Keel Point Wealth Advisors hit a sweet spot in Huntsville, Ala., with a women-only symposium.

Huntsville was nicknamed "Rocket City" when the aerospace and avionics industries moved into the city in the 1960s. As technology and science companies established themselves in the area, it became ripe with professionals in need of financial advice.

Keel Point Wealth Management advisors said it felt women investors in Huntsville were being underserved and hosted a Women’s Leadership Conference in the city on March 15.

“It has been important to me to make sure that our women clients were recognized as decision makers when it comes to the financial affairs of their family,” said Keel Point wealth advisor Lisa Wiseman.

Wiseman believes that women clients should be recognized as key financial decision makers, especially since studies show they are becoming increasingly more involved in family financial decisions.

Studies like the annual "Women, Money, and Power" study by Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, an international financial services company, reported that of more than 1,000 women earning $30,000 and above, 51 percent consider themselves the chief financial officer of their household and 53 percent are responsible for managing their family’s long-term savings and investments.

For affluent women ($4.4 million or more in assets), participation in family financial affairs has increased. Thirty-six percent of women surveyed in RBC’s Women and Wealth Transfer study said they managed their own investments, compared with 49 percent of men. But 84 percent of women said they have full or joint responsibility for their family’s investment portfolio.

“We want to engage our women clients so they not only feel like we know they are the decision makers, but also to educate them,” said Wiseman.

The Women’s Leadership Summit wasn’t about investing, but rather a celebratory event for women professionals, Wiseman said.

Keel Point tapped the former CEO of Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen, Cheryl Bachelder, as the event’s guest speaker.

“My goal was to challenge the audience to explore servant leadership, which I have to believe yields superior performance results,” said Bachelder, who has worked for major brands such as Domino’s, and RJR Nabisco before spending a decade with Popeye’s and developing the female leaders there through Popeye’s women’s leadership forum.

Servant leadership is the idea that a leader should aim for authority rather than power through demonstrating certain behaviors like listening and stewardship, which encourage personal growth and promote well being in others.

“We knew that Cheryl’s unique experience and background with how she employed servant leadership throughout her career would be a message that the women of our community would want to hear,” said Wiseman.

Nearly 300 local women attended the event, showing to Wiseman and her Keel Point peers that Huntsville women were extremely interested.

One attendee and a Keel Point client said she didn’t realize the event was so needed until she saw how many women leaders came. “This was a bigger event than I have ever seen them put on before,” said Amanda Howard, the founder and CEO of Amanda Howard Real Estate. “It was really awesome.”

Howard invited all the female leaders within her company and said all came but one.

“Keel Point is demonstrating their commitment to the community of Huntsville by sponsoring this kind of event.” said Bachelder. “It evidences their genuine concern for the place where they live and do business. I admire the company.”