Products October 24, 2019

Principal Makes Onboarding Platform Available in Spanish

The firm says Principal Real Start has been a game-changer in driving positive retirement savings outcomes.

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Principal Financial Group has “transcreated” its Principal Real Start onboarding platform into Spanish to help Hispanic workers starting to save. This “transcreation,” Principal says, makes the platform culturally relevant in meaning and tone.

The firm says since introducing Principal Real Start earlier this year, the platform has been a game-changer in terms of driving positive retirement savings outcomes. Principal notes that with nearly 20% of U.S. residents identifying themselves either as Hispanic or Latino, there is a need to understand the cultural concepts of this population.

“After years of working and reworking our digital and mobile onboarding experiences, we feel like we have taken a huge leap with Real Start,” says Jerry Patterson, senior vice president, retirement and income solutions at Principal. “Adapting Real Start to meeting the unique cultural and language needs of the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. population enables us to drive positive retirement outcomes even further.”

Along with translating the onboarding platform into Spanish, Principal has also developed a new website for this population, Principal Hola Futuro, which showcases retirement savings and investing education and tips on managing daily finances.

Since 2013, Principal has continued to find new ways to offer relevant financial education and experiences for Spanish-speakers. Participants can access a Spanish version of the Principal website, principal.com/es, to learn more about retirement. For those who have specific questions, a dedicated bicultural team takes calls and helps Spanish-speaking participants understand what it means to save for retirement.

Principal has found that when Hispanic workers start to participate in a company plan, they tend to embrace the concept of savings.

Products October 24, 2019

Investment Product and Service Launches

Schwab Advisor Services presents alternative investment marketplace platform; John Hancock Investment Management expands fixed-income suite; and Millennium Trust adds investments to Workplace Savings Solutions. 

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Art by Jackson Epstein

Art by Jackson Epstein

Schwab Advisor Services Presents Alternative Investment Marketplace Platform

Schwab Advisor Services has introduced the Schwab Alternative Investment Marketplace platform.

The new service offers access to private funds provided by third-party platform sponsors, that can pre-qualify clients, control document workflows electronically, and offer access to fund information. Minimums start at $100,000, according to the firm.  

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iCapital Network, a third-party platform, is set to join the service. The company offers technology and due diligence to support advisers throughout the investing process.

John Hancock Investment Management Expands Fixed-Income Suite

John Hancock Investment Management has expanded its suite of fixed-income funds managed by the portfolio management team of Howard Greene and Jeffrey Given.

The team at Manulife Investment Management, John Hancock Investment Management’s affiliated asset manager, now manages John Hancock Short Duration Bond Fund in addition to its John Hancock Bond and John Hancock Investment Grade Bond funds. A version of the Bond and Investment Grade Bond strategies are also now available as separately managed accounts.

“Investors are concerned about interest rates, tariffs and trade, and how to position their portfolios,” says Andrew Arnott, president and CEO of John Hancock Investment Management and head of Wealth and Asset Management, United States and Europe, for Manulife Investment Management. “We’re pleased to be able to offer a full suite of fixed-income solutions from a veteran team, so that advisers can build a portfolio custom-suited to their clients’ particular needs.”

Millennium Trust Adds Investments to Workplace Savings Solutions

Millennium Trust has added a mutual fund lineup to customers of its Workplace Savings Solutions product. The funds were assembled with the intent to provide investors with appropriate choices for long-term investment strategies.

Millennium Trust’s Workplace Savings Solutions was recently launched to give small businesses access to retirement savings options beyond a 401(k). With Workplace Savings Solutions, employers are able to choose from a variety of individual retirement account (IRA)-based alternatives with a one-time $250 start-up fee. Once a business chooses the best plan, it and participating employees can self-direct contributions among the 28 selected funds to construct a diversified portfolio.

The fund lineup was provided by Morningstar Investment Management with the goal of presenting sufficient choice across the full spectrum of asset classes, capitalization and investment strategy. Each fund in the lineup will be monitored and evaluated for changes in investment styles, management and performance and risk profiles.

“We are honored to work with Morningstar to provide our clients access to an outstanding choice of investment options,” notes Gary Anetsberger, CEO of Millennium Trust. “Morningstar takes a methodical and deliberate approach to the way they analyze funds and investments, and the lineup it put together was specifically designed for our IRA products. We are thrilled to be able to offer this added level of service to our clients.”

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