Deals & People September 15, 2017

Retirement Industry People Moves

Wilshire Partners With Vantage to Provide Fiduciary Services; T. Rowe Price Hires Senior DC Strategist; MassMutual Hires Three New Regional Managing Directors; and more.
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Wilshire Partners With Vantage to Provide Fiduciary Services

Vantage Benefits Administrators welcomes Wilshire Associates into its Vantage Success Partners program. Wilshire will serve as a 3(38) fiduciary for a newly formed Vantage Retirement Trust and it will also build its investment menu.

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“We wanted to identify established strategic partners who could work with us to provide small to mid-sized firms with large-plan pricing that would typically be available in retirement offerings at major corporations,” says Vantage CEO Jeff Richie. “Wilshire really stepped up as the investment manager for our new group Trust.”

Jason Schwarz, president of Wilshire Funds Management, says “We are truly pleased to be selected as a partner in this new approach developed by Vantage. We expect the use of outsourced fiduciaries providing efficient, cost-effective solutions to continue to grow, and Vantage is well positioned to capitalize on this trend with the recent launch of its group Trust. The need and interest demonstrated by plan sponsors and advisers is significant.”

NEXT: T. Rowe Price Hires Senior DC Strategist

T. Rowe Price Hires Senior DC Strategist

Linda Delivorias has joined T. Rowe Price as a senior defined contribution (DC) strategist. She will consult with key institutional clients on a variety of topics including plan governance, plan design and fiduciary policy. She will also serve as a subject matter expert and DC industry thought leader for the firm.

Most recently, she was a partner at Mercer with broad responsibilities in the DC and financial wellness areas. There, Delivorias led a team responsible for evaluating plan sponsor retirement program design and governance structures, conducting service provider evaluations and searches, and developing training materials about various 401(k) topics. Earlier in her career, she worked at Deloitte as an employee benefits tax manager and as an Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) attorney at Washington, D.C. law firms.

“T. Rowe Price remains committed to providing excellent service to our growing roster of clients,” says Aimee DeCamillo, head of T. Rowe Price Retirement Plan Services. “We continue to place a high priority on nurturing our strong existing talent as well as attracting top talent from outside the firm. Linda is widely recognized and respected in the retirement industry and her vast knowledge and proven skill set will be a significant addition to our team.”

NEXT: MassMutual Hires Three New Regional Managing Directors 

MassMutual Hires Three New Regional Managing Directors

Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. (MassMutual) has appointed three new managing directors (MDs) to support sales of retirement plans in the Northeast, Manhattan and West Virginia.

MDs train and educate financial advisers about MassMutual’s retirement plan products and services, identify retirement plan prospects, and help clients understand how MassMutual can meet their retirement plan needs.

Chris Burnett supports sales of retirement plans to small businesses in Manhattan. Previously, Burnett was a business development director with John Hancock Retirement Plan Services. He has a bachelor’s degree from Emory & Henry College. He also holds Series 7 and 63 securities licenses as well as variable Life insurance licenses in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

Arthur “Anthony” Maher Jr. partners with key advisers and consultants who sell bundled and TPA retirement plans to small businesses, focus on the defined contribution investment only market, or support voluntary worksite benefits in West Virginia. Maher joined MassMutual from Hazlett, Burt & Watson, Inc., where he worked as a wealth manager. Previously, he worked as a wealth adviser for United Bank. He earned  a bachelor’s degree from West Virginia University at Parkersburg and has FINRA Series 7 and 66 securities licenses, as well as a West Virginia life and health insurance license.

Sarah Elliott supports sales of retirement plans to mid-size and larger employers in the Northeast, including Connecticut, Western Massachusetts, Vermont and upstate New York. She has more than 20 years’ experience in the retirement plans and financial services marketplace, primarily at MassMutual. Elliott has a bachelor’s degree from the Westfield State University. In addition, she holds Series FINRA Series 7 & 63 securities licenses.

“Our managing directors are the backbone of MassMutual’s growth as a retirement plan provider and help us deliver on our commitment to help people realize their retirement goals,” says Hugh O’Toole, head of Workplace Distribution. “Our MDs work closely with financial advisers and support their efforts to help employers offer the most effective retirement plans possible.”

NEXT: Lockton Expands Northeast Practice

Lockton Expands Northeast Practice

Lockton announced the addition of Bert Kingsley as a retirement consultant in its Northeast Practice.

