BCG Blog - Advisors

While research suggests that only 18% of small business have 401k plans, almost 60% of small businesses lack a succession plan.

Advisors should understand the investor’s liquidity – what need the investor has for the income and from what other sources will that investor be able to find easily liquidated funds

Corporate compliance and risk management evaluates internal policies, externally imposed regulations and reporting requirements, and synthesizes both with an eye towards performance and efficiency. The same holds for Investment Monitoring and Oversight

Getting in front of your plan sponsors and participants at a time when they’re seeking specific advice elevates your services and builds some serious loyalty.

No matter what the current temperature of public opinion is on 401ks, it may be worthwhile to review options with your client to make sure that their needs for liquidity, tax benefits, ease of administration, social concerns and rate of return are met.

During her employment, Ms. Rizo participated in two company sponsored retirement plans subject to ERISA. Both plans’ summary plan descriptions provided very specific instructions as to how a participant designates a beneficiary. Ruiz v. Publix Super Markets

Even in the best of scenarios, retirement plan participants could be doing everything right and still be missing their retirement income targets. There are ways for retirement advisors to help plan participants boost their portfolios within the confines of a group plan offering menu. Here are a few methods advisors can bring to the table.

The intention behind ERISA was to ensure that those who manage retirement plans do so to benefit the plan participants and make good choices about investing. Those drafting the law defined certain individuals involved with retirement plans as fiduciaries to impose the duties of prudence and loyalty, specifically those regarding revealing conflicts of interest, on those involved in advising retirement funds.

While employers complain about the mountains of paperwork involved in plan administration, their employees complain about not understanding the offerings. Employees who feel that they don’t understand a plan or its benefits may reduce the amount of assets in the plan by not enrolling at a maximum contribution or not enrolling at all.

Online retirement investment advice is rampant – from expert advice to personal advice with no real qualifying data. And your plan participants are using that information to make key retirement decisions. With all the noise regarding retirement, how do you help plan participants sort through it all?

Fee or commission? That’s the question that continues to be debated in the financial services industry as advisors list their reasons for supporting one over the other. With more investors seeking the fee-based commission model, how can advisors know when it’s right for their practice? 

Over the past several years, a technique for financing new business ventures using funds from an IRA or qualified plan has gained increasing popularity. The IRS has cautioned against the pitfalls of using a plan or IRA in this fashion.

Most employees know they can defer paying income tax on money they save for retirement in a traditional 401(k) or individual retirement account until they withdraw the money from the account.

Because of changes in philosophies regarding factors contributing to long-term shareholder value, and an overly strict interpretation of past guidance, DOL withdrew some of that guidance and restated its position on these issues.