Bethesda, MD — Alex Assaley and Kevin Phillips of AFS 401(k) Retirement Services recently participated as delegates to the National Association of Plan Advisors’ (NAPA) Annual DC Fly-In Forum, an exclusive gathering of the nation’s leading retirement plan advisors.

AFS 401(k) Retirement Services is thrilled to publicize that our lead adviser, Alex Assaley was named a top retirement plan advisor by PLANADVISOR.

Since 2013, this designation has been awarded to the top 100 retirement plan advisers and teams based on quantitative measures such as the most plans and assets under advisement. This year, PLANADVISER made a significant change, limiting how large a team could be for consideration—eliminating national-type firms that traditionally had met the eligibility for a “Mega Team”.

At this year’s NAPA 401(k) Summit, the nation’s largest and most prestigious conference for retirement plan advisors and industry leaders, our Managing Principal, Alex Assaley took to the stage to give his final Presidential remarks and share a special story of one of his proudest moments as a retirement plan advisor. You can watch the live presentation below or read through the video transcript.

Alex, as the 2021-2022 President of NAPA.

BETHESDA, MD — AFS 401(k) Retirement Services has been named to the National Association of Plan Advisors’ list of the nation’s top defined contribution (DC) Advisor Teams with Assets under Advisement of $100 Million.

Unlike other lists, this focuses on individual firms, or what may, in a wirehouse environment, be referred to as a team, or office, and the assets under advisement related to their defined contribution (DC) practice, specifically in a single physical location. The inaugural list was published in 2017.  

Earlier this summer, our team hosted our first virtual “symposium-style” event focused on addressing some of the industry's hot topics and trends, including Financial Wellness in the Workplace; Regulatory and Legislative Initiatives for Retirement and Benefits Plans; and The Future for ESG Investing. While the live event was over six hours long, we have created this series of shorter highlight videos so you can easily digest and use this valuable and informative information within your own organization. 

Our second highlight video series is from the "Understanding ESG Investing" panel moderated by AFS 401(k)'s Managing Principal, Alex Assaley. He sat down with Clarice Avery, VP, Investment Strategist of Natixis Investment Managers, and Katherine Collins, Head of Sustainable Investing of Putnam Investments to talk about ESG investing and what companies should know about ESGs and the future of this investment option. Here are a few of the moments from their session together: 

Earlier this summer, our team hosted our first virtual “symposium-style” event focused on addressing some of the industry's hot topics and trends, including Financial Wellness in the Workplace; Regulatory and Legislative Initiatives for Retirement and Benefits Plans; and The Future for ESG Investing. While the live event was over six hours long, we have created this series of shorter highlight videos so you can easily digest and use this valuable and informative information within your own organization. 

Our first highlight video series is from the "Financial Wellness in the Workplace" panel, moderated by AFS 401(k) consultant Allison Rosenberg. She sat down with two of the area’s top Human Resources leaders – Maggie Crutchfield, Director of Human Resources of the National Women's Law Center, and Felipe Confiño, Vice President, Human Resources & Organizational Development of Signal Financial Federal Credit Union to discuss the strategies and tools they use to engage with their workforce and enhance company culture. Here's are a few of the moments from their session together: 

As the U.S. makes progress on the vaccine rollout, our country’s economy is picking up momentum and slowly but steadily returning to normal. Pending any new setbacks, many large businesses are planning on bringing staff back to the office in September, and on the educational front, it appears schools at all levels are looking to reopen for the fall semester, and that momentum doesn’t look like it will be slowing down. Anecdotally, almost everyone we have spoken to over the past few months has told us that he or she is booking flights and getting his or her travel plans in place for the upcoming summer and fall. The main point: People are eager to return to as much normalcy as possible.

Passwords can be just as annoying as they are necessary, and most of us are probably all too familiar with the never-ending "forgot password, reset password, forget new password, repeat process" saga. Leveraging a password manager will not only keep your information secure, but also make it easier to keep track of the sheer number of passwords you need these days. With these benefits in mind, everyone should consider using a password manager to keep his or her online information protected and secure.

Early last year, Congress passed significant changes to retirement savings law that affected many in 2020 and will continue to affect many of us now in and in the future. This new law, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, was part of the massive government spending bill that was approved by Congress on December 19, 2019, and signed into law on December 20, 2019. This bill extensively reshaped the realm of employer-sponsored retirement plans for both employers and employees and enacted the biggest changes to the U.S. retirement system since 2006.

Teaching money management skills is not a requirement in any school or college. Even though some institutions have begun to make efforts to include a lesson or class on the matter, the reality is that the responsibility rests on parents to educate their children on financial matters and shape their financial futures. This can be a daunting task, but financial discipline is one of the most valuable lessons parents can instill on their children. Educating your children on financial prudence early in life will help prepare them to take thoughtful ownership of their finances when the time comes.

Here are five ways to teach your children, no matter what age they are, financial responsibility and the value of such expertise.