A 20-year veteran of the retirement industry, Kingsley spent his last 12 years as principal and growth leader for Mercer’s Eastern U.S. Defined Contribution Marketplace. Kingsley holds FINRA, Life Accident, and Health Insurance licenses and has completed numerous American Society of Pension Actuaries exams. He has expertise in qualified and nonqualified plans. He’s versed in various topics including compliance, private equity, mergers and acquisitions, financial wellness, and investment advice.

“Asking Bert to join the Northeast Practice reflects a deepening commitment to our clients,” says Washington, D.C.-based Robert Connolly, CEO of Lockton’s Northeast Practice. “The employers we serve want holistic advice about risk management, including their benefits liabilities. Bert is the third retirement consultant we’ve brought into the northeast in just over two years. His addition speaks to the importance of retirement to our clients, and his expertise is indicative of the caliber of consulting our customers have come to expect.”

NEXT: Mercer Supports Tution.io As Student Loan Repayment Benefit Provider

Mercer Supports Tution.io As a Student Loan Repayment Benefit Provider

Tuition.io, an employer-funded student loan contribution platform, has been named a preferred provider by Mercer. The global consulting firm will showcase Tuition.io as a preferred provider of student loan repayment assistance to its clients as part of Mercer’s Financial Wellness offerings. It will continue to conduct ongoing monitoring to ensure optimal performance. Mercer clients can take advantage of competitive pre-negotiated fee arrangements.

Student loan repayment assistance has the potential to affect more than 44 million Americans burdened by student loan debt, Mercer says. The $1.4 trillion debt has raised financial stress throughout the workforce and that burden is bleeding into productivity and company bottom lines. Mercer’s Inside Employees’ Minds Financial Wellness survey found that on average, employees spend more than 150 hours of work time a year worrying about money. On a total U.S. wage bill of $5 trillion, this could be costing their employers more than $250 billion in lost wages each year. However, the survey also found that employees who have access to financial wellness programs report higher levels of trust and satisfaction with their employer.

“We are seeing an increasing number of employers adding student loan repayment assistance to their benefits programs as a powerful differentiator in attracting and retaining employees,” says Heather Coughlin, solution leader for Financial Wellness at Mercer. “Being able to name an innovator like Tuition.io as a preferred provider is another step forward in helping our clients compete for talent, differentiate their brand, and develop holistic financial wellness programs.”

NEXT: Cleveland Hauswirth Investment Management Joins ABGIL 

Cleveland Hauswirth Investment Management Joins ABGIL

Following years as a partner, Cleveland Hauswirth Investment Management has joined ABG Retirement Plan Services (ABGIL).

“Our two groups have worked together for over 16 years,” says John Blossom, CEO, ABGIL. “Cleveland Hauswirth has a reputation for providing high-quality investment advisory service to retirement plans, and our companies share similar values and offer complementary skills and expertise. This move positions ABGIL for continued growth.”

The timing of the merger aligns with a shift in leadership as retirement industry veteran Roy Hauswirth retires. Nancy Cleveland, along with her team, will continue to operate the Cleveland Hauswirth office in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, providing services to ongoing and future clients. ABGIL provides an environment for the Cleveland Hauswirth team to continue to work as an independent fiduciary.

NEXT: Russell Investments Names Managing Director

Russell Investments Names Managing Director

Michael Hall has joined global asset manager Russell Investments as managing director. Hall leads a team of investment experts with deep industry experience across the firm’s many areas of expertise including asset management, outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO), and consulting and implementation services. The team will focus on identifying and mitigating risks in defined benefit (DB), defined contribution (DC) and health care retirement plans, particularly in the larger end of the market. Hall will report to Bryan Weeks, head of Americas Institutional.

“This team brings together Russell Investments’ core capabilities—from advice and investments to implementation—in order to help the world’s largest retirement plans understand and resolve plan risk,” explains Weeks. “This team deeply understands the risk footprint of a plan and is able to assess implications for corporate sponsors, including impact on balance sheet, income statement and cashflow, and then develop thoughtful, long-term solutions.”

Hall’s areas of expertise include plan governance, investment policy review, asset allocation modeling and implementation, and liability hedging.

Before rejoining Russell Investments, Hall was the West Division leader for Towers Watson Investment Services at Willis Towers Watson. While there, Hall led the Advisory Portfolio Group (APG). He’s spent 12 years at Russell Investments, where he’s served in various roles including director of investment strategy, director of asset liability strategy and senior consultant.

