401k plan Archives - 401k Plan Optimization, Compliance, Investment & Partners

Vanguard: Small 401(k) Plans Show Strong Savings Habits, With Room to Improve Access

By Fred Barstein / 401(k) Participant Education, 401(k) Plan Management, 401k plan, auto enroll, auto re-enroll, Benchmarking & Monitoring Fees & Partners, Communication, Company Contributions and Vesting, DC Plan Sponsors, Employee Benefits, Financial Advice, Financial Wellness, Participant data, Savings Habits, Savings Rates, Small Balance Retirement Acccount, small business, Small business retirement plans, Target Date Funds

Small businesses employ nearly half of all private-sector workers and represent the vast majority of employers offering defined contribution retirement plans. New Vanguard data suggests...

The Road to Wealth and Retirement Convergence Still Has Roadblocks

By Fred Barstein / 401k Advisor, 401k plan, adult learning, Advisors and Record Keepers Collaborating, AI, AI for Retirement, artificial intelligence, Communication, Consolidation, Convergence, DC Plan Sponsors, DC plans, Digital Tools, Employee Benefits, Financial Wellness, Retirement Readiness, Wealth Advisor

The retirement and wealth worlds are moving closer together but getting them fully connected is proving easier said than done. The opportunity is clear. As...

Making 401(k) Education Simple, Visual and Actionable

By Fred Barstein / 401(k) Participant Education, 401(k) Plan Management, 401k plan, adult learning, benefit education, Communication, DC Plan Sponsors, Digital Tools, Education, Employee Benefits, Employee engagement, employer match, Fiduciary, Financial Wellness, multi-generational workforce, Retirement Plan Fiduciary, Retirement Readiness

For participant education to work, employees first have to pay attention. And sometimes, four minutes is all you need. Following a recent TPSU program at...

Let’s Rethink the Role of 401(k) Loans in Retirement Planning

By Fred Barstein / 401(k) Loans, 401(k) Plan Management, 401k plan, benefit education, Employee happiness, Fiduciary, Financial Wellness, investment, managed accounts, Retirement Income, Retirement planning

Borrowing from a 401(k) is often treated as something participants should avoid whenever possible. Taking money out of a retirement account means less money invested...

As the Lines Blur, the DC Market Race Heats Up

By Fred Barstein / 401k plan, 401k Trends, Adaptability, AI, AI for Retirement, Changing dynamics, Consolidation, Convergence, DC Market Race, DC Plan Sponsors, DC plans, DOL Guidance, Employee Benefits, Fiduciary, Financial Advisors, financial wellness, Retirement Plan Advisor, Retirement plan management, Retirement Readiness, RPA Consolidation

The defined contribution market once had fairly clear lanes. Retirement plan advisors served one part of the market, while institutional investment consultants largely stayed in...

Meeting Participants Where They Are: Making 401(k) Education Click

By Fred Barstein / 401(k) Managed Accounts, 401(k) Plan Management, 401k Advisor, 401k plan, adult learning, Authenticity, benefit education, Client connection, collaboration, Communication, Confidence, DC plans, Employee engagement, Employee feedback, Employee happiness, Employee training, Financial Advice, financial wellness, Retirement Readiness

For many employees, understanding a 401(k) starts with a basic question: How does this actually work? It’s a question John Poole, Director of Participant Engagement...

How Plan Sponsors Can Better Engage Employees in Their Financial Lives

By Fred Barstein / 401(k) Managed Accounts, 401(k) Plan Management, 401k plan, benefit education, Benefits integration, DC Plan Sponsors, DC plans, education, Employee engagement, Employee happiness, financial literacy, financial stress management, Financial Wellness

Employee engagement continues to be one of the most persistent challenges facing retirement plan sponsors, particularly as employees juggle retirement savings alongside healthcare costs and...

Target-Date Funds Are the Default Choice — But They Can’t Be a Default Decision

By David Witz / 401k plan, Benchmarking & Fees (ERISA, retirement plan), Benchmarking Fees, DC Plan Sponsors, DC plans, DOL, education, erisa, Fiduciary, Fiduciary, Participant data, Participant Retirement Outcomes Financial Visualization, Retirement Readiness, Target Date Funds

The Investment Company Institute reports that approximately $4.9 trillion was invested in target-date strategies at year-end 2025.[1] A clear indication that Target-date funds (“TDFs”) have...

AI Can Help Run Your Plan But Fiduciaries Still Own the Mistakes

By Fred Barstein / 401(k) Plan Management, 401k plan, AI, AI for Retirement, Benefits integration, cybersecurity, erisa, Fiduciary, Financial Wellness, Financial Wellness, Independent TPA, managed accounts, TPA Landscape

AI is showing up in more corners of plan administration: personalized communications, claims processing, investment reviews, even committee minutes. The time savings are real. But...

Why Plan Sponsors Are Taking a Closer Look at PEPs & MEPs

By Fred Barstein / 401(k) Plan Management, 401k plan, Changing dynamics, DC Plan Sponsors, Employee Benefits, Employee engagement, Fiduciary, Financial Wellness, MEPs, PEPs, Plan design, pooled employer plan, Retirement planning, Retirement Readiness

For many HR teams, retirement plan oversight is competing for attention with an already crowded list of responsibilities. That pressure is helping drive new interest...