Business at a Glance as of 12/31/22

• Plan assets under advisement: $945 million
• Median plan size (in assets): $2 million
• Plans under administration: 256
• Total participants served: 25,116

PLANADVISER: Tell us about your practice and how you got into advising retirement plans

Kristi Baker: Established in 1971, our practice has been operating within the retirement plan industry for more than five decades. Even in the days before 401(k) plans, Roth options and auto features, our firm recognized the opportunities that existed in the market and believed that retirement savings vehicles had the potential to positively transform the financial security of American employers, workers and their families. Although our rich history gives us a unique perspective of the progress that’s been made, our experience has proven there’s still much to be done to increase access to benefits and close the coverage gap. This motivates our mission and is why we work with employers of all sizes, charge a flat fee and remain independent and impartial, so employers can rely on us as an advocate for their plan and a resource for their employees. CSi goes the extra mile to reach overlooked businesses. Our core market is small to mid-sized plans, and of the clients we onboarded in 2022, 60% were start-up.

In 1979, my dad and his two business partners purchased CSi. I first got interested in the business when I was in high school. During the summers, I worked in the office helping to answer phones and file paperwork. When I began the college search in the late 1980s, my exposure to the industry led me to seek a degree in finance. In 1991, I graduated with a degree in business finance and started a career in Chicago with AJ Gallagher in the property casualty commercial sales team. After a few years in insurance, I realized I wanted to find a role I was more passionate about. A new career opportunity came along, and I was ready to jump on it. When I called my dad, excited to tell him about the next phase of my career, he asked me to come back home for a visit with his business and an interview with MassMutual before I made my official decision. As it turns out, my dad’s foresight was right, and in September 1993, I joined CSi as an adviser in wealth and retirement plans and became securities-licensed with MassMutual/MML. Back in those days, the industry was still in its infancy. With very few advisers, few products and no conferences/training programs, it was very much ‘learn as you go’. Regardless, I fell in love with helping people achieve their financial goals and assisting companies with providing meaningful retirement benefits to their employees. So much has changed and evolved during the past 30 years I’ve been in this industry, but the one thing that has remained the same is my passion for serving others on their retirement journey.

PLANADVISER: How is your team/process/structure unique? How has it evolved? Where will you be in five years?

Baker: Our multi-functional team structure is unique and allows us to operate a full-service firm under one roof, bridging the gap between all areas of retirement services. Rather than relying on a single adviser, every plan we serve is assigned a lead consultant, employee education and advice specialist, relationship manager and compliance specialist. Our firm also has an in-house TPA team that provides compliance and administration oversight. Collaboration between these teams helps us solve problems and address the specific needs of plan sponsors and employees. The diversity of plans that make up our client base is another unique aspect of our practice. CSi’s mission has always followed a “people-first” approach and has never been about the numbers or AUMs. From a small business with two employees to a corporate 401(k) plan with more than 4,000 employees, every number has a name, every name is a person and every person matters to CSi.

The most notable way our structure has evolved over the last few years is the restructuring and expansion of our Employee Education & Advice Team. To prove our commitment to meeting participants wherever they are on their journey to retirement, we’ve hired more advisers and support staff to develop a proprietary financial wellness program, deliver personalized education and expert financial advice to workers of all backgrounds, ages and income levels. While automation and technology has solved for a lot, it doesn’t replace the human and the relationship. That is CSi’s differentiator.

Being in the Midwest, many of our client companies have employees working physical labor and/or non-traditional hours (farms, factories, construction, mining, etc.). Our dedicated team goes the extra mile to connect with these underserved and hard-to-reach employee groups. CSi advisors have put on hard hats to visit participants working on construction sites, hair nets to meet with factory workers and have even traveled into underground coal mines to meet with miners. To CSi, the time commitment, busy schedules and constant travel required to serve them is worth it, as it moves the needle toward closing the coverage gap and securing a successful retirement for all Americans. In five years, we expect the number of employee engagement-focused team members to continue to increase based off the interest and feedback we receive from plan sponsors who are looking for holistic financial wellness benefits for their employees.

PLANADVISER: As a retirement plan adviser, what do you take the most pride in?

Baker: Being an adviser in this industry is rewarding because you have the opportunity to make a tangible difference in the financial lives of your clients. For many, the employer-sponsored retirement plan is their only long-term saving vehicle. Being in the business for as long as I have, I’ve had the privilege of watching employees who expressed so much doubt about their ability to retire take the necessary steps to ultimately achieve a successful retirement along with their other financial goals. To see them finally succeed in that journey is something I take great pride in. Additionally, meeting the hardworking individuals participating in the plan is a wonderful reminder that behind all the numbers and AUMs are real people, with real families and real dreams. Whether it’s assisting a small business owner with a startup plan, easing administrative burdens of an HR professional or helping a participant create a budget or pay down debt- there is always something to take pride in as a retirement plan adviser.

