Posted by: 0 in vantageblog, retirement planning, retirement plan, recordkeeper, Prudent expert, plan sponsor, plan expenses, investment education, Fee disclosure, 401(k) plan on
Mar 1, 2010
So my last blog on Fee Disclosure left us with some open issues. Namely we still need to help participants understand two things:
- The impact of the identified costs on their future retirement savings, and
- How their choices within the Plan can change those costs and outcomes.
So how could we do that on participant statements along with the simple disclosure I outlined previously?
Remember, realistically, we have to boil it down to a standardized formula/format that will work for ALL participants of ALL plans. In other words, we’ll never be able to (on an individual basis) take into account an individual’s preferences, risk tolerance, outside savings, etc., as those things are unique to the individual and couldn’t easily be “modeled” on a participant statement disclosure. (Note: there are plenty of great products available out there that an individual can use to accomplish that level of accuracy in modeling. Even those that can be tied in with your plan’s recordkeeper – Financial Engines comes to mind.)
Posted by: 0 in vantageblog, retirement planning, retirement plan, Prudent expert, plan sponsor, plan expenses, investment education, fiduciary responsibility, Fee disclosure, 401(k) plan on
Feb 5, 2010
As I mentioned in my post last week, we (the industry) need to come up with a disclosure that truly (and simply) explains who is getting paid what, for what, how, and by whom, along with a participant-specific dollar figure of costs incurred – then explains how the participant can affect their own plan costs based on their choices. This is no small task.
There is no doubt that fees within 401(k) Plans are confusing at best ... deceptive at worst.
Posted by: 0 in vantageblog, retirement plan, qualified plan, Prudent expert, plan sponsor, plan compliance, participation rate, investment education, fiduciary responsibility, Fee disclosure, enrollment meetings, 401(k) plan on
Jan 27, 2010
“Obama-Save” (as opposed to Obama-Care)
On Monday, January 25, 2010, the White House released a fact sheet on their Middle-Class Task Force initiatives. The fact sheet has few details, but there is a great summary of the retirement-related initiatives here on PlanSponsor.com. I have a number of thoughts and concerns about these initiatives that I’ll outline below.
Let me just say up front: commission-based investment advisors and insurance product sellers (and maybe Mr. Biden’s Middle Class Taskforce) will NOT like my viewpoint … but that’s too bad! My company is about helping Plan Sponsors and their Participants do the right thing, the right way … period. Figure out how to line up with that philosophy and we won’t have a problem.
Posted by: 0 in vantageblog, retirement plan, retirement audits, qualified plan, Prudent expert, plan sponsor, plan expenses, Plan Document, plan compliance, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary liability, Fee disclosure, Due Diligence, 401(k) plan on
Sep 30, 2009
Benchmark your plan! Benchmark your plan!
Make sure you’re not paying too much!
Make sure it’s competitive!
Make sure it’s compliant!
The pressure is on you as the Plan Sponsor to make sure the retirement plan you’re providing for your employees is the best it can be. You know you need to benchmark your plan, but you’re not sure HOW.
Here are a few options to consider:
