Nevin's Data "Points"

It is something of a tradition this time of year to look back, to reminisce about past events and lessons learned, and sometimes to look ahead. Here are some insights from columns past that I hope have been of value in 2017 – and will continue to be in the months ahead. 5 Things You May Not Know About Roth 401(k)s According to a variety of industry surveys, roughly 60% of 401(k) plans now offer a Roth 401(k) option, and Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA) data shows that 28.6% of 403(b) plans already allow for Roth contributions. Participant take-up, which just a few years ago hovered in the single digits, is now in the 15-20% range. Here are five other things you may not know about the Roth 401(k). 5 Things People Get Wrong About ERISA Fidelity Bonds One of the most important – and, in my experience, least understood – aspects of plan administration is the requirement that those who handle plan funds and other property be covered by a fidelity bond. ...

A few years back – well, now it’s quite a few years back – when my kids still believed in the reality of Santa Claus, we discovered an ingenious website that purported to offer a real-time assessment of their “naughty or nice” status. Now, as Christmas approached, it was not uncommon for us to caution our occasionally misbehaving brood that they had best be attentive to how those actions might be viewed by the big guy at the North Pole. But nothing we said ever had the impact of that website – if not on their behaviors (they were kids, after all), then certainly on the level of their concern about the consequences. In fact, in one of his final years as a “believer,” my son (who, it must be acknowledged, had been particularly naughty that year) was on the verge of tears, worried that he’d find nothing under the Christmas tree but the lump of coal he so surely “deserved.” In similar fashion, must of those responding to the ubiquitous surveys abou...

Several years ago, I was surprised (and quite pleased) when a friend reached out to tell me that I had made it to one of those retirement industry lists. I was sure he was pulling my leg, of course – but after a couple of congratulatory emails from other associates, I decided to check it out, and sure enough – there I was. At the time, I remembered being more than a bit humbled at my inclusion alongside a number of individuals who, at least in my estimation, were a much bigger deal than I. Still, the recognition was gratifying, particularly when you consider how many very special people in so many different walks of life, work hard, make a difference, have an impact, and yet never really get any kind of public acknowledgement. As much as I like being on those lists, it has been my great good fortune over the years to have a hand not only in evaluating the composition of such accolades, but in determining the categories of recognition. The fir...

The headline of a recent article didn’t pose that as a question. And that should make you think. The article , penned by a not-yet-30-year old, was mostly negative on the nation’s primary private retirement savings vehicle, but to my read, that wasn’t her fault. Rather, it was the net result of the feedback she got from a number of what we might consider the “usual suspects” who garner headlines that bash the 401(k), including (at least indirectly) the man the mainstream media credits with being its “father” (trust me, there’s more to it than that). One of the folks she talked to was yours truly – and while I clearly wasn’t persuasive enough to overturn (completely) the cynicism with which I sensed she came to our conversation (at one point she went so far as to say, “you’re a lot more positive about the 401(k) than anyone else I’ve talked to”). In the course of our conversation we covered a lot of ground – the origins of the 401(k), why traditional pe...

A recent report by the GAO paints a pretty bleak picture of American retirement. Is it accurate? For the most part, the report  covered familiar ground, bemoaning the “marked shift” away from the traditional defined benefit pension plan (glossing over how few private sector workers were covered by these plans, even in their heyday, and the fraction of those who received a full pension), and highlighting low savings rates, the pervasive lack of broad-based access to workplace retirement plans and the daunting challenges confronting even those who do enjoy that access. The report also spends several of its 173 pages chronicling (with pictures) the ways in which “leakage” also undermines retirement savings. And for good measure, it invokes the findings of the Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index   — which the GAO calls the “most comprehensive” — that ranks the U.S. retirement system 20th out of 25 countries surveyed (and gives us a “C” grade). Indeed, ...