Media Coverage

DC Plan Sponsor Priorities Should Include Plugging Leakage, Enabling Auto Portability

As we continue to make our way through the second quarter of 2018, now is a good time to reflect on defined contribution (DC) plan sponsor priorities for this year.

Are You All-In For A 401k Roll-In?

In his 4/02/18 article for 401k Specialist, Tom Hawkins asks plan sponsors to consider where they stand on encouraging rollovers into their 401(k) plan ("roll-ins") from new participants. Presenting the historical progression of roll-ins from 2012 to present, Hawkins then describes 3 levels of roll-in support that plan sponsors can offer. The most effective, says Hawkins, is Level 3, where plan sponsors adopt a facilitated roll-in service, which makes the process worry- and hassle-free for participants.

Are you all-in on roll-in? Encourage new hires to rollover old 401(k) balances into your plan

Over the past six years, there has been a steady drumbeat pointing the way to increased portability and in-plan consolidation (roll-ins) as the next big strategic focus for 401k plans.

Employers: Here’s how you improve the broken 401(k) plan system

In his March 29^th 2018 article in Employee Benefit News, RCH’s Founder, President & CEO Spencer Williams argues that just as no man is an island, no employer-sponsored retirement plan is an island. He continues on to detail that new hires who join a plan all come from other companies, where they were likely enrolled in their former-employer 401(k) plans; and similarly, participants who leave a plan when they change employers have accrued 401(k) savings that they will likely want to take with them.

401KWire: What Is Driving the Missing Participant Issue?

In her 3/21/18 article, 401KWire’s Bridget Doyle extensively quotes RCH’s CEO Spencer Williams on the 401(k) industry’s missing participant problem. As Williams explains, there was little or no existing research on the problem, which spurred his decision to conduct a survey and to “do it from the plan participant’s perspective.” The new study, The Mobile Workforce's Missing Participant Problem, was released this month, and revealed that the problem is “very dynamic and growing” according to Williams. As Williams notes, new solutions are likely to emerge, best practices are hard to define -- but account consolidation will play a critical role.

*401KWire requires a subscription to read the article.

When 401(k) Participants Go Missing: How It Happens, The Impact & What To Do!

RCH Founder, President and CEO Spencer Williams speaks with Rick Unser of 401(k) Fridays, taking on the old problem of missing participants, as well as auto portability, the new solution that may help keep participant information current, prevent cashout leakage and consolidate participants' retirement savings within the 401(k) system.

No Plan is an Island

Just as no man is an island, no employer-sponsored retirement plan is an island. New hires who join a plan all come from other companies, where they were likely enrolled in their former-employer 401(k) plans. Similarly, participants who leave a plan when they change employers have accrued 401(k) savings that they will likely want to take with them.

NAPA Net: Can Automation Help Solve the Missing Participant Problem?

NAPA Net's Ted Godbout covers the recently-released survey of missing participants, joint research conducted by Boston Research Technologies and Retirement Clearinghouse. Godbout highlights the survey's key findings, quoting BRT's Warren Cormier, and drawing attention to the high percentage of respondents (60%) who expressed a preference for an automated solution to update their address and/or consolidate their retirement savings.