Nevin's Data "Points"

We had wrapped up a very successful half-day adviser event ahead of our annual Awards for Excellence dinner last week. As we closed up the session, a co-worker of mine commented to me as an aside, “Nobody ever told me I needed to be saving 12% before.” Now, this co-worker has nothing to do with our magazines, or the content that fills our Web sites and newsletters. He just happens to work at a company that, among other things, publishes information about retirement plans. He’s a participant in our benefit plans, of course—and so he has probably been exposed to all the same types of education and savings materials as anyone (perhaps more). He’s a smart guy (he’s pursuing his MBA at night), tech-savvy, and he pays attention. And yet, it wasn’t till he was effectively sitting there as a fly on the wall in a room full of the nation’s best retirement plan advisers that he overheard someone put forth a specific savings-target figure. Now, like any good plan sponsor, I can explain that. ...

There are in this--or perhaps any—business certain moments of epiphany that shed light and clarity, Moments where complexity becomes simplicity, where the shining light of comprehension illuminates what had, until that very moment, been hopelessly “confuddled”. On the subject of retirement income, my moment of clarity came at the end of a conversation with my then soon-to-be-retiring father who was trying to sort through his options regarding his various savings programs and distribution options. At the end of what I hoped was an educational and enlightening discussion of his options and trade-offs, their upsides and potential downsides, when I was sure that I had been able to unwind and demystify the maze and presented him with a straightforward presentation of alternatives, there was this long pause—and then, he turned to me and, as politely as he could, said, “I just want to know how much money I’ll have to live on every month.” It’s been many years since that conversation, but, I...

A year ago, with the financial world feeling still very much on the precipice, and with the 2008 election results still ringing in our ears, I noted that “the impact on much-improved defined benefit plan funding levels—and on the confidence of retirement savings plan participants—has been severe, and potentially serious. We are all inclined to wonder (hope?) if, like 1987, the market will find its way back to solid footing before year-end—and worried that 1929 will be the better analogy.” Well, as we head into 2010, it seems fair to say that this is not a repeat of 1987 and—not yet, anyway—a second Great Depression. Here’s a look at the trends that were on our mind this past year – and are just over the horizon. Doctor Bill? Curing Health Care Where we are : Aside from the financial crisis and unemployment, health care has been the great issue of the past year and remains so as we go to press. That the current system needs reform is scarcely an issue for debate anymore—but what c...

Editor’s Note: There’s so much going on in the world of retirement saving and investing that I never feel the need (or feel like I have the opportunity) to recycle old columns – but this one has a certain “evergreen” consistency of message that always seems appropriate – particularly at this time of year. A few years back—when my kids still believed in the reality of Santa Claus—we discovered an ingenious Web site 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 ever had the impact of that Web site - if not on their behaviors (they're 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, ha...

The Olympics are already a distant memory for many, but despite the challenges of trying to keep up with events that are occurring halfway across the world, there were exciting finishes and new world records (and the ability to catch it all at a more convenient hour via the Internet). The moment that stands out for me most, however, was the American team's performance in the 400 freestyle relay—the one where Jason Lezak, 32, came from out of nowhere in the final leg to win the gold for his team (yes, the one that positioned Michael Phelps to keep his gold medal streak alive). Yet, as incredible as that finish was (that he managed to take it from the team that was "talking trash" ahead of the event was even more satisfying), I was most struck by another statistic from that event: While the top five teams all finished under the previous world-record time, two of them (Italy and Sweden) didn't even get a medal. Watching that event unfold, particularly the top two finish...