A 401(k) statement can feel like a foreign language — market jargon, fund names, percentages that seem to shift for no reason. For many employees, that confusion is enough to make them tune out their retirement plan entirely. Companies that get retirement education right understand this, and they treat it as an ongoing conversation rather than a once-a-year checkbox.
That philosophy came through clearly when 401kTV’s Fred Barstein caught up with Sarah, HR Director at Fuel Medical Group, at the close of a TPSU program on Oregon State University’s Portland campus.
Sarah’s approach is refreshingly hands-on. Rather than mailing out a benefits packet and hoping for the best, Fuel Medical Group brings its retirement plan advisor in front of employees at least twice a year — with an open door for one-on-one conversations whenever questions come up in between. Those touchpoints give employees a chance to make sense of market swings, current events and other real-world developments that might otherwise leave them second-guessing their retirement strategy.
Perhaps most importantly, Sarah stressed the value of context. Markets rise and fall, headlines create noise, and short-term dips can feel alarming in the moment — but retirement is a long game. Helping employees zoom out and see their savings on a decades-long timeline, rather than reacting to this week’s volatility, is one of the most valuable things an employer can offer.
The takeaway: good retirement education isn’t just about handing over information — it’s about making sure employees actually feel equipped to use it.
Read the Full Transcript Here:
Fred Barstein:
Greetings. My name is Fred Barstein. I’m the CEO and founder of 401kTV and TPSU. We just completed a program in downtown Portland at the Oregon State University campus, and I’m here with Sarah. Welcome, Sarah.
Is it okay if we ask you a few questions?
Sarah:
Sure.
Fred Barstein:
Thank you. Before we do, tell us a little bit about yourself and your organization.
Sarah:
Sure. My name is Sarah. I work for a company called Fuel Medical Group. We are business consultants to ear, nose and throat physicians across the United States. I’m the HR director for our company, and we’re a consulting practice.
Fred Barstein:
And is the headquarters here?
Sarah:
Our headquarters is in Camas, Washington, which is not too far from here, but it’s on the other side of the river.
Fred Barstein:
Right. One of the things you talked about is that you provide your own employees with personalized education. Could you explain a little bit about that?
Sarah:
Sure. One of the things that I think is really critical is that employees have a one-on-one experience with someone who is a registered advisor so that they can speak to the specific funds, in addition to the personal space that an individual finds themselves in.
So, when we are looking at an advisor, we want to make sure that they understand that one of the requirements is that they are speaking to our employees at a global level at least twice a year and are available to them on a one-on-one basis.
What I mean by this global level is that twice a year, toward the beginning of a new year and toward the end of a new year, unless strange things happen in the market where we invite them to come back, they’re giving a Zoom presentation where we’re seeing their face and they’re talking about market changes.
They’re talking about the political environment. They’re talking about things that may affect them so they understand, at a very personal level, the importance of riding out any sort of blips that might happen.
So, if gas prices go up, for example, they will either stabilize or go down. But it is something that’s happening in this moment. Saving for your retirement is long-term, and so we want to make sure that they understand that there’s a long horizon. Having someone speak to those things outside of the news is something we find really important.
Fred Barstein:
Very good. Final question: What is something you learned today, and would you recommend TPSU?
Sarah:
I would absolutely recommend TPSU. I was very happy to be invited.
The thing that I thought was important, in addition to things like fiduciary responsibilities, fund design and plan design, was also the opportunity to be reminded of the blend that exists with benefits, with your health benefits and your 401(k) and your retirement plan, and how those two things intersect and really affect, obviously, how you’re managing expenses within your business.
Fred Barstein:
All right. Well, thank you.
Sarah:
Thanks for your time.
Fred Barstein:
And thank you for watching 401kTV. Please stay tuned.
