instructor selected for this course charges $400 a day for a total of $2,000. Duane E.
Lee comes from Cannon Financial Institute and partners with Bank of America. His rate includes
everything he will discuss including all copyright fees and the cost to have access to his
instructional material to distribute to the veterans.13
The supplemental and distributed materials of Cannon Financial Institute will cost a total
of $1,000. Bank of America will print the handbooks at Office Depot. Copy paper will cost $200
after tax.14 Ink for 12,500 pages will cost $600.15 Binding is needed to hold all of the materials
together. The binding will cost $1 for each packet of material costing a total $200 for this
program.16
Advertising and marketing for the program will total $1,000. Bank of America will
consult with Next Day Flyers to create a unique flyer. The total cost for 5,000 flyers is $600, and
the total cost for 100 posters is $400. The posters and flyers will be placed in the Dallas area and
advertised at local veteran associations.17 Bank of Americas offer totals $20,000. With every
$1000 minimum balance in a Bank Of America bank account from a veteran, Bank of America
will give that veteran $100. With 200 veterans, this totals $20,000 if all 200 veterans set up an
account.

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Section 7
Conclusion

Veterans are an important part of the Dallas community. These women and men risked
their lives so that civilians did not have to risk their own. Bank of America is responsible for the
well-being being of its employees and surrounding community, and this is where Bank of
Americas responsibilities align with that of the Dallas Chamber of Commerce. A partnership
between Bank of America and the Dallas Chamber of Commerce would demonstrate public
service, social responsibility, and sustainability for the Dallas Community. Improving the overall
image of Dallas and creating a common good, and initiation of a giving back program. The
research presented in this proposal shows that veterans are a group in need of solid and
fundamental personal finance education. We at Bank of America hope that the Dallas Chamber
of Commerce will support us in our mission to assist those who defended the United States by
committing $25,000 to this project.

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Section 8
Footnotes

1. Bank of America Inc. 2014. Retrieved From:

http://about.bankofamerica.com/en-us/our-story/our-company.html#fbid=xnV3xNbksuG
2. Dallas Veterans Asssociation. 2014. Retrieved from:
http://www.va.gov/directory/guide/facility.asp?ID=5461
3. Veterans in Texas: A Demographic Study. (2012, January 1). Retrieved from
http://governor.state.tx.us/files/twic/Veterans_in_Texas.pdf
4. U.S. Government Printing Office. Homelessness: Demand for Services to Homeless
Veterans Exceeds VA Program Capacity. (n.d.). Retrieved November 5, 2014, from
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-94-98/html/GAOREPORTSHEHS-94-98.htm
5. Hinojosa, Gilberto. 2013. Tampa Bay Times. "More than 40,000 Vets' Income Would
Qualify for Medicaid If Texas Adopted Obamacare Expansion." @politifact. Web. 9
Nov. 2014. <http://www.politifact.com/texas/statements/2013/oct/17/gilbertohinojosa/more-veterans-income-qualify-Medicaid-Texas/>.
6. Fey, Bill. 2014. Debt Consolidation for Veterans Settlement & Management Options.
(n.d.).
7. Elbogen, E. B., Sullivan, C. P., Wolfe, J., Wagner, H. R., & Beckham, J. C. (2013).
Homelessness and Money Mismanagement in Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans. American
journal of public health, 103(S2), S248-S254.
8. Veterans in Texas: A Demographic Study. (2012, January 1). Retrieved from
http://governor.state.tx.us/files/twic/Veterans_in_Texas.pdf

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9. Elbogen, E. B., Johnson, S. C., Wagner, H. R., Newton, V. M., & Beckham, J. C. (2012).
Financial well-being and post deployment adjustment among Iraq and Afghanistan war
veterans. Military medicine, 177(6), 669-675.
10. Cannon Financial Institute 2014. Retrieved From:
http://www.cannonfinancial.com/people/duane-e.-lee-ii/instructors-corner
11. Marriott International Inc. 2014. Retrieved from:http://www.marriott.com/default.mi
12. Jasons Deli Co. DMI Inc. 2014. Retrieved From
http://www.jasonsdeli.com/catering/large-event

13. Cannon Financial Institute 2014. Retrieved From:

http://www.cannonfinancial.com/people/duane-e.-lee-ii/instructors-corner
14. Office Depot Co. 2014. Retrieved From:
http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/748851/HP-Office-Quickpack-Paper-8-12/
15. Office Depot Co. 2014. Retrieved From:
http://www.officedepot.com/a/ink-toner-andribbons/;jsessionid=0000ATF9vXapLNN6uxUIzBlMk27:17h4h7d2r
16. Office Depot Co. 2014. Retrieved From:
Binding- http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/535160/Office-Depot-Brand-38Binding-Combs/
17. Next Day Flyers 2014. Retrieved From: http://www.nextdayflyers.com/flyerprinting/85x11-flyers.php