Significant Stats

72% of plan sponsors feel that reviewing fiduciary responsibilities is an important service to receive*
45% of plan sponsors are not comfortable that all relevant individuals in their organization are aware of their fiduciary status*
37% of plan sponsors, committee members and administrators stated they do not consider themselves plan fiduciaries*

*Inside the Minds of Plan Sponsors Survey Report, Society for Human Resource Management

Our Program Outline

Our following services pertain to for profit and not-for-profit organizations:

Retirement plan design review, analysis and recommendations
Request for Information (RFI) and Request for Proposals (RFP), creation of RFI and RFP documents, managing the service provider search process, plan and procuring vendor implementation
Investment Policy Statement (IPS), creation, updating and ongoing review of your organization’s IPS
Analysis of service provider agreements
Systematic ongoing quarterly reporting comparing investment performance against appropriate index, peer group and IPS objectives
Reportable measurement of the effectiveness of an implemented retirement plan education program each year
Reportable assessment of fiduciary practices generating confidential findings in the form of non-conformities or opportunities for improvement
Reportable assessment of governing plan or trust documents to ensure compliance with all local, state and federal regulations
Identification and reporting of any potential or ongoing conflicts of interest among all parties associated with the functioning of the retirement plan

An impartial, reportable discovery process to analyze plan service provider disclosures of all fees/compensation, services and fiduciary status in order to determine compliance with Department of Labor (DOL) regulations
Recommendations of corrective actions for service provider disclosures that do not comply with DOL regulations
Written analysis determining if service provider’s fees are reasonable, necessary and all forms of direct and indirect compensation are fully disclosed
Manage adherence to guidelines on necessary procedures regarding notification of incomplete disclosures of service providers to the DOL

Written, objective assessment to determine if employer’s disclosures to plan participants regarding all fees/expenses charged directly or indirectly to individual accounts meet DOL standards
Prioritization of potential nonconformities and implementation of corrective actions with plan service provider(s)
Analysis and confirmation that fund companies indicate detailed breakdowns of fund expenses such as management fees and 12b-1 fees; Investment Managers, Investment Advisors, broker/dealers and insurance companies specify advisory fees, wrap fees, annuity charges, brokerage fees as well as extra service expenses such as loan requests, individualized advice and other optional services in their investment material

Continuous, documented reviews are conducted to ensure that all investment related fees, compensation and expenses are fair and reasonable for the services provided as well as the size and complexity of the plan
Documentation of periodic updates regarding qualitative and/or organizational changes of Investment Managers/Investment Advisors and other service providers
Implementation of “Watch List” procedures to monitor underperforming investment options within the retirement plan
Systematic analysis of asset classes and fund behavior of investment options within the retirement plan to ensure all possible participant risk levels can be represented in individual accounts
Confirm and document that within the employer sponsored retirement plan a broad array of asset classes as well as passive and active investments are available to plan participants

Ongoing education regarding fiduciary obligations and DOL, IRS and regulatory updates to Investment Committee members and key decision-makers of the employer
Independent, objective and substantive education program to plan participants regarding retirement planning separate from any service provider, Investment Manager or any other parties associated with the plan
Ability to provide experienced experts in the investment industry to present and educate participants/employees on topics pertaining to retirement planning, such as global economics, market conditions, asset allocation and diversification