Qualified Plan Services
Your Company’s 401(k) Plan
Selecting and sponsoring a 401(k) plan can be complicated, require a great deal of time and expertise, and place legal responsibilities on the business owner as the plan’s fiduciary. In addition, plan participants are most likely seeking assistance in understanding how they may utilize the plan to help achieve their retirement planning goals. You and your employees can benefit by working closely with plan sponsors to effectively address plan sponsorship issues, goals, and objectives.
We assist plan sponsors by:
- Establishing a defined process to screen and select plan investments
- Evaluating and selecting service providers, fees, and investment choices
- Assisting in establishing an investment policy statement
- Communicating plan information, updates, and changes to employees’ investments
- Providing employee education services and regularly scheduled educational meetings
- Providing well documented investment reviews
- Providing employee investment advice
- Offering employee retirement planning services
- Helping establish and maintain an audit file in conjunction with the third party administrator
- Educating plan sponsors on their fiduciary responsibilities
Retirement Plan Fiduciary
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) was enacted to help protect participant retirement savings by governing the operation and investment of most private sector retirement plans.
Individuals responsible for managing retirement plan operations and the investment of retirement funds are called fiduciaries. They are required to act in the best interest of the plan and its participants and are held to extremely high standards.
Under ERISA’s “prudent-person rule,” a plan fiduciary that is not qualified to make informed investment decisions must seek expert assistance.
Most plan sponsors do not have the time or expertise to find the right provider or identify the right investments.
Compliance to these rules doesn’t have to be stressful. As we understand the process, simply working with us, as well as a quality service provider, will help you act in accordance with the basic principles of fiduciary duty.