A Crash Course on DC Plans

According to Paul Neveu, senior vice president of sales and marketing at BPAS, it is clear that people wear many hats. “A typical HR manager might be responsible for the full range of employee benefits, plus HR and compensation related matters,” Neveu said. “Between investments, participant education and fiduciary matters, most advisers have more than enough to occupy their attention.”

Neveu said that clients have expressed a need to know more about some of the key technical topics that are critical for the operation of DC plans. BPAS has responded to these requests with a podcast based on an informal panel discussion with several senior plan consultants and experts, led by Maryann K. Geary, senior vice president of plan administration at BPAS.

Topics include plan design, compliance testing, compensation definitions, safe harbor designs, required notices, Form 5500, audit issues and automatic enrollment. Some of the topics address whether a plan is really top heavy, or if the client failed the ADP (average deferral percentage) test, Geary said. “And what’s the correct view that plan sponsors should take if they fail an ADP test? These are topics we explore during the podcast, which may be eye opening and helpful to listeners,” she said.

The podcast is free for clients and partners of BPAS, and available to financial intermediaries who might benefit from an update. The podcast should be of interest to anyone involved in sales, marketing, servicing or administration of DC plans. To listen to the discussion, visit the BPAS website and select Employer Accounts / Retirement Account; then scroll down to the Plan Sponsor Bulletin Board and see the update from August, 2013.

BPAS stresses that the podcast is not to be taken as legal or technical advice from the firm. BPAS is a national provider of defined contribution (DC) plan administration services.