401(k) Consulting Services

Having the Right Plan Makes a Difference

Having the right retirement plan in place for your business could make a dramatic difference in your success in meeting your retirement goals and in helping your employees meet theirs as well. Whether you are looking to start a plan or already have one in place, we have the expertise to make sure your plan works as hard for you as you work for yourself.

Our comprehensive plan consulting services include the following:

• *Initial consultations are always complimentary. We want to demonstrate the value we can add to your business before you commit to any financial resources.
• *Flexible client engagements. We customize our service plans based on the specific needs of each client. Clients may cancel our services at any time; we do not require client commitments for a minimum period.
• *Analysis of available plan types and designs allows us to create or re-create your plan to meet your business’s unique needs. We specialize in the following plan types: 401(k), 403(b), SIMPLE IRA, SEP IRA, and Defined Benefit Pensions.
• *Fee benchmarking services for new and existing plans. If you already have a plan, we can assist you in renegotiating fees with your plan record keeper (the third-party vendor who holds your plan’s assets) or in finding a new, more cost-effective record keeper. If your plan is new, we can help you find the most cost-effective record keeper up front. Retirement plans often lack fee transparency, and many record keepers do not lower their fees unless someone asks. We have encountered numerous existing plans in which employers were unaware they were overpaying by tens of thousands of dollars per year. We have successfully renegotiated lower fees for many of our clients.
• *On-site financial education meetings for you and your employees. We provide group presentations on a variety of financial topics about your business retirement plan and other topics relevant to personal finance and preparation for retirement.
• *Personalized financial advice for you and your employees. When we are on-site at your business, we will set aside as much time as is needed for confidential one-on-meetings with you and your employees to provide advice on your plan’s investments, saving for retirement, or any other financial topics you wish to discuss. We also maintain ongoing availability every day during normal business hours to provide advice by phone or email.
• *Co-fiduciary services in helping you manage your plan. We typically share in your legal responsibilities by helping you monitor your plan’s investment lineup and by monitoring record keeper fees and services to ensure you are getting what you pay for. We can assume the role of a 3(21) ERISA co-fiduciary, in which case we help you monitor the performance of your plan’s investment lineup, or a 3(38) fiduciary, in which case we perform all investment monitoring duties ourselves.
• *Coordination with other plan vendors. We typically act as a liaison between our clients and the other vendors associated with the plan, such as the record keeper and the third-party administrator.