Insight
Fiduciary Training: Put Fear to Rest
Fear is a powerful motivating force. Advertisers are keenly aware of this and market products to spur consumers to action. FOMO, “fear of missing out,” is part of our modern-day lexicon. More obscure is liticaphobia, the irrational fear of lawsuits or being sued by someone. This fear is based on an unfounded sense that you…
Read MoreRFPs: Reframing For Productivity
Unlocking the Power of Unconventional Thinking in Your Next RFP. Most pension plan sponsors engage in a “request for proposal” (RFP) process on a periodic schedule to fulfill their fiduciary obligations. Importantly, the RFP process helps to gauge the value of provider services to the plan and the reasonableness of those associated fees. Very likely,…
Read MoreMillennials Investing in a New(er) Millennia
Gone are the days of calling a stockbroker to hear the latest picks to then place a trade with a $50 commission for a mutual fund with a 2% expense ratio. Today, the average American 20-something with a phone and a brokerage account can place a zero-commission trade for any security on an exchange in…
Read MoreAm I a Plan Fiduciary? What Does That Mean?
If your job responsibilities include involvement with an employee benefit plan, you may be a fiduciary, and so might be others who help manage the plan or its assets. Given that, it is important to know what a fiduciary is, who is deemed to be a fiduciary, and what their responsibilities are under ERISA. The…
Read MoreDe-Risking Your Pension Plan: Is It Time to Assemble Your Team?
In 2022, MetLife commissioned a survey of 251 defined benefit (DB) plan sponsors and learned that 9 in 10 are considering a pension risk transfer (PRT), or a de-risking of their pension plan in the next 5 years.[i] Whether by lump-sum payouts to pension participants or through group annuity contracts with insurers, plan sponsors are…
Read MoreThrowing Darts in the Dark: Reasons to Review Your DB Plan Glide Path
For an employer, the ultimate goal of a defined benefit (DB) plan is to provide the retirement benefits promised to retirees. To accomplish this goal of funding those benefits and the related costs of providing them, an investment portfolio must generate sufficient returns—or a targeted rate of return (ROR). Asset allocation, or the practice of…
Read MoreReframing Our Perspective
“What I am looking for is a blessing not in disguise.” Jerome K. Jerome In response to aphorisms like “adversity builds character,” and “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” is the honest plea from 19th century humorist Jerome K. Jerome, “What I am looking for is a blessing not in disguise.” While hard to…
Read MoreGlide Path 2023: Do Headwinds Require a Change in the Plan?
The headwinds (and headlines) of 2022 included this: 2022 was a year of volatility and concern over the prospects of a recession in 2023. However, for many defined benefit plans, those headwinds were favorable in the way they affected plan funded status, or the measure of plan assets to meet future obligations. Funded status is…
Read MoreAgreement at the Eleventh Hour: SECURE Act 2.0 Signed into Law and What it Means for Your Plan
On December 29, 2022, President Biden signed into law the $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill that included the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement (SECURE) Act 2.0. The act expands on provisions enacted with SECURE Act 1.0 in 2019. Three separate bills, one passed by the U.S. House of Representatives and two approved by the…
Read MoreCrash: Avoid the Most Common Accidents by Planning for Your Takeoff and Landing
Data from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reveal that 76% of aviation accidents occur during takeoff or in the final approach and landing.[i] The greater number by far occur at the end of the flight, during the final approach and landing. Clearly, beginnings and endings are challenging and require sound processes to avoid unexpected…
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