Berk will join MJM’s staff as an additional resource focused on the
efficient oversight of 401(k) plans. Her primary focus is on the client
relationship, total plan management, and driving efficiency for both employers
and participants in four key areas. These include best practices in plan
design; fee transparency and cost controls; clarity and coherence in plan
communication; and application of technology to improve plan performance.
Berk is a certified pension consultant (CPC); a qualified
401(k) plan administrator (QKA); and a qualified pension administrator (QPA)
with the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries. According
to MJM401k, she was one of the first in the country to earn the designation of
enrolled retirement plan agent (ERPA). Among Berk’s senior-level positions, she
worked for United Retirement Plan Consultants and a number of regional TPA
firms.
A graduate of Pepperdine University and the DeVry Institute
of Technology, Berk holds two B.A. degrees, one in business management and one
in computer information science, respectively.
MJM401k is a full Employee Retirement Income Security Act
(ERISA) fiduciary and has experience managing all aspects of 401(k) plans
including design, implementation, investments, compliance, employee
communications, provider selection and fee benchmarking. The firm works with
employers to manage plan risk by structuring and maintaining a sound system of
plan fiduciary governance. More about the firm is at www.mjm401k.com.
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Even skilled self-directed investors want to receive support
when it comes to planning and achieving financial goals, according to the J.D.
Power 2015 Self-Directed Investor Satisfaction Study.
J.D. Power’s financial services practice released the 14th
edition of its self-directed investor survey, finding overall customer
satisfaction in this segment of the investing marketplace in 2015 averages 763 on
a 1,000-point scale—holding steady from the previous year.
The study measures self-directed investors’ satisfaction
with their investment firms based on performance in six factors (in order of
importance): interaction; account information; trading charges and fees;
account offerings; information resources; and problem resolution. Looking across
these metrics, J.D. Power says it’s clear self-directed investors “want and
expect more from their firm than just low-cost trades, fast and reliable trade
execution and access to research.”
“While they may not be looking for a full time one-on-one
adviser relationship, they are increasingly looking for a guidance-based
relationship to help them establish and track performance against their
personal financial goals,” the study finds. “Investors with guidance-based
relationships are much more likely to recommend their firm to friends and
family as well as increase their investment levels with the firm.”
Successful guidance-based relationships are based on three
pillars, according to J.D. Power. These are effective communications, relevant
educational resources, and a robust and intuitive suite of digital tools that
help investors with financial planning and portfolio management. The study
suggests firms that can effectively cultivate these elements can satisfy
clients and potentially retain them over the long term, which is especially
important with respect to younger clients.
With respect to investment style, the study shows 66% of
self-directed investors describe themselves as “true do-it-yourself investors”
seeking no adviser input. Another 21% consider themselves to be “validators,” preferring
to have a professional act as a sounding board for their ideas. The remaining
13% consider themselves “collaborators,” the study finds. This group largely
makes decisions collectively with help from some sort of adviser.
Importantly,
J.D. Power finds the number of validators and collaborators is even higher
among Millennials (38%) and women investors (38%), two critical and
fast-growing segments of the investor market.
Mike Foy, director of the wealth management practice at J.D.
Power, says self-directed investors “may not be looking to delegate managing
their money to an adviser, but they do value access to guidance when they are
ready for it.” He says the research shows a lot of diversity in the kind of guidance clients want—from online financial planning tools they can
use on their phone or tablet, to webinars about saving for their children’s education,
to one-one-one meetings with a professional adviser.
“Firms need to make sure that their clients understand
what’s available to them and how the overall value proposition relates to what
they pay,” Foy concludes. “In most cases, clients are getting a lot more value
from their firm than just the ability to trade.”
Other key findings show overall satisfaction is higher among self-directed investors
who have a guidance-based relationship (828) than among those who do not (656).
And when considering the three pillars of guidance-based relationships, each
has a significant impact on satisfaction. Effective communication of
products and services, for example, leads to a 58-points jump in satisfaction
on average. Offering quality investment educational resources gives a 86-points boost
to satisfaction, and providing digital asset-allocation tools brings an even
bigger 114-points bump.
Among self-directed investors with a guidance-based
relationship, 64% say they “definitely will” recommend the firm, compared with
26% among those who do not have this type of relationship.
Even more important—only 40% of investors interviewed for the
J.D. Power study indicate they completely understand the fees they pay, so advisers and other financial services providers should feel some responsibility to improve that. Investors who indicate they received an explanation of fees from their
firm are over three-times more likely to indicate they completely understand
the fees, compared with those who did not receive such an explanation (50% vs.
16%).
The 2015 U.S. Self-Directed Investor Satisfaction Study is
based on responses from more than 3,700 investors who make all of their
investment decisions without the counsel of a personal investment adviser. The
study was fielded in January and February 2015.
Additional findings and results from the study, including
firm-by-firm rankings, are here.