J.P. Morgan Asset Management Names Pam Hess as Retirement Strategist

Pam Hess

J.P. Morgan Asset Management announced Tuesday the appointment of Pam Hess as a retirement strategist on its retirement insights team and an executive director. Hess will report to Michael Conrath, the firm’s chief retirement strategist, and cover topics including retirement plan participant behavior, household financial wellness and best practices for retirement savings.

Hess, who joined JPMAM on January 5, had worked at the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association’s Retirement Research Center as vice president, beginning in 2021, and later became its executive director of research in 2023. Before joining DCIIA, Hess worked at Aon Hewitt for 15 years, where she served as director of retirement research.

“Pam brings a fresh perspective to our team, drawing on her deep expertise in retirement research to help uncover new opportunities and solutions for our clients,” Conrath said in a statement. “Her ability to translate complex trends into actionable strategies will help J.P. Morgan Asset Management continue to set the standard for retirement research.”

About one year ago, in January 2025, J.P. Morgan announced two hires to its retirement team: Josh Forstater became managing director and head of Everyday 401(k), J.P. Morgan’s retirement plan service for small businesses and startups, and Tina Anstett became executive director and an Employee Retirement Income Security Act strategist. Forstater was formerly Vestwell’s head of business development solution design, and Anstett was a former senior ERISA counsel at Smart.

J.P. Morgan Asset Management then launched in July 2025 the Solo 401(k) retirement solution for individual entrepreneurs and self-employed people in organizations with no full-time employees. Vestwell is the recordkeeper for both Everyday 401(k) and Solo 401(k).

In December 2025, J.P. Morgan Asset Management released “Retirement by the Numbers,” a study on fluctuating spending during retirement, including a 20% increase or decrease in the first few years of retirement and a gradual decline in spending with advanced age.

Hess has more than 20 years of experience in strategic planning, program management and deep retirement research, and she has spoken at the PLANSPONSOR National Conference and other industry events. Her earlier roles were in investments and financial services. Hess earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

J.P. Morgan Asset Management had $4.2 trillion in assets under management as of December 31, 2025.