Nevin's Data "Points"

RFPs, or requests for proposals, come in all shapes and sizes. Mostly they are long, drawn out affairs, frequently copied from templates drawn up to capture a broad sense of capabilities. The problem is, for most plan sponsors it’s akin to going shopping for a car armed with Chilton’s auto repair manual (that said, if you need one, a quick Google search on “401k RFP” will turn up plenty). So, aside from all the general information that you’ll want to get from every provider during the RFP process – the size of their business, the quality, tenure and turnover of their key staff, their capabilities, service structure, years and investment in “the business,” fees, services offered and references, there are some questions that aren’t in every RFP — but to which the answers can be enlightening. 1. What plan design changes would you recommend, and why? This question has two payoffs. First, in order to recommend changes, they have to know what your current plan looks like. Secondly, it...

There is frequently a difference between doing all that the law requires of a plan sponsor and doing everything that could be done. Here are five things that plan sponsors don’t always do — but should. 1. Have a Plan/Plan Investment Committee. ERISA only requires that the named fiduciary (and there must be one of those) make decisions regarding the plan that are in the best interests of plan participants and beneficiaries, and that are the types of decisions that a prudent expert would make about such matters. ERISA does not require that you make those decisions by yourself — and, in fact, requires that, if you lack the requisite expertise, you enlist the support of those who do have it. However, having a committee for having a committee’s sake can not only hinder your decisions — it can result in bad decisions. Make sure your committee members add value to the process. (Hint: Once they discover that ERISA has a personal liability clause, casual participants generally drop out ...

Time marches on, and each generation comes to the workplace with its own unique set of experiences and expectations. Each August since 1998, Beloit University has published the Beloit College Mindset List , providing a look at the cultural touchstones that shape the lives of students entering college in the fall. For example, the class of 2019 , who were for the most part were born in 1997, have never licked a postage stamp, never known a world without Google or Splenda, and have grown up in a world where wi-fi is an entitlement. Despite those differences, the class of 2019 will one day soon be faced with the same challenges of preparing for retirement as the rest of us. They’ll have to work through how much to save, how to invest those savings, what role (if any) Social Security will play, and — eventually — how and how fast to draw down those savings in retirement — whatever, and whenever, that turns out to be. Here are 10 things I think we’ll be able to say about most of the...

Early on a bright Tuesday morning in 2001, I was in the middle of a cross-country flight, literally running from one terminal to another in Dallas, Texas, when my cell phone rang. It was my wife. I had been on an American Airlines flight heading for L.A., after all - and at that time, not much else was known about the first plane that struck the World Trade Center. I thought she had to be misunderstanding what she had seen on TV. Would that she had…. That day, when family and friends were so dear and precious to us all, I spent in a hotel room in Dallas. It was perhaps the longest day - loneliest night - of my life. In fact, I was to spend the next several days in Dallas – there were no planes flying, no rental cars to be had – separated from home and family by hundreds of insurmountable miles for three interminably long days. As that week drew to a close, I finally was able to get a rental car and begin a long two day journey home.   While it was a long, lonely drive, it g...

By now, you’ve heard — and perhaps dispensed — what appears to be the “common wisdom” about the recent market tumult: “stay the course,” “ride it out,” and my personal favorite, “don’t just do something, stand there.” For all our industry’s long-standing concern about participant inertia, in times like these the inclination to “do nothing” is undoubtedly to the benefit of most participants. That said, one can well imagine that those who are turning to their advisors for help and guidance (wonder what the robo-advisors are saying?) might be a little frustrated with the admonition that the best thing for them to do right now is… nothing. Early indications are that most retirement plan participants will — again — ride this one out (though there are some exceptions . But, hey — while the markets have your attention, here are five things participants can, and should, do: Check your account balance. While a lot of experts will tell you to avoid looking at your account right after a b...