Role Play

Sometimes we learn the most when we least expect to learn anything at all. That is part of the beauty of remaining on a path of continuous improvement throughout one’s career.

As is the case with many of us in the retirement plan advisory space, thanks to abundant travel opportunities, we regularly find ourselves next to a complete stranger as we settle into our train or airline seat. When traveling with such a companion, knowing that he may be beside you for an interminable number of hours—a give-and-take often occurs.

The mental gymnastics and desire to participate in that repartee can be driven by factors such as: duration of the trip, how the other person carries himself or the amount of sleep that either participant logged in the preceding 24 hours. Countless factors are at play when someone asks, “What is your final destination?”

Recently, I was seated next to an individual who knew nothing about our business, had no clue what retirement plan advisers “do” but every reason in the world to learn— his retirement security could depend upon it.

Why the Confusion?

In this case, the person seated beside me was retired from a Fortune 500 company. He had been extraordinarily successful over the years, and he told me some things that surprised me. After I explained that I deliver services to retirement plan sponsors and retirement plan advisers, he quickly asked, “What does a plan adviser do?” then indicated that he could use some help with his 401(k) plan.

I informed him that the firm “handling” his 401(k) plan did have resources that would help. I was informed that he knew that because he had called the 800 number and discussed the various methods that could be used to assist in the management of his fund balances.

As I navigated the conversation, with all the predictability of an experienced retirement plan adviser I started to learn the basics. … He told me he had called the help desk and told them what he was attempting to do with his money. However, his next comment is what startled me the most: He had called the help desk approximately two years ago … and was still waiting for them to call back!

Certainly, the Ball Was Dropped

I was shocked by much of the conversation, not the least of which was the fact that here was a seasoned retiree, a highly compensated individual of a renowned American stalwart, for whom an investment firm had clearly fallen flat on its face—thereby opening the door for a fellow adviser, another investment firm or someone else to swoop in and begin servicing this account as it should be serviced.

I was confused at how a successful executive, so young, vibrant and alert, one who had retired from the corporate grind, could so readily accept what he thought were the ways of the retirement world. Why would this person, who could clearly use—and clearly wanted—direction, be so complacent about these services? Why were there no accountability requirements being imposed by the former executive seated next to me? 

Where did the fault lie? Was this the apathy of the account owner? Did he have sufficient funds to permit him to ignore the oversight of his own retirement assets? Lethargy, apathy, ignorance (or the desire to not appear ignorant), laziness or some other unattractive adjective may be appropriate here. Or it could have been something else completely, which I was unable to discover during the brief period we spent traveling.

I learned much through this conversation. Most of all that, as hard as we fight to do a great job for our plan sponsor clients and their plan participants and employees, those good intentions can be derailed at any number of points along the value chain by any of the multiple parties associated with the plan.