Kris Jensen, like many of her Baby Boomer peers, is giving some thought to when she may want to retire and when she will be ready to retire, financially speaking.

But a new program by Employee and Family Resources, a Web-based retirement coaching system, has opened her eyes to issues such as life satisfaction and relationships that can surface with retirement, all of which need to be addressed before she makes that major life change.

“I didn’t realize how broad this thought process needed to be,” said Jensen, 53, senior vice president of human resources for The Weitz Co. “A person could realize it’s still pretty empty on the other side because they’ve focused so much on the financial piece and haven’t rounded out their life.”

Jensen served as a “guinea pig” during the development of EFR’s program. As one of those who until now has focused solely on the financial elements of retirement, she said an initial coaching assessment made her realize how much she had discounted the emotional and physical aspects of retirement.

Margaret Altmix, director of coaching for EFR, said a number of factors have led to a shift in thinking about retirement, leaving the upcoming group of retirees without a model to follow. People are living longer, and in many cases are spending far more time in retirement than previous generations.

“They’re not going to be satisfied doing retirement the way our parents or grandparents did,” she said. “The Baby Boomers have changed just about everything, and they’re going to change the way we do retirement.”

Not only are millions of Baby Boomers such as Jensen looking ahead to retirement, but EFR also discovered through its local clients that retirement planning is almost exclusively limited to financial planning.

“There’s really a lot more to retirement than finances,” Altmix said. “People can retire very, very wealthy and slip into a pretty severe depression.”

Altmix said one example, although extreme, is Eastman Kodak Co. founder George Eastman, who committed suicide in 1932 and left a note that read, “To my friends: My work is done. Why wait?”

“A lot of people, about 18 months after retirement, move into this routine that doesn’t enrich their lives,” she said. “That honeymoon of retirement is over and the reality hits that they may have 25-30 years ahead of them and what are they going to do with it.”

The program addresses what EFR refers to as the eight essential elements of a vibrant retirement:

Moving the benefits of work to retirement

Resiliency for coping with change

Meeting social needs – The people who are most successful in retirement are those with the strongest social networks, Altmix said.

Addressing family issues – Most notable is the fact that many retirees find themselves spending a great deal more time with their partner.

Achieving life meaning – Many retirees, often due to their age and stage in life, find themselves trying to make sense of life and don’t think they can do that once their career has ended.

Enjoying leisure – And this isn’t about playing golf every day. “If you retire and golf becomes your daily activity, then it becomes your job,” Altmix said. “So where’s your leisure?” In addition, she said, retirees must learn how to live a leisurely life, not a life of leisure.

Optimizing health and wellness

Being financially secure – The focal point of most retirement planning, EFR doesn’t spend much time with this issue.

Clients of EFR’s retirement coaching program start by completing a 45-item assessment that will serve as a guidepost for coaching efforts. They will participate in weekly telephone conversations with their retirement coach and can log on to their password-secured Web site at any time of day to journal and record and track their goals and related tasks. Their coach serves as a librarian, connecting them to articles and Internet links that are relevant to the particular issue being addressed.

EFR plans to develop a large online database with stories from retirees from around the world that can “keep enriching what we know about retirement,” Altmix said.

Altmix said the Web portal, which went live July 1, is “very sophisticated.” Created by Spindustry Systems Inc., the retirement coaching program, along with a new life coaching program, has already attracted the attention of employee assistance programs from throughout the country, some of which have approached EFR about purchasing the program. Though retirement coaching programs exist elsewhere, the online presence makes EFR’s one-of-a-kind.

Altmix said the best time for workers to begin thinking about retirement is five years in advance, at which time they should be working with a coach or themselves to address the eight essential elements of a vibrant retirement.

“Rather than move forward with a plan, people just worry about it,” she said. “The coach will assist you in moving forward so you’re not doing repetitive, non-productive thinking.”

Joel Magruder, president of Financial Partners Group, said a comprehensive approach to retirement complements the work of financial planners such as him and provides clients with a greater sense of readiness. Many people look at retirement as an age-based goal. “We see it as a financial- and emotional-readied goal,” he said.

He hasn’t seen a significant shift toward this model on the part of financial planners, but does sense that many of his peers want to provide their clients with more than just financial calculations.

“If they really understand the goals and desires of the clients, it’s easier to find the right fit with the way we’re managing their money,” he said.

Jensen said she “absolutely” plans to continue with EFR’s retirement coaching program for guidance in addressing some of the emotional and physical elements of retirement. But she also hopes to transition into another career, probably in the arts, that would allow her to be productive and continue to contribute to society. She wants assistance in determining how to “throttle down in one career and slide over and build a parallel career.”

“I think in the past, we thought our whole goal and focus was to retire,” she said. “Now the impression is we can phase in retirement or partially retire or change careers. That opens up so many options other than you work or you retire.”

She said that has significant implications for employers as well. Weitz employs more than 100 people who are financially prepared for retirement, and she plans to approach company executives about offering retirement coaching to employees.

“Especially for companies trying to save their intellectual capital, that’s gong to be huge for them,” Jensen said. “A vice president may want to work in a lesser capacity but coach or mentor their existing staff. Employers should be open to the variety of options that their more senior workforce may come to them with.”