NEXT: USI Consulting Hires Retirement Services Leader

USI Consulting Hires Retirement Services Leader

USI Consulting Group has announced that Jesse Grams has joined the company as vice president of retirement services, based in Phoenix, Arizona.

Grams brings to his new role more than 20 years of sales and consulting experience, which includes 10 years of retirement knowledge working with both defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) plans.

Previously, Grams spent seven years with a large firm as part of the major accounts retirement team. His primary responsibilities included retirement plan sales and adviser sales, as well as working plans under ERISA.

In Practice September 15, 2017

Cybersecurity Must Be C-Suite Concern at RIAs, Brokers and Managers

In conversation with PLANADVISER, cybersecurity attorney and former SEC staffer Marlon Paz suggests it is absolutely essential for advisory firms to have a senior executive “not just appointed but also empowered” as the chief information security risk officer. 
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Recently, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a risk alert urging broker/dealers, registered investment advisers (RIAs) and investment fund companies to take direct steps to improve their cybersecurity policies and practices.

According to Marlon Paz, partner at Seward & Kissel LLP and former compliance staffer at the SEC, this risk alert was a long time coming, and the themes it presents actually occupied much of his own work at the regulator from 2004 to 2010. The big upshot of the risk alert is that, following case study reviews of some 75 investment management firms, the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) feels that most broker/dealers, investment advisers and funds have at least one potentially serious cybersecurity issue to be addressed—likely more. 

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“This is a very well written and informative risk alert,” Paz says, encouraging all investment industry practitioners to read it carefully. “The SEC has made it clear that they will continue to examine and test for cybersecurity compliance procedures and controls, and will not shy away from potential enforcement actions for those who are not compliant.”

Given his former time at the SEC, Paz offered up some inside baseball analysis of what the SEC is signaling in the text and between the lines of its risk alert publications.

“One of the clearest messages I am getting is that the SEC is actually fairly pleased that more and more firms are drafting and adopting well-crafted policies and procedures in this area,” Paz says. “However the SEC also is warning that there is clear evidence that the policies and procedures are not always being followed as closely as the regulator would like. Protecting client information and assets is becoming a major focus for SEC examinations. That is the message.”

Paz reminds readers that there are very specific and exacting requirements to be followed in this area, enforced under various statues and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

The “SEC has put the industry on notice and offered specific guidance with this risk alert, so we should all expect the next round of examinations and enforcement actions to use the requirements here laid out as a baseline for future compliance,” Paz says. “In other words, there really is not any more time to wait to improve your practices, because the SEC is seemingly done with having leniency in this area. Here is the SEC telling us in clear terms what they expect, so we should listen.”

NEXT: Cookie cutter policies invite disaster 

Beyond this, SEC is now very clear that cybersecurity policies and procedures cannot be cookie-cutter, off-the-shelf affairs. As Paz puts it, “all these third-party consulting groups that have emerged to say they have a wiz-bang cybersecurity policy which they can sell you and slap your name on and solve all your problems, they are promising much more than they can deliver.”

“It is a recipe for disaster to use a cookie-cutter approach,” Paz continues. “The policies must be tailored to your specific risk, and not everyone’s risk is the same. A small, non-tech-driven manager with 10 staff that only have access to work information through firewall-protected desktop computers does not have the same profile of risks and concerns that a major national tech-driven brokerage may have. Does your company keep things tightly controlled, or does it allow people to use their own portable devices and external networks all over the globe?”

The SEC will be examining these matters closely in the future, “as they should,” Paz adds. “Once you have written out some very well-tailored processes and procedures, naturally the next step is to ensure you are doing what you have pledged to do.”

In his experience, it is absolutely essential for advisory firms to have a senior executive “not just appointed but also empowered” as the chief information security risk officer. Putting a younger employee with little authority in charge of these matters will simply not cut it. Even if they have the know-how, their ideas and warnings stand the chance of only being acted on slowly, or not at all. 

“A senior executive is going to be the only person who is capable of meeting the demands of this job,” Paz says. “It must be somebody with the understanding of what the risk means to the business as a whole and who has the authority to make sure the culture of compliance is real and persistent.”

Interestingly, Paz concludes with the advice that this chief cybersecurity risk officer does not necessarily have to be the most technologically minded of the senior executives, either. “In fact that is far from the most important qualification,” he says. “More important is the commitment, discipline and authority.”

 The full SEC risk alert publication is available here. 

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