Diversions March 18, 2010

A Little 'Madness' Can Boost Morale

It seems there are plenty of bosses who might not mind if you watch some NCAA March Madness in the office.
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An OfficeTeam survey found that 41% of managers said March Madness activities, such as watching game highlights and engaging in friendly competitions, can boost morale. On the other hand, 11% of manager said such activities can have a negative effect on morale.

In addition, a majority of respondents (56%) said March Madness activities do not affect productivity, and 22% believe the festivities actually boost workers’ output.     

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“The NCAA basketball tournament is a common topic of conversation at the office as employees may share college allegiances,” said Robert Hosking, OfficeTeam executive director, in the release of the results. “As long as everyone remains a good sport, rooting for a favorite team should not affect morale or productivity.”     

Hosking pointed out that there are opportunities for managers to build camaraderie by organizing activities around March Madness.     

The survey was conducted by an independent research firm and is based on telephone interviews with more than 1,000 senior managers at companies with 20 or more employees.

Data & Research March 17, 2010

Seniors Say Short is Sweet with Investment Prospectuses

When it comes to reading, most affluent seniors don’t want to snuggle up with a lengthy description of their investments, a new survey suggests.
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A little more than half of retirees and pre-retirees with $100,000 or more in investable assets read their fund prospectuses, and only about one-fifth “always” read them, according to a survey released by the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI).

The survey, conducted by Cogent Research, also found that nearly nine out of 10 respondents said they would be more likely to read their prospectus if it was provided in short summary form rather than full detail. The vast majority (86%) would prefer a shorter paper summary prospectus instead of the full detail, if details were available online or upon request.

Seniors put cost ahead of performance when ranking the information to include in a prospectus. Fees were listed as the most important piece of information to include (89%), followed by returns (76%), risks (63%), and tax advantages (61%).

Last year the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) implemented a rule requiring mutual funds to provide a summary prospectus (see “SEC To Require Mutual Fund Summaries”). IRI is advocating for the SEC to also require a summary prospectus for variable annuity products. “By reducing the length of the information and presenting it in a more consumer-friendly format, investors will have a better opportunity to become more informed about an insured retirement strategy,” said IRI President and CEO Cathy Weatherford, in a release of the survey results.

The findings are based on an online survey of 961 retirees and pre-retirees (within seven years of retirement) aged 55 and older with at least $100,000 in investable assets, including workplace plans but excluding real estate.

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