By Kara Stefan

Who thinks the average American woman is the chief financial officer of her household? The auto industry for starters. According to J.D. Powers and Associates, women make more than half the car buying decisions in the U.S.

And the Recording Industry Association of America weighs in with this statistic: women account for more than half the music sales in the country. There’s more: women comprise 44% of motorcycle owners, 51% of convertible owners, and 48% of truck or SUV owners. Guess it’s no longer a man’s world.

What this proves is that women, traditionally the purveyors of clothes, cosmetics, and groceries, have now taken the reins when it comes to nearly all of the purchasing decisions in most households. Not only that, but 80% of women will be responsible for their own finances at some point in their lives, says Mary Farrell, managing director of Paine Webber and author of Mary Farrell’s Beyond the Basics.

The Survey Says
In May of this year, research from the Wingspan Bank Financial Index confirmed that women, on average, hold the primary responsibility for managing the majority of financial activities for their households. In fact, 83 million women are responsible for creating their household budgets, managing the checking account, and reviewing and paying bills.

Now if that doesn’t qualify you for a CFO title, I don’t know what does. So whether you’re a business owner (38% of all firms in the U.S. are women-owned), or a soccer mom whose days are filled with carpools and home-baked cookies, you have the same genetic make-up that empowers you to learn, manage, and excel at finances.

Moms Rule
It may be particularly intimidating for stay-at-home moms to serve as the financial taskmaster of the house. After all, it’s your spouse who’s bringing home the dough.

However, a study conducted by Edelman Financial Services concluded that moms are worth more than $570,000 per year in today’s job market–a decent salary for any CFO.

Says Chairman Ric Edelman, “Since a mother wears many hats and is on duty 24-hours a day, we decided that the typical mother deserves a full-time yearly salary for 17 different occupational positions”–ranging from executive chef and animal caretaker to computer systems analyst and property manager.

Just in case you still doubt your ability to manage money effectively, rest assured it’s not as hard as the myriad tasks you juggle each day. For example, check out the following “job” qualifications for being a Mom, as compiled by a fellow household CFO:

Position: MOM

• Must reconcile petty cash disbursements and be proficient in managing budgets and resources fairly unless you want to hear “He got more than me!” for the rest of your life.
• Must have strong skills in negotiating, conflict resolution, and crisis management.
• Must be willing to withstand criticism, such as “You don’t know anything.”
• Must be able to think out of the box but not lose track of the box because you most likely will need it for a school project.
• Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars, and coordinate production of multiple homework projects.
• Must be willing to be indispensable one minute and an embarrassment the next.
• Must possess a highly energetic, entrepreneurial spirit, because fund-raiser will be your middle name.
• Must have a diverse knowledge base in order to answer questions such as “What makes the wind move?” or “Why can’t they just go in and shoot Saddam Hussein?” on the fly.

Transitioning Job Experience
Now that we know women are innately qualified to handle finances, here are several tips from financial expert and author Dr. Judith Briles on how to transition those skills into money management expertise:

1. Identify any fears and concerns you have about handling and managing your finances.
2. Identify how money is spent in your household by keeping a log for a month or two.
3. Take advantage of the Internet to learn about topics such as investing and credit management.
4. Assess your current financial situation by listing all income, assets, equity, fixed/flexible expenses, and discretionary income.
5. Identify your financial goals and create a written plan for college, family, and retirement.
6. Determine the types of investments most appropriate for your current situation and goals.
7. Determine how much money you can save and invest monthly.
8. Refer to experts, including financial planners and Web sites that offer sound advice.
9. Create a realistic financial plan.
10. Actively follow your plan, but allow for mistakes you’ll inevitably make in the process and learn from them.

Tiffany Bass Bukow is the CEO & Founder of the #1 Personal Finance Website for Women and Families – www.msmoney.com. My life mission is to help people and the world thrive through creating companies that provide money, career and life skills education.

My original emotional response when I heard that Gucci was opening its largest store in the US was that they were being insensitive to the crisis so many American’s are facing right now as worries of the economy weigh heavily on everyone’s minds.

Whether you are a stock trader on Wall Street wearing Gucci shoes or a Gucci Purse toting soccer mom worried about making your mortgage payment, the economess is making you think a little more about where you are spending your money (and how others are spending theirs). You don’t want to be bragging about your $10,000 shopping spree at Gucci when your neighbor just lost six figures in the stock market that day.

It appears that Gucci recognizes the backlash from the public of promoting the frivolous of their luxury goods at a time when America is deeply pensive about the problems it faces from electing a new President, the war, and the economy. As a result they are promoting their big 46,000 megastore launch in conjunction with a celebrity party featuring Madonna, Sting, Alicia Keys and dozens of Celebrities to raise money for Madonna’s charity Raising Malawi and UNICEF.

Otherwise I think the attending celebrities, who are more in tune with America’s national situation than a French Conglomerate touting an Italian Brand, would be more reluctant to celebrate the superficiality of this luxury super-brand knowing the distaste it might leave in their fan base’s mouths because the timing is so off.

With Gucci’s sales last year in China being up 130%, you have to wonder why they would choose New York as the destination for the largest store. With bonus cuts and job losses not just in New York, but across the country for what I might call the low to mid-wealthy, you have to wonder if they are really going to be in the mood for the Gucci warehouse of goods. The uber-wealthy are certainly recession proof when it comes to luxury goods but that only makes up a fraction of Gucci’s overall sales. Even I have a Gucci purse and I certainly am not uber-wealthy.

Even Mark Lee, Gucci’s CEO, when he talks about the launch of the Gucci department store is sure to focus the attention away from the glamour of the launch party onto the charitable reasons of solving some of the world’s global problems. Mr. Lee points out that he understands Gucci is in a position to give back charitably and therefore they do the right thing.

But is he doing the right thing? Not just from a business perspective but from a public perception perspective. Just because they are selling a Limited Edition Gucci I love NY bag for $700 where 100% of the profits are going to Central Park Conservancy, doesn’t mean they diffuse all the negative sentiment around the timing of their store launch.

Gucci’s CEO says that he doesn’t feel Gucci is reliant on American sales as they used to be because of emerging markets like China and India. I am not so sure. I think foreign companies underestimate the global market impact if we enter a recession. I believe everyone will suffer, including luxury brands whether they have strong international sales or not.

It is a wise choice for Gucci to focus on China and India where the population isn’t as interested in being as socially responsible or “green” as we are in the US since Al Gore popped on the green scene. Well at least I like to think we are becoming more socially conscious. We are – aren’t we? I know I am. What about you?

Developing countries are still seeking out ego fulfillment and are building their own identities as a people by associating with already identified world brands. The are probably thinking, if I wear Gucci, Prada, Boss, that I have “arrived” to the coveted place of International success.

With America’s focus these days on solving the climate crisis and other social issues, it is becoming cool to shop responsibly. Which might mean instead of buying 4 Gucci purses customers might only buy 3 and make sure one of those purses has all the profits go to charity. That still leads to a 25% drop in sales (3 purses vs. 4). Or they might not buy any at all. And where would that leave the new Gucci warehouse? Probably looking for an even bigger space in Dubai or Delhi.

Tiffany Bass Bukow is the CEO & Founder of the #1 Personal Finance Website for Women and Families – www.msmoney.com. My life mission is to help people and the world thrive through creating companies that provide money, career and life skills education.