2019 RPAY – Plante Moran Financial Advisors

Plante Moran Financial Services’ culture and philosophy is ultimately rooted in helping participants retire successfully: “We care about our clients. We care about our work. We care about our families and our communities, and we care about each other,” says Susan Shoemaker, partner and Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) retirement plan investment consultant.

The practice, with offices in Southfield, Michigan, has been around for more than 25 years. “The team that serves it is passionate about not only helping plan sponsors meet their fiduciary responsibilities, but also ensuring that staff have a thorough understanding of retirement plans and are able to make decisions that help clients have a retirement they’ll enjoy,” she says. “The team is humbled by the opportunity to help people with such an important aspect of their lives.”

Plante Moran’s approach to servicing clients is built with a focus on three key areas: 1) objective, unbiased expertise; 2) decisionmaking with clients’ and participants’ best interests in mind; and 3) complete transparency in everything the firm does and every discussion it has. The practice is part of a larger entity, which means the plan advisers can leverage resources including research analysts, tax advisers, employee benefit consultants and ERISA attorneys to ensure that clients have the support they need when they need it. “Our service model is more than a business philosophy—it’s how we promote sustainable financial wellness, educate the client and earn its trust,” Shoemaker says.

Plante Moran offers educational meetings and financial webinars on a wide variety of topics, including Social Security and Medicare, getting ready for retirement, saving for college, tax planning, estate planning and the pros and cons of Roth accounts.

Within the next five years, Plante Moran aims to double its practice size and emphasize increasing its industry involvement and developing its staff.