M Financial Adds J.P. Morgan Retirement Link to Platform
M Financial Group, a financial services distribution company based in Portland, Oregon, has added J.P. Morgan Asset Management’s Retirement Link plan offering to its retirement plan platform.
J.P. Morgan describes
Retirement Link as leveraging “the depth and breadth of J.P. Morgan Asset
Management’s retirement capabilities” in meeting the defined contribution (DC)
investment and administration needs of plan sponsors and retirement plan
advisers. Through Retirement Link, J.P. Morgan provides M Financial’s Member
Firms with insights about markets, investments, plan design, and participant
behavior.
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A survey of North American plan sponsors by the
International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) revealed nearly two
in five respondents feel a responsibility to educate employees about pension
and benefit options, encourage retirement savings and help
participants/employees become financially literate managers of their money.
Half of all organizations offer benefits literacy education, nearly half offer
retirement security education, and about one-quarter offer financial literacy
education.
According to the survey report, “Financial Education for
Today’s Workforce: 2014 Survey Results,” the two most common reasons for
providing financial education are increasing participants’ ability to manage
money and improving retirement asset allocation/investment decisions. Half of
organizations have experienced increased demand from participants for financial
education in the past five years.
Among
organizations offering financial education, the three most common topics are
retirement plan benefits, investments and savings. About one-quarter of
organizations providing financial education have assessed which topics are
needed most by their populations, and about half are considering doing so. One
in ten organizations targets financial education around life events, and nearly
one in five is considering doing so. Nearly one in five customizes financial
education based on age/generation.
The biggest obstacle to providing financial literacy
education to employees cited by respondents is a lack of interest among
participants (cited by half of respondents).
Most respondents believe personal financial issues have a
significant impact on the overall job performance of their participants (see "Financial
Wellness Not Just a Benefit for Employees"). In addition, most rate
the overall stress level of their employee/participant population as medium to
high. The two most commonly cited financial challenges affecting participants
were trouble saving for retirement and credit card/other debt.
Most respondents rate the financial savviness of their
population as medium to poor, and believe the average employee/participant in
their organization is not well-prepared for retirement upon reaching retirement
age. Compared with five years ago, more than three in five respondents believe
their participants face more personal financial challenges today (see "What
Can a Financial Wellness Program Accomplish?"). Fewer than one in ten
believe participants face fewer challenges.
The
survey found financial education is most commonly provided by in-house staff,
plan recordkeepers/administrators and investment managers/providers. Some of
the most common methods of providing financial education are voluntary
classes/workshops, retirement income calculators, online resources/courses,
free personal consultation services and projected account balance statements
and/or pension benefit statements. Respondents regard voluntary
classes/workshops and free personal consultation services as the most effective
financial education methods. Additionally, respondents rate one-on-one
in-person meetings as considerably more effective than larger group meetings or
one-on-one online/phone meetings.
“Employers are finding that successful education depends on
customization,” says Julie Stich, director of Research at the IFEBP, based in
Brookfield, Wisconsin. “Offering education in multiple languages, to spouses,
or based on specific criteria such as age, income or life events will increase
interest and increase the number of employees who benefit.”
“By providing a variety of resources, employers have opened
doors for employees who want to become better educated about their finances,
benefits and retirement security,” says Michael Wilson, CEO of the IFEBP. “We
are encouraged that so many of our members are establishing financial education
programs in their workplace, and we hope that employees not only take advantage
of these benefits, but also use what they learn to better prepare themselves
for their financial future.”
In February, the IFEBP surveyed member organizations across
the United States and Canada, receiving 397 responses (310 from the United States
and 87 from Canada). Nearly half of the respondents represent corporations,
nearly one-third represent multiemployer trust funds, and about one in five
represents public employers/governmental entities. A wide cross-section of
industries, fund sizes and regions/provinces were represented.