Retirement Plan Design

How Do You Know When It's Time for a New Retirement Plan Advisor?

As a benefits professional, the relationship you have with your retirement advisor is a crucial one. Their role is to help you navigate some of the most complicated aspects of your job. A few phrases we often hear employers use to justify sticking it out with their current advisor are (even if the relationship isn’t working): "I think my advisor does everything they're supposed to do, performing an advisor search isn't worth the effort, and we've been doing business with them for years." Relationships are important in business, but it's not always equitable to getting the best service possible and doing what's right for your organization and, most importantly – your employees?

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The SECURE Act 2.0: What Does It Mean for Your Company’s Retirement Plan?

Alp Atabek, AIF®

Alp Atabek, AIF®

Blog Post

AdobeStock_241000974-1Early 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.

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IRS Updates 2021 Pension Plan Limits

Alex Assaley, AIF®

Alex Assaley, AIF®

Blog Post

Effective January 1, 2021 the IRS announced the 2021 Pension Plan Limitations. These changes will take effect in the upcoming tax year for retirement plans. 

Check out our infographic that details all the changes you'll want to be aware of in the upcoming year when it comes to your role managing an employer-sponsored retirement plan. 

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Should You Allow After-Tax Contributions in Your Plan?

Alex Assaley, AIF®

Alex Assaley, AIF®

Blog Post

We are all aware of the 401(k) contribution limits set annually by the IRS, but what if you’ve maxed out your contributions for the year and still want to save money for retirement? You could fund a brokerage account separate from your 401(k), but you would face a costly capital gains tax on those earnings. This is where leveraging an after-tax source in your 401(k) comes into play.

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The SECURE Act: What Does It Mean for Your Company’s Retirement Plan?

Alex Assaley, AIF®

Alex Assaley, AIF®

Blog Post

Before dispersing for its winter break, Congress passed significant changes to retirement savings law that will affect many of us now and all of us in the future. This new law, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, is part of the massive government spending bill that was approved by Congress on December 19 and signed into law by President Trump on December 20, 2019. This bill extensively reshapes the realm of employer-sponsored retirement plans for both employers and employees and enacts the biggest changes to the U.S. retirement system since 2006.

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Overcoming Unique Retirement Challenges in the Non-Profit Sector

Alex Assaley, AIF®

Alex Assaley, AIF®

Blog Post

Anyone who works in Human Resources knows the positive effect offering high-quality employee benefit programs can have on a workforce. They attract the best potential candidates for new jobs and foster a sense of loyalty and support among current staff, to name a few. No matter the size or industry, administering employee benefits, particularly the retirement plan, can be a complicated process. While the same basic goal may apply to companies and organizations, non-profit organizations face unique challenges when ensuring their retirement plan benefit is the best fit for employees, as well as the organization. 

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Top Three Trends HR & Employee Benefit Executives Need to Know from 2016

Kacy Reece-Balboni

Kacy Reece-Balboni

Blog Post

Many workers may not appreciate the work that their Human Resources department handles, but a well-oiled HR machine may make or break the overall morale and loyalty of employees. In turn, this contributes to the overall success of an organization. Despite this, we find that Human Resource and Employee Benefit professionals are typically short on time, resources, and in some cases, support. This is all the more reason that those working in HR and Benefits need to take extra steps to keep up with new trends, services, and developments within the industry to excel within their important roles. In our 2016 Employee Benefit Trends Report, we highlight some of the significant updates that help both HR professionals and the employees they support.

Here, we've highlighted what we feel are the top three trends most important to ensuring you're creating and maintaining a valuable benefits program within your organization for 2017. 

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The Financial Un-Wellness of HR

It's no secret that Financial Wellness programs have been rising in popularity for quite some time. There has been an increasing awareness on the part of employers to invest time, energy, and resources into ensuring that employees are financially stable. Historically though, the focus has heavily centered almost solely on retirement planning. Retirement readiness projections, savings rates, and automatic enrollment seem to have been what has primarily been on the minds of Human Resource professionals when it comes to employees' financial lives. 

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