2025 PLANADVISER Retirement Plan Adviser of the Year
Plan Sponsor Service

Bruce Lanser

Senior Retirement Plan Consultant,
TruSource Advisors at UBS

FINALIST

Business at a Glance as of 12/31/24

  • How many retirement plan assets do you have under advisement? $855M
  • What is your median plan size (in assets)? $45M
  • How many plans do you have under administration? 15
  • How many participants in total do you serve? Approximately 20,000
  • Parent firm: UBS Financial Services Inc.

PLANADVISER: Tell us about your practice and how you began advising retirement plans.

Lanser: My journey in the financial services industry began in 1983 at Merrill Lynch. We were called account executives then (although I missed the era of the “customers man.”) I quickly found my niche. At that time, 401(k) plans were not yet a common feature in the industry. However, during a training session hosted by Merrill Lynch that introduced these plans, I recognized a remarkable opportunity, as I believed that not many seasoned professionals would invest the effort to master its intricacies.

By 1989, I had fully embraced this new venture, initially working as a sole adviser. In 1992, my wife joined the team, bringing her expertise to provide education and personalized guidance to individual participants. Our business grew substantially, and in 2013, we transitioned to UBS. During this period, we also expanded our team by adding an investment analyst. Then in 2024, we joined forces with Rita Fiumara, a 2015 Retirement Plan Adviser of the Year*, to form TruSource Advisors at UBS.

Our mission is to help plan sponsors maximize their fiduciary protection, to be good stewards and to provide the foundation for their employees to become financially and emotionally prepared for the next phase of their lives.

*The PLANADVISER rating is awarded in Q1 based on information from January to March of the award year. The rating is based on quantitative factors and not necessarily related to the quality of the investment advice.

PLANADVISER: How is your team unique in the marketplace? How do you differentiate yourself from others?

Lanser: Listen to any successful coach in any sport, and one of the things they value most is the impact they have on the lives of their athletes. The same holds true for a successful retirement plan adviser.

What sets us apart is the trust we seek to build with employees. We don’t just influence them through plan design—we also provide personalized guidance that directly impacts their future.

When participants are amazed by how much they’ve accumulated in their accounts, wondering how it happened, we believe it happened because the employer truly cared about them. They implemented automatic enrollment and escalation to make saving easier. And our team provides one-on-one guidance to help employees save and invest wisely. Our support doesn’t stop at retirement plans. Some employees have turned to us for help with everything from what to do after a layoff to caring for elderly parents to navigating the complexities of Social Security and Medicare enrollment.

What’s also unique about us is that we are a husband-and-wife team, each with over 40 years of experience. We’ve witnessed the evolution of 401(k) plans since their inception and experienced four of the five worst bear markets in history and the Crash of 1987. We’ve seen it all, and we use that experience to guide employees through all market conditions.

My greatest source of pride is seeing the impact we’ve had on the lives of those who have entrusted us with their futures—not just for them, but for their families for generations.

PLANADVISER: What type of plan sponsor is your typical client (location, size, industry, design elements, etc.)? Please describe your average service model and deliverables.

Lanser: Our typical client is a privately owned company based in the Great Lakes region, many of which are still led by their founders. We work with businesses across a range of industries, including retail, medical supply manufacturing and consumer products manufacturing. All our clients have implemented auto-enrollment and auto-escalation.

I believe our service model stands out due to the level of trust we build with both the plan fiduciaries and the employees. We believe our deliverables for a 401(k) plan sponsor should encompass a range of services and resources that support both plan sponsors and plan participants. These deliverables ensure that the plan is optimized, compliant and aligned with the needs of all stakeholders.

We maintain a consistent service calendar, delivering the following key services to each client.

Key Deliverables:

  1. Plan Design and Implementation: Custom plan structure, provider selection and implementation support.
  2. Compliance and Monitoring: Regular compliance reviews and fiduciary guidance.
  3. Employee Education and Support: Education materials, workshops and personalized guidance for participants.
  4. Investment Monitoring: Investment lineup reviews, performance monitoring and fund adjustments.
  5. Employee Engagement: Enrollment support, retirement readiness assessments and ongoing communication.
  6. Plan Sponsor Support: Fiduciary guidance and benchmarking.
  7. Regulatory and Legal Compliance: Compliance with changing regulations.
  8. Retirement Income Planning: Pre-retirement counseling and tools for income planning.
  9. Technology Tools: Digital platforms for participants.
These deliverables help ensure that the 401(k) plan is well-managed, compliant and meets the needs of both the employer and employees, ultimately driving retirement readiness and engagement.

PLANADVISER: What are three of the most important issues your plan sponsor clients face with their company retirement plans? What actions do you take to assist them in overcoming those issues?

Lanser: The rise of 401(k) plans has brought challenges to plan sponsors, but with these challenges come opportunities.

  • 401(k) Plans: Savings vs. Retirement Plans
    401(k) plans are not true retirement plans; they are savings plans. They do not provide a steady income stream during retirement, ensuring retirees have funds to cover living expenses. Rather, individuals must convert their savings into a sustainable income stream.

    The most significant behavioral change is when retirees have a guaranteed income source. That enables them to spend more confidently, plan for long-term needs and shift from accumulation to withdrawal. This change ultimately improves retirees’ quality of life and overall retirement experience, giving them the freedom to enjoy their later years with fewer financial worries.

  • Financial Preparedness
    Automatic features have helped individuals save and invest for retirement. However, individuals need holistic planning that goes beyond merely accumulating savings and helps them, as Shlomo Bernartzi says, “land the plane.” This includes managing debt, building emergency savings and preparing for health care costs. I have developed a financial wellness scorecard that provides a single number that assesses financial health and encourages the individual to meet with our financial coaches for guidance.

  • Good Stewardship
    Plan sponsors are challenged to create a competitive benefits plan that meets employee needs while adhering to ERISA and IRS mandates, including heightened security requirements, and managing costs. To tackle these challenges, we adopt a proactive strategy that includes comprehensive planning and continuous education for both sponsors and participants.

PLANADVISER: What’s your favorite book or podcast?

Lanser: “Lombardi’s Left Side,” by Herb Adderley.