Retirement Plan Consulting
Helping create successful retirement plan outcomes for plan sponsors and plan participants.
Retirement Plan Consulting
A well-designed retirement plan can be one of the most valuable benefits a company provides by helping employees prepare for their financial future while helping employers attract and retain talented people.
For plan sponsors, however, offering a successful retirement plan involves much more than selecting investments. Plan design, fiduciary responsibilities, employee education, investment oversight, provider coordination, fees and ongoing administration all require thoughtful attention.
We work with employers to help simplify those responsibilities and build retirement plans designed around the needs of both the organization and its employees.
Our role is to provide ongoing guidance, coordinate with the professionals and providers involved with the plan, and help plan sponsors make informed decisions as their business, workforce and retirement plan evolve.
People are a Company’s Most Important Asset
Retirement Plan Services
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The success of any retirement plan is measured by the success of its participants. Unfortunately, many employees are not saving enough and their accounts are not appropriately allocated. Our goal is to help every employee understand the value of their retirement plan and maximize it’s potential to help them achieve a successful outcome.
Develop a communication and education program focused on providing support and improving retirement outcomes.
Deliver education through group, one-on-one consultations, live and virtual meetings. All tailored to your organization's objectives and unique employee demographics.
Assist in drafting clear, concise, constructive and effective employee communications about plan details, financial education and activities.
Analyze various employee metrics on an annual basis to monitor our collective impact and identify potential education opportunities or plan improvements.
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Fiduciary standards have been characterized as the “highest known to law.” With most retirement plans, senior executives, certain Human Resource professionals and retirement plan committee members are considered plan fiduciaries and may be subject to personal liability.
Educate fiduciaries on their roles and responsibilities.
Implement policies and plan governance procedures.
Prepare meeting summaries and deliverables to help ensure proper documentation of all fiduciary decisions.
Deliver an annual Fiduciary Plan Review to continually monitor plan details and operations.
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Understanding the fees within a retirement plan can be daunting. Although there have been improvements in fee-transparency, complexity remains. Yet, fiduciaries are responsible for having a full understanding of the fees charged and ensuring they are commensurate to the services provided.
Provide a clear and concise breakdown of your total plan fees each year, benchmark them against industry averages and metrics, and document the results.
Identify and implement methods that may reduce plan costs without sacrificing the quality of products and services.
Renegotiate with service providers on your behalf to help ensure economies-of-scale are realized for a growing retirement plan.
Coordinate with providers to maximize their service offerings, such as technology integration, meetings, and education.
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Whether your goal is to increase participation, improve compliance oversight, or maximize benefits for key employees, plan design can make a tremendous impact on the success or your retirement plan.
Provide an in-depth analysis of plan design including our recommendations and how to implement.
Ensure critical components such as eligibility, employer contribution formulas, distribution rules, automatic enrollment, and others are aligned with the plan’s objectives and employee demographics.
Proactively review plan design and its effectiveness during our Fiduciary Plan Review.
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Proper investment oversight is not only a critical fiduciary requirement, but it can also play an important role in employee engagement and retirement outcomes.
Design an Investment Policy Statement (IPS.)
Design an investment menu that will minimize employee confusion, while maximizing engagement and success.
Employ an advanced risk-based suitability process to identify a “best-fit” target date fund series for your plan.
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Choosing a provider / recordkeeper and TPA is in itself a fiduciary action. Demographics, service needs, and plan size are critical factors in finding the right fit at the right cost. As your plan grows, the ideal provider several years ago, may not be ideal today.
Initial review and benchmark of current provider.
Periodically market test plan provider via Request for Proposal.
Serve as a liaison between plan sponsor and provider to manage relationship.
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Administrative responsibilities associated with retirement plans can be overwhelming for Human Resources and Payroll. We can assist in this area by optimizing plan design and efficiently leveraging service providers and their technology.
Review current admin processes, payroll and plan service providers available technology.
Provide recommendations to enhance efficiency of current retirement plan admin processes.
Educate and train admin staff, as needed.
Executive Compensation
For many businesses, attracting and retaining key executives requires more than a competitive salary and traditional employee benefits. Executive compensation strategies can provide additional incentives designed to reward the individuals who contribute significantly to the long-term success of the company.
Nonqualified benefit plans provide employers with considerable flexibility in determining who participates, how benefits are structured, and what objectives the plan is designed to accomplish. These strategies can be used to reward key employees, encourage long-term retention, supplement retirement benefits, or provide additional protection for selected individuals.
We work with business owners and their advisors to evaluate the available strategies and help design an approach that balances the objectives of the company with the needs of its key people.
For closely held and family-owned businesses, retirement and executive benefit strategies can also play an important role in the broader conversation around ownership, succession and long-term business planning.
Simply put, a nonqualified benefit plan is an agreement between an employer and an employee. Its value comes from designing that agreement thoughtfully around the objectives of both.
Types of Executive Plans include
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(also called SERP, Deferred Compensation Plan, COLI, Excess Benefit Plan, Salary Continuation Plan, Phantom Stock Plan, Nonqualified Pension Plan) – Employer agrees to provide a deferred compensation benefit that is “in addition to” the employee’s current salary and other benefits. The employer bears the full cost of the benefits.
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(also called Voluntary Deferred Compensation, COLI, Shadow 401(k), Mirror 401(k), 415 Excess Plan, Nonqualified Profit Sharing Plan) – Employee agrees to forgo receipt of a portion of income (e.g., salary or bonus) until a later date (typically at retirement). This deferred compensation benefit is “in lieu of” current compensation.
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(also called Survivor Income Plan) – Employer agrees to provide a death benefit to the employee’s beneficiaries when he/she dies.
Advantages to the Employer
Provides you with a competitive edge in recruiting and retaining top executive talent.
Promotes the dedication and commitment of your company’s most important people.
Allows you to pick and choose who will be included in the plan and determine the level and types of benefits provided.
Advantages to the Key Employee
Provides additional benefits that otherwise might not be possible without current income tax consequences.
Can offer an income-tax-free benefit to the employee’s family in the event of an untimely death.
May provide the opportunity to put aside a portion of current income without the limitations imposed on qualified plans.