Employer Strategies

As plan sponsors continue to work through Affordable Care Act compliance, there has been some confusion about what types of plans are being sponsored. Here’s a look at the basics of these plans.

PricewaterhouseCoopers released results of an employee financial wellness study this week and found that 36% of employees in the generation born in the early ’60s through early ’80s say they’re likely to tap into their retirement savings.

It’s no secret that target-date funds have grown in popularity. A new Vanguard study, How America Saves, shows that 27% of plan participants were invested in single target-date funds at year-end 2012 and 51% of all participants use target-date funds. Also, 84% of sponsors offer target date funds, up 45% compared with 2007.

Position a nod to growth in broker-dealer channel.

Stephen M. Saxon, chairman of the Groom Law Group, says little is getting done on important retirement issues in Washington because of the mandated government budget cuts known as sequestration.

In addition to the benefits of having healthier employees, the UnitedHealth Group study shows employers also gain from the professional skills employees learn while volunteering.

Ric Edelman, chairman and CEO of Edelman Financial Services, told his Chicago audience that a combination of factors — including a misunderstanding of exponential growth and its effect on compounding interest — have led workers to short-term planning that can be deadly to 401(k)s and other defined contribution plans.

The scaling down of the Fed's quantitative easing program could incent bond fund holders to liquidate their holdings and look for other more promising investments.

Delivering new investment strategies, recruiting top managers are goals.

Chief people officer Jeff Perkins says he took HR at NPR to a far more prominent and decision-making position, and that HR professionals always need to leverage opportunities such as new facilities or outgoing senior leadership.