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It’s easy to say “stay calm” but harder to actually walk the walk. Keeping emotions out of investment strategies can be challenging even on a normal day. Add a dose of a health pandemic, in this case the worldwide coronavirus, and you could have a recipe for widespread investor panic. Unfortunately, that recipe could be a breeding ground for long-term retirement savings consequences.  As we have seen, COVID-19 is wreaking havoc on financial markets, both in the U

This type of drastic change should make you wonder, do I have everything ”in order” and do I have the right protection levels built-in.  We have talked about this many times, but as a sponsor of a retirement plan, there are distinct fiduciary responsibilities that you want to make sure you are on top of during this time; while also ensuring your employees are getting the help they need to make informed decisions. The Adcock Financial Group acts as a fiduciary to all of its

DOL audits can be stressful, complicated and expensive! The best way to handle one is to avoid it in the first place. Through our experience, we’ve outlined three hot button issues that are major red flags for the DOL. Watch our short video for the tips and best practices to help manage risk.

While we firmly believe life is meant to be lived, we also know that it’s important to have peace of mind in the event of an emergency. Your employees might be in the dark about the most important documents they would need if something were to happen to them.To help, we’ve put together a comprehensive checklist for your employees to organize their lives. Share this with your employees at the next employee education meeting! Download the Infographic >>

Scan the business news and you will likely find an article detailing the latest 401(k) litigation against a company accused of a fiduciary breach. The litigious trend started with corporate behemoths but has been trickling down to small and mid-size plans. Adding to this, a survey found that 43% of company fiduciaries don’t actually think they are fiduciaries.[1] “We see this regularly and stress that plan sponsors need to understand their fiduciary responsibility and all t

Your plan data and private information are valuable, but unfortunately, cybersecurity is a critical but often overlooked aspect of a plan sponsor’s fiduciary responsibility.Given the risk of cyberattacks targeting plan data and retirement savings, it’s important for plan sponsors to be diligent and proactive in making sure they understand what safeguards their third-party 401(k) service providers have in place to protect participants’ privacy and keep their data safe and secure

Hot breath, fear, sweaty palms - You’ve received a request from the Department of Labor (“DOL”) to provide documents about your retirement plan. You are being investigated.Your first thought may be, how did this happen? Why does the DOL care about my company’s retirement plan?Whether it was a complaint from a plan participant, a referral from another agency, an error on your Form 5500, or simply the luck of the draw, you could spend the next 12 to 24 months becoming famil

Offering a competitive benefits package, including a top-notch 401(k) plan, is essential for your company to recruit and retain top talent. Today’s workers highly value employer-sponsored retirement plans: 88% of them say that an employee-funded retirement plan is important to them.[1] In addition, eight out of ten new hire candidates consider retirement savings programs offered by prospective employers a major factor in their job search decisions.[2]As a result, you should evaluate your 4

The start of a new year is a great time to review your fiduciary governance process and confirm that your fiduciary priorities have been set. Preparing for the unexpected can be a delicate balancing act, but it is vital for the organized plan administration!Our Q1 2020 Lift Retirement Newsletter covers the following topics to help you manage your fiduciary plan governance: Thinking About Changing 401(k) Providers? Five Things You Should Know10 Steps to Help You Handle a DOL AuditManaging Risk: D

Everyone loves the compliance deadlines that should be met every year. To help you stay ahead of the curve with important deadlines and filings, please find attached our complementary 2020 Compliance Calendar. If you have any questions about deadlines or information requested, please contact us to review today! Download 2020 Compliance Calendar

On 23 December, one of the largest changing legislative acts to impact America’s retirement system was signed into effect. The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act – or SECURE Act – has many updates and modifications that seek to enhance retirement security activities. The Act strives to addresses challenges that small business owners face including helping your employees better understand their workplace savings plans, encouraging employees to save more fo

The IRS has announced cost of living adjustments affecting dollar limitations for pension plans and other retirement-related items for tax year 2019. For company retirement plans, the most recognized highlight is the 401(k) contribution limit increase to $19,500 for the new year.Review the full list of contribution limit changes below and share with your plan participants!  Download the 2020 Contribution Limits

For the majority of future retirees, medical expenses pose significant risk to any retirement plan, and they are only projected to rise. Medical cost estimates for couples throughout their full retirement, assuming both partners are 65, has increased $15,000 from 2016 to 2017, bringing total projections to $275,000, after Medicare coverage.[1]

As your business grows and evolves, it is important to stay in the know on how to offer better workplace benefits that help recruit, reward, and retain your top employee talent. All the while, nudge your employees to save towards a confident retirement! There are three trends that we feel can help strengthen your workforce.

Your retirement plan recordkeeper should be a valued partner that helps support your plan and participants. It’s important to be confident in your recordkeeper and fully understand the value they can deliver for your plan.One area where your recordkeeper can provide support is by helping your plan remain competitive.

In America, most people have debt and as an employer and plan sponsor, it’s helpful to provide resources that encourage your employees to pay down their debt.

As we approach the New Year, we look at the future trends of the retirement plan industry to better support plan design, plan administration, participant outcomes, and fiduciary plan governance.

Tests: the word alone is enough to make the most studious of us sweat.  When placed in the context of 401(k) plans, i.e. determining whether your plan passes nondiscrimination tests, anxiety levels can go through the roof! This article will take a brief look at ways to correct a failed ADP; test, the non-discrimination test mandated by the Internal Revenue Code to determine whether 401(k) elective deferrals unfairly favor highly-compensated employees and use

If you're not using data analytics to help you make progress toward improving participant outcomes, then you could be missing out on a key component of plan governance. Data analytics are becoming a meaningful part of defined contribution plan governance for retirement plan fiduciaries. Data analytics can provide detailed information on different participant segments and help sponsors recognize pain points in their plans. Defining Pain Points Think about using detailed analytics to break

If you want to predict the wants, needs and fears of participants when it comes to retirement planning, look into the potential of predictive analytics.  The use of “big data” (a bite-size term often used instead of the nerdier “predictive analytics”) is helping to steer plan sponsor actions towards enhancing 401(k) participant outcomes and providing insights into consumer behavior. But what’s the best way to jump on this moving train and, more import