A great session at the recent 2020 NTSA Summit featured speakers who addressed what plan sponsors are concerned about and how to better serve them.
Speakers included Scott Hayes from the advisor side of the industry; Mark Heisler, representing the TPAs; and Jack Towarnicky, coming from the viewpoint of the plan sponsor.
The focus of the presentation centered around the results of a survey that took nearly 10 years to put together. The purpose of the survey was to understand what major issues plan sponsors (aka, school districts) are working on as it pertains to the administration and delivery of 403(b) retirement plans to their employees.
The top three issues plan sponsors identified are compliance, participation and deferral rates. Interestingly, 15% of districts polled have been audited by the IRS, which is double the rate in recent years.
Our role as industry professionals is to help plan sponsors mitigate their exposure to risks. If an industry professional can get their arms around plan design and education, while adding an understanding of fiduciary services, one can make a real difference with an employer.
The polls imply that plan sponsors simply don’t know what they don’t know — in other words, by focusing on a top-down approach, our industry can provide more direction and education on retirement plans.
Philip Kim is Founding Member and Managing Director of Signature Wealth Concepts, LLC.
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