Survey Data: DC Survey With/Without Adviser Findings
DC Survey With/Without Adviser Findings
| Automatic Enrollment Offered |
|---|
| With adviser | Without adviser |
|---|
| Yes | 59.6% | 48.1% |
| No | 40.3% | 51.9% |
| Unsure | 0.1% | 0.0% |
| Automatic Escalation–or Automatic Deferral Increases–Offered |
|---|
| With adviser | Without adviser* |
|---|
| Yes, auto-escalation on enrollment | 27.3% | 16.8% |
| Yes, voluntary—must opt into auto-escalation | 13.6% | 20.0% |
| No | 52.9% | 54.7% |
| Unsure | 6.2% | 8.4% |
| ‘True-Up’ Provision Offered† |
|---|
| With adviser | Without adviser |
|---|
| Yes | 20.4% | 16.3% |
| No | 45.0% | 65.1% |
| Unsure | 34.6% | 18.6% |
| Options Offered to Help Participants Create or Manage Retirement Income |
|---|
| With adviser | Without adviser |
|---|
| Systematic withdrawal plan (SWP) | 62.6% | 54.5% |
| In-Plan insurance-based products that guarantee income | 5.9% | 26.6% |
| In-Plan managed account service | 51.5% | 45.3% |
| In-Plan managed payout fund(s) designed to generate steady cash flow, but which lacks a guarantee | 4.5% | 9.1% |
| Out-of-Plan annuity purchase or bidding service | 3.5% | 7.9% |
| None - do not offer any income-oriented products | 30.7% | 34.3% |
| Financial or Investment Advice Offered to Participants in the Employer's DC plan |
|---|
| With adviser | Without adviser |
|---|
| Yes - one-on-one with financial adviser outside of the plan | 36.7% | 50.0% |
| Yes - third party independent of recordkeeper | 68.8% | 76.3% |
| Yes - proprietary services or recordkeeper tools | 35.1% | 52.6% |
| No - advice is not currently offered to participants | 34.9% | 33.9% |
| Other | 1.0% | 1.3% |
| Investment Vehicles Used in the DC Plan |
|---|
| With adviser | Without adviser |
|---|
| Mutual funds | 84.3% | 89.1% |
| Separate accounts | 43.3% | 37.0% |
| Collective investment trusts | 33.5% | 37.8% |
| Exchange-traded funds | 7.8% | 8.4% |
| Self-directed brokerage windows | 32.4% | 41.2% |
| Mutual fund windows | 10.5% | 9.2% |
| Professionally managed account service (for participants) | 35.2% | 32.8% |
| None of these investment vehicles | 0.4% | 5.6% |
| Calculation of Total Fees, From All Sources, Paid to DC Plan Provider or Recordkeeper for Prior Plan Year |
|---|
| With adviser | Without adviser |
|---|
| Yes – externally benchmarked plan cost/fees | 14.0% | 12.8% |
| Yes – plan to benchmark plan cost/fees in the near future | 2.5% | 3.5% |
| Yes – but did not externally benchmark plan cost/fees | 3.1% | 4.7% |
| No – but intend to calculate cost/fees in 6 months | 0.4% | 0.0% |
| No – but may do it at some point in the future | 2.1% | 10.5% |
| Unsure | 77.8% | 68.6% |
| Have a Written Investment Policy Statement for DC Plan¶ |
|---|
| With adviser | Without adviser |
|---|
| Yes | 65.9% | 39.9% |
| No | 10.7% | 30.4% |
| Unsure | 23.4% | 29.7% |
| Frequency of Formal Review of Investment Options |
|---|
| With adviser | Without adviser |
|---|
| Quarterly | 48.3% | 17.4% |
| Twice per year | 17.2% | 11.4% |
| Annually | 26.9% | 33.5% |
| Less than once per year | 3.0% | 15.0% |
| Unsure | 4.6% | 22.8% |
Footnote:
*Numbers do not add up to 100% due to rounding errors
†A true-up match can be used to restore matching contributions “lost” when an employee reaches the annual contribution limit prior to year-end and thus foregoes the opportunity to make additional contributions that would have otherwise been matched. In such situations, a plan may elect to “true-up” the employer matching contribution.
‡An IPS is a separate document from the Summary Plan Description and outlines procedures for evaluating investment options.