PLANADVISER: How do you grow your business? What changes to your practice or service model are you planning for 2023 or 2024?

Baker: One of our core values is relationships, and the way we grow our business reflects that focus. We operate mainly on a referral basis and have a large network of benefit producers, CPAs and attorneys who introduce us to their clients. Outside of these centers of influence, we also receive referrals from current or past HR professionals/plan contacts who are making a career change. This may be our favorite type of referral, as it’s rewarding to know a contact was satisfied by our services and enjoyed their experience enough that they think of us when an opportunity arises at their new organization. At every RFP/proposal/pitch, we make an effort to clearly communicate our offerings and keep the lines of communication open, even if we are not hired by the company at that time. There have been many instances of organizations contacting us years after our initial pitch that are now in a better position to utilize our services and come directly to us. This is a testament to our efforts to strengthen our name recognition through marketing campaigns, drip emails, community service and speaking engagements.

In 2022, we partnered with HUB International to expand our service offerings, resources and industry network. Through this partnership, we can leverage the scope and technology of a much larger organization while continuing to serve plan sponsors with personalized care, flexibility and advocacy. Our plans for 2023 and 2024 are to build upon these recent business developments and make use of the resources and opportunities that have resulted from this new partnership.

PLANADVISER: What challenges do you think the retirement plan industry faces and what role do you have in addressing and confronting those challenges?

Baker: The retirement plan industry has become increasingly more complex. Whether it be regulatory changes, share classes/CITs, remote and virtual work, lawsuits, fee disclosures, legislation mandates, compliance issues, fiduciary responsibilities, etc., there are a lot of places challenges can arise from in this industry. The role CSi has in addressing and confronting these challenges is to act as a middle man and keep it simple. We take a complex subject and aim to make it easier for employers to understand, operate their plans and help their employees save successfully. The industry needs to continue to evolve by providing new solutions with less complexity and technicalities that are manageable for the average end user.

Another challenge the industry faces is a lack of advisers, especially young and diverse advisers. From our experience, there is significantly more work available than there are advisers. This is one of many contributors to the coverage gap, but unlike many external contributors, this is a challenge our industry can address and improve internally. As an industry, we need to create a better onboarding experience for new advisers and a path for professionals to grow their careers. Our practice and many others are concentrating on this, but there is much to be done to generate interest among young financial professionals as an industry-wide initiative. To service sponsors and participants to the level required to close the coverage gap, it is going to take a lot more specialist retirement advisers, especially those willing to connect with underserved industries, locations or populations.

PLANADVISER: Why do you feel that retirement plan advisers should get involved in the expansion of the DC retirement plan system to cover more types of employers and employees?

Baker: Simply put, because it is the right thing to do. Besides the fact that at any given time, only about half of private sector workers are covered by an employer-sponsored retirement plan, through research and behavioral finance studies we know that even those who are covered can do a poor job of saving due to lack of knowledge, time, processes, etc. As retirement plan advisers, it is our duty to serve as an advocate, bring solutions that improve accessibility and knowledge, and use our voice to help everyday Americans and employers see the value in the retirement plan system.

Advisers need to work together with industry partners (recordkeepers, investment firms), alongside Congress and with organizations like SHRM to promote and advance retirement plan access for all,- including small businesses, low-income workers and members of minority groups. If the desire to close the coverage the gap does not begin with us, it makes it much harder to get those outside of our industry involved enough to make a meaningful difference in the expansion of the DC retirement plan system.

PLANADVISER: What are the biggest challenges preventing the broader delivery of tax-advantaged retirement savings opportunities in the workplace, and how might these be solved?

Baker: As discussed above, complexity and, therefore, a lack of understanding is a major challenge in the retirement plan space. I think many employers recognize the value of offering retirement savings opportunities in their workplace, especially with the recent increased tax credits and other incentives. However, I feel many employers are still at a loss for how to do so or where to even begin. I’m hopeful that the Starter-K Act and other legislation will ease the burden of implementation, but I believe it is still a big hill to climb—especially for employers with fewer than 25 employees.

Another challenge preventing the broad delivery of retirement opportunities in the workplace is the profitability of small plans. Unfortunately, many advisers elect not to work with small businesses because the revenue isn’t attractive. This defeats the original purpose of tax-advantaged retirement plans as a trustworthy and reasonable saving vehicle that is accessible for all Americans. This mindset of revenue before individual impact needs to shift inside our industry before we can make real strides in solving the coverage gap externally.