Jacqueline Louie
Most plan sponsors agree on the importance of providing some form of qualified advice to plan members, which reflects a shift in risk appetite. Sponsors are realizing not providing any options for members to obtain qualified advice might actually be a bigger risk.
Matt Miles, vice-president, product and marketing, group benefits and retirement solutions with Manulife shared the best ideas from the topic discussed at the 2015 DC Plan Summit.
Key takeaways for employers:
- Most plan sponsors agree if they’re going to make advice available to members, it needs to be broad enough to help members achieve the real goal of retirement preparedness. That advice needs to include more holistic financial planning, including but not limited to advice about the member’s registered group retirement plan.
- The quality, objectivity and independence of advice provided to members is very important. Sponsors need to do their due diligence around choosing advice options that meet those needs.
- A multi-channel delivery approach for advice is critical. Face-to-face meetings are desirable but not always practical or scalable. Plan sponsors are also open to online and phone options.
View more videos from the 2015 DC Plan Summit.
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