401(k) Consulting
Retirement Plan / 401(k) Consulting
Your business needs trusted partners and advisors, committed to acting in the best interests of your plan participants. As Independent Retirement Plan Consultants, we stand shoulder to shoulder with our clients, holding ourselves to a fiduciary standard that is transparent and unbounded to any one vendor by providing tailored solutions and documentable processes to support your company retirement plan.
Defined Contribution plans have evolved over the last 30 years to become the primary retirement savings and funding vehicle(s) for a vast majority of private-sector employees. As an employer sponsoring an ERISA covered retirement plan, demonstrating a duty of care is paramount to meeting your fiduciary responsibility of operating a plan that is “solely in the interest of plan participants and their beneficiaries.”
Our On-Going Process
Retirement Plan Review / Design
Plan design is a critical component of operating a successful retirement plan, as keeping your plan compliant to changing regulations will help minimize costly future problems. As part of our review process, we begin with understanding your organizational values so we can objectively evaluate your current 401(k) plan design and help you identify areas that may require additional review. We are committed to keeping your retirement plan relevant and innovative so you can provide a competitive benefit solution to attract and retain the talent you need to focus on your growing your business.
Investment Monitoring & Selection Assistance
Demonstrating prudency and a duty of care under ERISA requires plan fiduciaries to maintain documented processes for investment monitoring & investment selection. Our Retirement Plan Consultants operate as 3(21) Investment Advisors, providing quarterly investment reports, retained in your plan specific vault we provide to our clients.
We assist in identifying potential conflicts in your current investment offerings and help you develop a diversified investment menu, free of hidden costs, build on a foundation of Modern Portfolio Theory. As part of our investment oversight processes, we assist in the development of implementing an Investment Policy Statement that acts as a roadmap for investing monitoring and Investment replacement.
Qualified Default Investment Alternative (QDIA) Review & 404(c) Compliance
Following the Pension Protection Act of 2008, participant-directed retirement plans have seen enormous growth in the utilization of “QDIA” Investments, most often an Age-Based Target Date Fund. Our approach provides an ongoing analysis of your current plan QDIA by evaluating the individual glide path approach to help identify allocation issues as your participants approach retirement age. We also guide on disclosure requirements if your plan has elected for 404(c) Safe Harbor on form 5500.
Retirement Plan Benchmarking & Assistance with Identifying Service Provider Fees
As part of a documented prudent process, the Department of Labor (DOL) recommends a plan fiduciary review all service providers and plan costs – direct and indirect – every 3 to 5 years to ensure plan costs are “reasonable.” Our approach to benchmarking provides a transparent and documented process by looking under the hood, so you can sleep at night knowing your retirement plan is competitive and fair.
Employee Enrollments, Education & Communication
Communication is paramount to establishing relationships, conveying your company benefits is no different. Engaging a diverse, multi-generational workforce has its challenges, but we believe no challenge is too great, and proper employee education and benefit engagement program should be customized to your workforce. Our recipe for success is a simplified approach: personalize the enrollment process, leverage technology, deliver workplace financial education, and communicate employee total rewards.
Service Provider Liaison
Our Consultants believe our role is to as your 401(k) Quarterback. Assembling a team of All-Stars is the winning recipe for benefit plan administration, but as a plan fiduciary, your responsibilities require continual monitoring of all service providers that receive compensation from the plan. We provide the tools, relationships, and industry knowledge required to assist in transparently identifying underperforming service providers, free of bias so you can focus on what you do well.
Plan Sponsor Fiduciary Education
Establishing a retirement plan is relatively easy. Unfortunately, your plan isn’t accompanied with a “Retirement Plan for Dummies” brochure, detailing the liabilities associated with operating your 401(k) plan. As part of our service agreement, we provide fiduciary education training which includes ERISA subject matter and source materials from industry experts, as our Consultants are committed to providing you with the tools and knowledge you need to adhere to your fiduciary obligations.