Magazine Articles

No backslide in retirement preparedness in 2012

Knowing more about Social Security helps

Using annuities to transfer risk unpopular in the U.S.

Mandatory distributions reduce cost and risk

Demand growing for participant-focused mobile tech

Administering a qualified domestic relations order can be complicated

Each month, Bells & Whistles highlights recent product introductions that plan sponsors­ may find of interest.

Retirement income is an emerging focus of our industry, and offering—or being mandated to offer—annuities or other guaranteed income products in defined contribution (DC) plans could be the...

Investment committees need balanced discussions

PBGC change reduces pension obligations for some

Some quotes, survey statistics and musings to use in employee communications, or just as a break in the grind.

The 401(k) defined contribution (DC) plan has its origins as part of the 1978 Tax Reform Act, where it languished in obscurity until 1980, when benefits consultant Ted...

Finding the best options in a field of DC plan designs 

There has been a major shift in how defined benefit (DB) plans distribute benefits. 

How DB investment selection can change plan outcomes 

As some advisers have become increasingly focused on supporting plan sponsors—and, hence, their scope of advisory work has narrowed—the responsibilities they engage in for retirement plans have increased,...

If you could step into a time machine and go back to 1993, says Trisha Brambley, president of Retirement Playbook Inc. in New Hope, Pennsylvania, you would see...

Risk transfer is on the minds of many defined benefit (DB) plan sponsors, but, with the current economic environment, it is more often planned for than actually done,...

Technology is not just something that provides a competitive edge for defined benefit (DB) custodians—it has become the essence of their survival. 

For pension plans, allocation to alternative investments often comes down to diversification of equity risk while trying to meet their assumed rates of return.