Qualified Retirement Plans
A comprehensive employee benefits programs often includes Qualified Retirement Plans such as: 401k, Profit Sharing, Cash Balance Pension, SIMPLE IRA, and SEP IRA plans. Gernon, Muth & Associates can build or improve your current Retirement Plan in the following areas:
- Plan Design Consulting and Legislative Compliance Updates
- Fiduciary Education for Plan Sponsors
- “Open Architecture” Investment Menu Design and Due Diligence Reviews
- Vendor Platform Due Diligence Review and Improvement
- Fee Analysis & Benchmarking
- Employee Education & Financial Wellness
- Technology Integration, Compliance Efficiency's & 360-degree enrollment file feeds
Fiduciary Education for Plan Sponsors
Retirement Plans can seem complicated, and, in some ways, they are, but with a experienced CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional and Accredited Investment Fiduciary* BJ Muth assisting with the management of your plan you can feel at ease. To be sure, Retirement Plan Trustees and Plan Sponsors are personally liable for maladministration of their Plan which makes it even more important to have professional advisors, co-fiduciaries, and vetted processes in place to mitigate your risks.
*Use of the AIF designation does not imply that Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp. (LFA) or its Investment Advisor Representations may act in a fiduciary capacity for ERISA Plans.
Fee Analysis & Benchmarking
The fees charged in Employer Sponsored Retirement Plans can be opaque and difficult to determine, however, our specialists understand the fee structure of plans and can assist you in determining if you are being fairly charged for the services provided to your Plan. Our “market check” bidding process and subscriptions to databases of fee research across the country can easily benchmark your plans fees vs your industry peers.
“Open Architecture” Investment Menu Due Diligence Reviews
Our Co-Fiduciary Investment Menu Design Construction and ongoing Monitoring Services, powered by some of the largest independent Investment Advisors in the country, result an objective “open architecture” investment line-up for your participants to choose from.
Vendor Platform and Due Diligence Review
We have relationships with many of the nations leading investment recordkeepers in the retirement plan marketplace, including but not limited to: Lincoln Financial Group, John Hancock, Transamerica, Principal, Vanguard, Ascensus, T. Rowe Price, Nationwide, American Funds, VOYA, ADP, and Paychex. Each of these vendors has their own strengths and weakness, in addition to pricing considerations, which are best reviewed by a specialist at Gernon, Muth & Associates along with you the Plan Sponsor to determine the best fit for your organization.
We also consider and review with you the benefits of working with a Local, Regional, or National TPA vs “bundled” administration provided by one of the abovementioned recordkeeping vendors.
Employee Education & Financial Wellness
It is important that employees (plan participants) understand the Plan and participate in the plan. After all, an Employee Sponsored Retirement Plan is an Employee Benefit. We provide group education (in-person and webinar), newly eligible participant enrollment education, as well as one-on-one coaching for your employees to plan for healthy retirement. Furthermore, our unique technology platforms provide wonderful “financial wellness” programs to assist employees with budgeting, debt management, insurance, and basic financial literacy.
Technology Integration, Compliance Efficiency's & Online Enrollment
We often hear from prospective clients that “administering their 401k plan is complicated, labor intensive, and confusing.” It doesn't have to be that way! We partner with technology platforms that can ease your administration, integrate with your payroll/HRIS systems, and distribute all of the necessary participant annual notices on behalf of the plan sponsor.