Products November 30, 2007

Ftwilliam.com Issues Latest Version of Form 5500 Software

ftwilliam.com, a Milwaukee-based provider of plan documents and government forms, has released the 2007 version of its Form 5500 software package.
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A company news release said the product received certification by the U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) EFAST program.

In addition, ftwilliam.com said it has updated its 5500 software to provide for simplified reporting for plans with fewer than 25 participants and edit checks to accommodate these changes.

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ftwilliam.com’s 55Autofill feature, allowing a user to download all of the prior year’s data from the DOL database into the current year’s forms by entering the plan sponsor’s EIN number, will remain available to all users, the company said.

More information is at www.ftwilliam.com.

Data & Research November 30, 2007

Two-Thirds of DC Plans Use Management Consultant

Sixty-nine percent of defined contribution plan sponsors use an investment management consultant, according to a new survey.
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One-third (34%) of DC sponsors pay service provider fees based on agreed-upon service performance levels, according to data from the Brookfield, Wisconsin-based International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP). Just over half (55%) of DC sponsors said they look over their investment performance quarterly.

IFEBP said 54% of responding DC sponsors have a bundled arrangement with their investment service providers, 31% use an unbundled setup, and 8% use an alliance arrangement.
Some 45% of DC plans use target-date funds while 41% have an auto rebalancing feature in their plans, according to the press release.

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Defined Benefit Plan Trends

Meanwhile, on the defined benefit side, 88% of DB sponsors, hire consultants to help with plan investment management while almost all, 94%, use outside investment managers.

Nearly two-thirds, 65%, of responding DB plan sponsors review investment manager performance quarterly. About one-third of sponsors meet with their investment managers annually and a quarter does so only as necessary.

The survey reflects responses from 167 corporations, multiemployer trust funds and public/governmental employers in the United States and Canada.

More information is available at www.ifebp.org/surveysample.

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