Frequently Asked Questions

A retirement plan advisor helps employers design, manage, and optimize their workplace retirement plans—like 401(k)s—while ensuring compliance with regulations. They guide investment selection, help reduce fiduciary risk, support employee education, and work to improve overall plan performance and participation.

We specialize exclusively in retirement plan consulting. Unlike general financial advisors or plan administrators, our focus is on helping employers build and maintain high-performing, compliant retirement plans.

We can work with any type of retirement plan. A majority of our client plans have 401(k) plans, 403(b) Plans, 457 plans, Defined Benefit, and other Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation Plans.

We serve businesses of all sizes—from startups to large corporations, nonprofits, and everything in between.

Yes, we act as fiduciaries for all our clients. That means we’re legally obligated to act in your best interest. We can serve in either a 3(21) or 3(38) fiduciary capacity, depending on your needs.

• 3(21) Fiduciary: We provide investment advice, but you retain final decision-making authority and share fiduciary responsibility.
• 3(38) Fiduciary: We take full discretion over investment decisions, assuming more of the fiduciary liability on your behalf.

• We offer flexible fee structures:
  1. Flat fee
  2. Asset-based fee
  3. Or a combination of both
• We’ll work with you to choose the arrangement that best fits your organization.

You’ll have access to our full team, including:

1. A dedicated advisor
2. A Senior Relationship Manager
3. An Education Consultant
4. Our Participant Call Center team for employee support

Plan sponsors are responsible for overseeing plan operations, maintaining compliance, and acting in the best interest of participants. We help you navigate these responsibilities with confidence.

Our service model is built around helping our clients maintain a compliant plan. We offer:

1. Monthly fiduciary training modules
2. An annual (k)lean analysis™ to help pinpoint potential problem areas and build a framework to keep the plan in compliance
3. Fiduciary documentation of meeting minutes and executive decisions

Yes. We conduct annual fee reviews and a full benchmarking/RFP analysis every three years.

We assist in gathering required documentation and support you throughout the audit process.

• Absolutely. We recommend that every client implement an IPS to guide investment decisions, define roles, and support fiduciary oversight.
• An Investment Policy Statement (IPS) is a document that outlines how investment decisions are made within your 401(k) plan. It sets guidelines for selecting, monitoring, and replacing investment options, defines roles and responsibilities, and helps ensure the plan is managed in the best interest of participants. While not legally required, it supports fiduciary oversight and can help protect plan sponsors.

We create custom education plans based on client needs. These plans may include:

1. In-person or virtual group sessions
2. One-on-one meetings
3. Webinars and pre-recorded presentations

You’ll have access to our full team, including:

1. A dedicated advisor
2. A Senior Relationship Manager
3. An Education Consultant
4. Our Participant Call Center team for employee support

Yes! We tailor education plans to your workforce and offer various formats to meet your needs.

Definitely. We frequently engage in these conversations to help employees make informed decisions.

We offer:

1. A monthly participant newsletter
2. Pre-recorded education videos that employees can watch on their own time
3. Enrollment modules
4. Webinars
5. On-site and virtual group and 1-1 meetings

No, we do not offer direct investment advice. Instead, we educate and guide employees so they can make informed choices about their financial future.

Yes. We’ll help you evaluate options and tailor a plan to your company’s goals and workforce.

Our (k)lean Analysis™ explores enhancements to plan design that align with your corporate objectives. We will have in-depth conversions on plan design to help tailor it to your unique organizational needs.

We’ll help you evaluate pre-tax vs. Roth contributions and how to balance both for long-term tax efficiency. For some plans, after-tax contributions may also provide benefits to key employees under certain circumstances.

Yes! We are strong advocates for automatic enrollment and automatic escalation. We believe these auto-features really work to help employees get their savings on track.

We can serve as a 3(38) fiduciary, taking on full investment discretion and the highest level of fiduciary responsibility.

Yes. We provide:

1. Quarterly investment reviews
2. Annual (k)lean compliance analysis™
3. Meeting minutes
4. A digital Fiduciary Briefcase

All great questions!  

1. Recordkeeper & provider:
   • A 401(k) recordkeeper is a company or service provider responsible for tracking and managing the administrative data of a 401(k) retirement plan. They don’t hold the money (that’s the custodian‘s job), but they keep records of who owns what, how much is invested where, and how the plan is operating day-to-day. Additionally, recordkeepers and providers are the same. Examples are Fidelity, Empower, Transamerica, T. Rowe Price, etc.
2. TPA or Third Party Administrator: 
   • If the plan has an unbundled set-up, the TPA helps with plan administration, non-discrimination testing, and annual compliance testing.
3. Custodian: 
   • A retirement plan custodian is a financial institution or authorized entity responsible for holding and safeguarding the assets in a retirement account (like a 401(k)) on behalf of the account owner. They ensure the assets are managed according to government regulations and the plan’s rules.

Yes. We monitor plan fees closely and review them annually for all entities involved with the plan. Every three years, we conduct a comprehensive fee and service analysis, comparing over 40 pages of relevant data points across recordkeepers, to ensure fees and services remain competitive.

Absolutely. We participate in all conversions. We are on every call and we are actively involved in every detail of a conversion.

As a client, you will receive a quarterly investment review from our team.

1. We provide quarterly Investment Reviews that monitor fund performance, and many other metrics, for all funds in the plan.
2. We conduct an annual Compliance Review meeting called our (k)lean™ Analysis.

We monitor investment performance on a quarterly basis. On an annual basis, we review participant metrics in our (k)lean™ Analysis meeting.

Yes! We love engaging with our clients and their employees to help create a financial plan that works for them!

• Our fees are tailored to each client’s unique needs and plan structure. They can be paid directly by the company, assessed against plan assets, or structured as a combination of both—depending on what works best for your organization.
• We believe fee transparency is essential. That’s why our pricing is straightforward, easy to understand, and free from hidden revenue-sharing arrangements or 12b-1 fees. You’ll always know exactly what you’re paying and why.

No. We work with plans of all sizes.

Reach out via email or phone—we’d love to help you review your plan and explore next steps.