Klein
Decisions, a provider of Web-based software to assist with 401(k) investment
decision-making, has expanded its “K4” suite of tools with a small-business
platform.
Klein Decisions, Inc. has launched “K4 Plan Goals for Small
Business”. The small-business version
allows retirement plan advisers and providers to use most of K4 Plan Goals’
functionalities without requiring full data integration with
recordkeepers.The new K4 Plan Goals
offering is designed for small-plan providers and advisers who use multiple
recordkeepers for their retirement plan business.
“We’ve had numerous requests for this,” said
Robert L. Padgette, CEO and founder of Klein Decisions. “Smaller adviser
firms and other service providers wanted a way to give their participants the
benefits of K4 Plan Goals without integration through a recordkeeping
system.”
More Retirement Plans Expected to Offer SRI Options
The number of defined contribution (DC) retirement plans
offering a sustainable and responsible investing (SRI) choice could
double in the next two to three years, according to
Mercer.
Titled “Opportunities for Sustainable and Responsible Investing in US Defined Contribution Plans,” the study found 14% of 421 DC plan sponsors that responded to Mercer’s survey already offer one or more SRI options, while an
additional 13% are either considering an SRI
option or intend to add one in the next two to three years.
The US SIF Foundation/Mercer report also finds that more than
four out of five plan sponsor respondents (84%) — both those that
currently offer SRI options and those that do not — predict that demand
for SRI options in retirement plans will increase or remain steady over
the next five years.
“Today, more and
more Americans rely on defined contribution (DC) pension plans for their
retirement, and it is clear that SRI options are going to be a bigger
part of that picture,” said Lisa Woll, US SIF CEO. “Investment flows to DC plans tend to be steady
during market downturns, making DC plans an important retirement tool
for many workers. The retirement industry regularly analyzes the overall
investment composition of DC plan assets; however, plan sponsors and
participants have had little concrete information about the availability
of sustainable and responsible investing options. This year, the US SIF
Foundation determined a new survey was needed to fill in that
information gap, particularly given the significant growth in SRI,
tumult in the financial markets and changes in the DC retirement
industry over the last five years.”
(Cont...)
Key findings in the report include:
For those plan sponsors that currently offer SRI options, the primary
reasons for doing so are to align their plans with their organizational
missions and to meet employee demand.
Nearly three in five respondents (58%) say they have minimal or no understanding of SRI investment products and indices.
Whether a plan sponsor offers SRI options bears little correlation to
the plan’s size, either by value of assets or number of participants.
Rather, it appears that SRI options are most likely to exist where the
philosophy is aligned with an organization's objectives and culture. SRI
options are more likely to be found in the plans of non-profit,
mission-based, or public organizations than in corporations.
Even though staff and participant demand is cited as one of the primary
reasons for adding an SRI fund option, more than 70% of the plan sponsor
respondents that do not offer such options say they believe that SRI
options have never been requested by participants. (The survey did not
ask plan sponsors whether they had a formal way to elicit or track
participants’ potential interest in SRI or other options.)
A
small subset of respondents say they do not offer SRI options, but have
received participant requests for them. These plan sponsors say the
primary reason they have not added SRI options—cited by just under
one-quarter of the subset—was that the requests from participants have
not reached a sufficient level. Somewhat lesser concerns—cited by under
one-fifth of this group—were questions about fiduciary duty and
financial performance.