BENEFITS & HR TRATEGIES
Gregory C. Lewis AIF, MSF, Pinnacle Financial Group
5 Steps Employers Can Take for 2013 Retirement Plan Success As part of the recent 2012 PLANADVISER National Conference, panelists identified five ways plan sponsors can re-focus their goals for plan significance and success in 2013. Step 1
Market Your Plan & Its Resources Plan sponsors should be proactively reaching out to help participants make informed decisions concerning their retirement. Plan sponsors should ask themselves: “Is the plan currently being communicated to participants as a valuable component of the company’s employee benefits package? If not, how can we better promote the plan?” A key part of plan promotion is clearly and prominently sharing the available resources and guidance to which eligible employees have access. Retirement investing is a daunting prospect. Your internal marketing is key to ensuring successful participation in the plan. A variety of participant services can be employed to support a successful, high-touch, paternalistic campaign. Pinnacle provides many of its retirement plan clients with participant concierge services that allow eligible employees to contact our consultants directly, which is particularly valuable when entering the enrollment window. Direct engagement is proven to lead to more positive enrollment numbers. Barriers to entry are more easily overcome in a one-on-one setting with an expert who can help participants comprehend the value of high deferral rates, suitable asset allocation, and consolidation through rollover capture.
JANUARY, 2013
Step 2
Maximize Plan Design What is the goal of this plan? Is it altruistically maximizing financially sound retirement experiences for participants or is it limiting sponsor liability? Ideally, a plan sponsor can achieve both objectives, and having a plan design optimized for your company’s specific goals is one of your most valuable instruments. Many plan features can be altered to foster improved outcomes. As plan sponsor, you can: • Increase your match or optimize the match formula • Simplify investment options • Eliminate or restrict loans • Implement automatic enrollment and/or deferral increase features Plan sponsors should look to their qualified plan consultants for the cost-benefit analysis of any potential changes to ensure that you have the information needed to make the best strategic decision.
Step 3
Focus on Benefit Adequacy Participants need to be educated on the realities and the necessity of retirement planning. Participants continued on page 47
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