Financial Plan Vs Investment Plan: Working Professionals Should Know the Difference – ICICI Blog (2024)

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As a working professional, you have to deal with a lot of responsibilities. Of all the things, financial and investment planning are the biggest concerns. Quite often, people use the terms interchangeably; however, one should know that they are not the same. Read further to know more.

When you start working, you get busy with your professional life and managing the responsibilities of your family; personal finance may seem to be less critical for you. You need to have a plan that guides you financially. As a young adult, you will receive many investment tips and personal tips from your seniors and parents, but before that you need to know the difference between the two.

Financial Plan Versus Investment Plan

  • A financial plan is a process of attaining life’s goals in a planned way by eliminating the surprises. In contrast, an investment plan is one of the pathways of financial planning, and the plan enables you to meet your financial goals with the available resources.
  • While creating a roadmap for a financial plan, you need to take a holistic view of your overall expenses, income, life insurance, investment and so on. It will help if you also ask questions related to your retirement, your short-term or long-term goals, how much money you will require to reach the goals. Basically, it has a broad framework. In the case of an investment plan, you have to understand the risks involved in equity, debts or other schemes. The investment journey is much shorter.
  • In an investment plan, you have to deal with asset classes and rebalance them as per your goals and risk appetite, so that you can earn maximum returns. On the other hand, financial planning encompasses your debt, risk-related to investments, insurance premiums, liability insurance and more.
  • Unlike investment plans, you cannot make any changes to your financial policy as it is a static document. Once you define the goals, you cannot change them unless there is a significant shift in your financial journey. One must review an investment plan regularly to analyse risks, macro-economic changes, the underperformance of assets, etc. You need to consider investments at least once a year and set a target of reallocating the assets.
  • A single financial plan cannot be replicated for another person. Every individual’s monetary scenario and goals are distinct. An investment plan is more like a template. When you invest in a mutual fund scheme, the fund manager invests money into assets that will help to achieve similar goals for a group of investors.

To conclude, a financial plan only relates to the framework, while the investment plan is a plan of action that forms the core component of the financial planning process. As a working professional, you need to plan for personal and investments separately.

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Financial Plan Vs Investment Plan: Working Professionals Should Know the Difference – ICICI Blog (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between financial plan and investment plan? ›

The key difference between financial planning and investment planning lies in the precise area of focus. While financial planning is the broader framework, investing planning is the nitty-gritty of the execution of the plan.

What is the difference between financial management and investment management? ›

The Bottom Line

While investment management primarily focuses on managing investment portfolios, financial planning takes a broader approach, addressing all aspects of an individual's or household's financial life to help them achieve their financial goals and objectives.

What is the difference between financial planning and portfolio management? ›

At the most basic level, financial planning is about managing and budgeting for your future financial needs, while portfolio management is investing your current capital to grow your wealth.

What is the relationship between investing and personal financial planning? ›

Answer and Explanation:

Investing then comes in to help the investor gain returns from assets or bonds that would be used in the achievement of the goals that were set in the financial plan. Financial planning, therefore, determines the range of portfolio the investor would engage in.

What is the difference between finance and investment? ›

Investing cash flows arise from a company investing in or disposing of long-term assets. Financing cash flows arise from a company raising funds through debt or equity and repaying debt.

What is the difference between financial planner and investment planner? ›

Financial planners are great at creating comprehensive plans with detailed explanations of goals, risk tolerance, risk aversion, timeline and expected return. And investment managers excel at finding investments that meet specific criteria such as risk level or long-term growth potential.

What is the difference between investment management and financial services? ›

Investment management is about asset allocation, expected returns, risk tolerance and time horizons. Financial advice is about making wise choices about the use of debt, setting up college savings plans, tax efficiency, estate planning and ensuring your insurance needs are taken care of.

What is the difference between financial management and investment banking? ›

Wealth managers serve a smaller, more exclusive clientele, typically high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) and families. In contrast, investment bankers work with a broader range of clients, including large corporations, governments, and institutional investors.

What is the difference between finance manager and investment manager? ›

A Financial Adviser assists their client with financial planning for the long-term, whereas an Investment Manager is solely focused on the actual selection, performance and reporting of assets within a portfolio, often having to take action in downturns and make the tough decisions required for short and long-term ...

What are the two key differences between an investment advisor and a portfolio manager? ›

Investment advisors encompass professionals that can help you with investment management, retirement planning, estate management, tax management, budgeting, debt management, etc. Portfolio managers are typically more focused on helping you invest and managing your investment portfolio.

What is the difference between financial management and financial planning? ›

The financial management has function to estimate the requirements for capital which the organization needs. Financial planning is process of formulation of goals, policies, procedures, programs and budget that refer to organization's finance function.

What is the difference between financial planning and CFA? ›

CFPs mainly give advice to individuals, but some advise small business owners as well. CFPs also help with retirement planning, investing, and other financial planning. On the other hand, CFAs give advice to various institutions, such as banks, mutual funds, pension funds, insurance companies, and securities firms.

What is the difference between a financial plan and an investment plan? ›

Investment advice is a targeted and specific form of guidance such as investment allocation or an insurance review. A financial plan is a broader, more comprehensive document that can help uncover areas of financial concern and be used as a roadmap to reach your financial goals.

What is investment and financial planning? ›

In an investment plan, you have to deal with asset classes and rebalance them as per your goals and risk appetite, so that you can earn maximum returns. On the other hand, financial planning encompasses your debt, risk-related to investments, insurance premiums, liability insurance and more.

Why is financial planning important before investing? ›

A comprehensive multipage document, a financial plan turns your vision into numbers, investment approaches and projections of potential future wealth. It quantifies the impact of tax obligations and inflation years from now and factors future costs and potential risks into your current strategies.

What is considered a financial plan? ›

What Is a Financial Plan? A financial plan is a document that details a person's current financial circ*mstances and their short- and long-term monetary goals. It includes strategies to achieve those goals.

What is an investment plan? ›

An investment plan is a tool in the process of financial planning designed to develop an investing strategy to achieve your financial goals. An investment plan helps you structure how much cash, stock, bonds, and real estate to invest in to maximize returns.

Are financial and investment advisors the same? ›

These advisors ultimately offer guidance on different financial topics, but one thing they have in common is money management. Whereas financial planners focus on retirement planning, estate planning and more, investment advisors are focused on helping you invest.

What is the difference between a financial planner and an investment banker? ›

The purpose, job roles and other details vary in both cases. Financial advisors take responsibility when it comes to managing individual finances. At the same time, investment bankers act as bridges between capital markets and corporations.

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