From 401(k)s to 400 Pages: What Plan Advisers of the Year Recommend for Summer Reading

As plan advisers begin to plan their next vacation, many find their getaways are incomplete without a good book.

Several 2026 PLANADVISER Retirement Plan Adviser of the Year finalists shared book recommendations, ranging from nostalgic favorites to titles that have influenced their professional careers.

Books About Business

For advisers looking for a page-turner directly related to their work, Francisco Abril, Hub Retirement’s vice president of financial wellness and employee engagement, recommends “Save More Tomorrow: Practical Behavioral Finance Solutions to Improve 401(k) Plans,” by Shlomo Benartzi. 

Abril, a finalist in the inclusivity and career development category alongside Hub President Joseph DeNoyior, says Benartzi’s book gives readers a practical outlook on how behavioral economics inform retirement saving.

“Benartzi’s insight that the best retirement plan design works with human nature, rather than against it, has influenced how we think about plan features, employee communication and what ‘good’ outcomes look like,” Abril says.

Other finalists recommended more general business books that also inform how they approach their work.

Shane Hanson, president and CEO of Freedom Fiduciaries and a finalist for plan sponsor service, recommends “Atomic Habits,” by James Clear. The book’s advice on how people can improve their performance by 1% every day has influenced Hanson’s outlook on his performance as an adviser.

“Small, consistent improvements in behavior—whether it’s increasing deferral rates by 1%, improving participation slightly or making incremental plan design enhancements—compound over time into meaningful results,” Hanson says. “It reinforces a simple, but powerful, principle: Long-term success is rarely driven by one major decision, but [is instead driven] by consistent, disciplined improvements.”

Other career and personal development books recommended by finalists include:

• “Buy Back Your Time,” by Dan Martell—recommended by Tom Krusic, Closing the Coverage Gap with MEPs and PEPs; 
• “The Psychology of Money,” by Morgan Housel—recommended by Kevin Price, Closing the Coverage Gap with MEPs and PEPs;
• “The Slight Edge: Turning Simple Disciplines into Massive Success & Happiness,” by Jeff Olson—recommended by Christopher DeAndrea, Closing Micro Startup; and
• “Learned Excellence,” by Eric Potterat—recommended by Thomas Simonson, Plan Sponsor Service.

Fiction, Nonfiction Picks

For those looking to escape work, Mark Olsen, the managing director of PlanPILOT and a finalist in the Closing the Coverage Gap with MEPs and PEPs category, recommended a classic from high school assigned reading—John Steinbeck’s “The Grapes of Wrath.”

“Not a typical answer, I know,” Olsen says. “My English teacher, Dr. Hollinger’s, attention to Steinbeck’s language and descriptive analysis of the themes in this book have informed my lifelong love of reading.”

Fiction book recommendations from finalists include:

• “Demon Copperhead,” by Barbara Kingsolver—recommended by Philip Sherman, 403(b) Plan Service;
• “Atlas Shrugged,”by Ayn Rand—recommended by Larry Witzel, Plan Sponsor Service;
• “Life of Pi,” by Yann Martel—recommended by Rick Sauerman, Inclusivity; and
• “Where the Crawdads Sing,” by Delia Owens—recommended by Devyn Duex, Plan Sponsor Service.

Nonfiction book recommendations included:

• “Lombardi’s Left Side,” by Herb Adderly, Dave Robinson and Royce Boyles—recommended by Bruce Lanser, Plan Sponsor Service; and
• “The Boys in the Boat,” by Daniel James Brown—recommended by Patrick McCallister, Closing the Coverage Gap with Micro and Startup Plans.