The PLANADVISER Interview: Jessica Baehr, Head of Group Retirement, Equitable

After working across various divisions at Equitable Holdings Inc., Jessica Baehr found a sweet spot as head of group retirement about three years ago.

“This is the business that focuses on helping everyday Americans to save for their retirement,” she says. “Whether through our focus on the K-12 educator space or our small business market or our 457(b) government market, this business really does touch the everyday American.”

Baehr noted that, prior to joining Equitable, she worked in the nonprofit sector, including higher education, so she had experience saving through a 403(b) retirement plan herself.

In an interview with PLANADVISER, the group retirement head discusses the importance Equitable puts on having advisers on the ground to speak with participants and small business owners.

PLANADVISER: Can you talk about the core retirement plan markets for Equitable right now, including your K through 12 educator 403(b) focus?

BAEHR: As you noted, we do focus on the K through 12 market. … That is a particularly unique market because it’s a supplementary retirement plan for teachers and staff, as they often have pensions. The first thing that we really focus on is helping educators understand what their pension is expected to deliver and how a supplementary retirement plan can help them to achieve their income and retirement goals.

That said, we are also really proud of what we do in the small business market. I mentioned 401(k)s, but it really is targeted to small business owners, and that’s something that is core to Equitable, not just in terms of group retirement, but we have our employee benefit offerings, which are focused on the small business space. We also have a unique nonqualified solution within our life insurance business. We feel we’re uniquely positioned and focused on what we can do for small businesses and have a comprehensive suite of solutions to help serve them.

Then I would say we have some adjacent work we do in the 457 space in terms of government plans.

The other main pillar, I would say, is what we’re doing on lifetime income solutions. We were an early leader in that space with our colleagues over at Alliance Bernstein. [The] SECURE 2.0 [Act of 2022] has helped to really accelerate the awareness and the importance of how guaranteed income can help Americans to secure their retirement.

PLANADVISER: You noted that educators often have a pension to fall back on. How do you communicate with them to discuss supplemental retirement savings?

BAEHR: Educators look at their pension as a guaranteed income, and that provides some security. Now, in some respects, that could mean that they don’t fully understand what that’s going to mean—they may think that that’s everything [for their retirement savings]. That’s why we feel it’s so important for them to have an adviser and to work with a financial professional that is dedicated to serving that market.

I do think there’s an element of having a portion of income that is guaranteed that is incredibly valuable, and it does provide peace of mind. To that extent, I would extend that same logic to the traditional [defined contribution] market, where I think it’s the opposite [from educators who have a pension].

[DC participants] think all they need to have is an accumulation focus. But they don’t really have much in terms of the decumulation or guaranteed portion, with the exception of Social Security. And we all know some of the challenges around Social Security.

I feel like it’s almost the opposite end of the spectrum, because you have one group [educators] that has that guaranteed income but may not understand other needs … and then on the other side [DC participants], where [you’re] helping to educate more Americans around the value of an income guarantee.

PLANADVISER: In terms of advising participants, whether educators or at small businesses, how do you foster engagement?

BAEHR: We believe at Equitable that financial professionals play a critical role in supporting clients on their journey. We believe that it’s not only financial wellness, but holistic wellness, because our financial goals are only part of the puzzle.

For us, that comes down to the value of advice. That comes down to the need to have a conversation with a financial professional. I think there’s so much education that’s out there that people can certainly go online to look things up. But it’s really that conversation that is so critical to helping more Americans to really understand what a comprehensive financial plan is that supports their overall holistic goal.

PLANADVISER: How does that look on the ground?

BAEHR: If we’re talking about our K through 12 market, we have about 1,100 advisers who are dedicated to going into public schools. They do it during times that work for educators and staff. It’s sitting down at those tiny chairs in a kindergarten room at 7 a.m., because that may be the only time you can get that individual. Or it’s catching them after school hours or during lunch break. But it’s having that physical presence that has proven to be so important to ensure that you have that personal connection and can have that one-on-one conversation.

If you translate that to the 401(k) and 457 market, because of the fact that we serve that smaller end of the market, that gives us more of an opportunity to have some of those conversations, both through enrollment as well as ongoing with the business owner, as well as their key personnel. What’s different about that market is, oftentimes, they see [the 401(k)] as their only retirement solution. So you tend to get a bit more engagement there.

For us, it all comes back to how an adviser can help provide that insight and can help provide that consultative advice to deliver better outcomes.