Products October 22, 2015

Buck Offers Personalized Employee Connection to Benefits

“Life Connect brings asset data together for a user to see their full retirement plan picture,” says Scot Marcotte, with Buck Consultants at Xerox.
Reported by

Buck Consultants at Xerox notes that employees now want their work experience to mirror personal device use, but many employers don’t have the budget to put that kind of technology in place, so it has introduced Xerox Life Connect Solution, a human resources portal designed to improve employee engagement and access to workplace health, wealth and career programs.

For retirement benefits, Scot Marcotte, leader of client technology in the Engagement practice at Buck Consultants at Xerox, tells PLANADVISER, “Life Connect brings asset data together for a user to see their full retirement plan picture.”  Everything from defined benefit to defined contribution data is gathered, including stock plan, health savings account (HSA), 401(k), pension, etc. to complete the wealth-building picture.  Data is segmented by vested and unvested benefits also, to help reinforce what an individual might lose if she were to leave the organization. “We’ve found that view to be a valuable retention tool in our custom solutions, so it’s a key aspect of our Life Connect product offering.”

Want the latest retirement plan adviser news and insights? Sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters.

According to Marcotte, Life Connect can also provide targeted messages about lost opportunities, such as missed savings plan match potential, upcoming stock option expirations, and use-it-or-lose-it situations with flexible spending accounts (FSAs). The company says eligibility-based filtering allows the solution to show only content that’s relevant to the employee. Calendar-driven items, such as completing performance assessments, enrolling in benefits, or registering for a seminar, are prominently positioned for the employee.

In addition, financial news is gathered from syndicated services to keep users current, and up-to-date plan information is posted directly through the portal.

“Life Connect keeps users engaged with all of their HR programs—including retirement plans—through the course of the year to encourage better physical, financial and professional outcomes for the individual.  We believe that when individuals improve their total well being, the organization thrives, too,” Marcotte says.

The experience is optimized for mobile and available through any device. It can enhance the employer brand by using the organization’s name, logo and specific colors. Employees can easily access it through a single sign on within the organization’s intranet, or through a simple, secure, external log-in.

For more information, contact hrconsulting@xerox.com or visit www.xerox.com/hrconsulting.

Data & Research October 22, 2015

Study Reveals Better DC Plan Designs

Aon Hewitt finds DC plan sponsors are beefing up plan features to improve participant outcomes.
Reported by

U.S. employers are taking steps to help workers save more and improve their long-term financial outlook, according to a survey from Aon Hewitt.

The survey of more than 360 employers, representing more than 10 million employees, found 42% of defined contribution (DC) plan sponsors match employee deferrals dollar for dollar, up from 31% in 2013. Before 2013, 50 cents per $1 was the most common formula.

Want the latest retirement plan adviser news and insights? Sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters.

DC plan sponsors who automatically enroll new hires are defaulting employee contributions at a higher rate. Fifty-two percent automatically enroll workers at a savings rate of 4% or more, up from 39% of employers in 2013. Fifty-one percent default workers at or above the company match threshold, nearly 10 percentage points higher than in 2013.

Most plan sponsors only automatically enroll new hires, but many are taking action to ensure more workers participate in the plan. Currently, 16% of sponsors automatically enroll all eligible employees (also called “back-sweeping”) on an ongoing (annual) or one-time basis—double the percentage that did so in 2013.   

“With more workers falling short of their retirement savings needs, employers are being more aggressive about making plan design changes that will help workers close the savings gap,” says Rob Austin, director of Retirement Research at Aon Hewitt. “While these tweaks to the plan may seem small, they can have a profound impact on workers’ ultimate retirement wealth.”

Models from Aon Hewitt find increasing employer match to a dollar-for-dollar formula can boost participants’ savings by up to $85,000. Auto-enrolling at 6% can boost savings by up to $357,000 and automatically escalating employee deferrals can result in a $275,000-boost. More data is here.   

Aon Hewitt also found DC plan participation and account balances are at an all-time high, at an average 79% and $100,320, respectively. The average savings rate increased to 7.6%. More results from the 2015 Trends & Experience in DC Plans Survey are here.

«