Preferred Partners
The first is this issue’s cover story, “Stacking Up: The 2014 PLANADVISER Retirement Plan Adviser Survey”, which reveals advisers’ favored investment managers and recordkeeping providers, as well as what criteria advisers use when selecting investment managers, funds and recordkeepers. Not surprisingly, when choosing an investment vehicle, performance is key: Advisers’ No. 1 criterion is fund performance compared with a benchmark, followed by the five-year and then one-year returns—this in spite of the well-known adage, “Past performance is not indicative of future results.” Which fund families and individual funds do advisers most commonly recommend? What are the top variables they consider when selecting a recordkeeper? More importantly: Do you employ the same standards in your own decisionmaking process? The study is a must-read to find out if your practice is performing up to par.
The word “benchmarking” is used in many ways in the retirement plan industry: benchmarking providers, fees, participant retirement readiness, etc. For advisers, this strategy also involves measuring your methods for running your practice against those your competitors use, and it is the subject of our second research section this issue: “Guided by the Stars: The 2014 PLANADVISER Practice Benchmarking Study”. The report provides detailed insight into the percentage of your colleagues who offer fiduciary services, as well as the specific types. It also addresses their main concerns, fee structures and methods of fee disclosure, the wide array of services they offer to sponsors and participants, and the factors they think will be the biggest drivers of growth over the next 12 months.
In September, hundreds of retirement plan advisers and industry experts attended our annual conference to learn about leading-edge best practices. Our roundup of the 2014 PLANADVISER National Conference, or PANC, begins with Trish Regan’s keynote, “Has the Fed Jumped the Shark?,” in which the Bloomberg TV host discusses the various strengths and weaknesses of the current U.S. economy and asks the crucial question: Are the Federal Reserve’s artificially low interest rates hampering growth—and possibly even putting us at risk for another recession like 2008’s? Other panel coverage investigates retirement plan advisers’ move away from considering investment lineups their primary value-add toward ensuring participants will, indeed, be retirement ready; the biggest litigation cases threatening retirement plans and advisers; Washington’s ongoing consideration of major retirement plan tax reform; and trends in investment lineups, with target-date funds (TDFs) still gaining ground.
Our Beyond(k) department this issue, on 403(b)s, details the possibilities abounding in the education and health care markets. Most of these types of organizations have been with the same popular provider since they launched their 403(b) plan and are, therefore, behind in investment best practices and technology.
As always, we hope you find this coverage educational, stimulating and inspiring. We welcome your feedback and encourage you to offer your own ideas.
_________________________________________________________________________________
PLANADVISER.com Top 10 Most-Read Articles of 2014*
1. 2014 PLANADVISER Top 100 Advisers of the Year
2. 2014 PLANSPONSOR Retirement Plan Adviser of the Year Finalists
3. Employers Worried Over Retirement Surge
4. Retirement Plan Deferral Limit to Increase in 2015
5. Great-West Rebrands Retirement Businesses as Empower
6. Employers Look to Enhance 401(k) Investments
7. 403(b) Plans – Siblings, Not Twins
8. It Is Difficult to Factor Social Security Into Retirement Planning
9. Great-West Acquires J.P. Morgan Retirement Plan Services
10. Fidelity Faces Lawsuit Over Revenue Sharing
*Year to date through mid-November