PLANSPONSOR - August/September 2021 - 22

2021 PLANSPONSOR NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Other qualities she seeks in a recordkeeper include its
being reliable, trustworthy, education-oriented and proactive.
Understanding the Fugro product and services-the company is
in the surveying and mapping services industry-is key, because
when a provider knows its client, it will also understand its workers
and what could benefit them and their families, Moody said.
Stephen Popper, managing director at SageView Advisory
Group, said valued recordkeepers will exhaust ideas and options
with the plan sponsor and other providers. Keeping others on
the plan team informed is also appreciated, including notifying
them when a particular staff member will be out of the office or
unavailable. " You'd be surprised how many recordkeepers don't
let us know when they'll be out, " Popper said.
Further, recordkeepers should give thought to whom they
pair with a client, added Jason Chepenik, senior vice president
of retirement and wealth at OneDigital. " It doesn't matter how
many assets you have-you have to match up with the right
person, or immediately you'll figure out that it doesn't work, " he
said. " That can impact the relationship. " Take the time to find a
provider that will fit, rather than rushing to hire one, he advised
sponsors. He also likes vendors that offer multiple possible solutions
for a need, he said. " My favorites are the vendors that brainstorm
and work together to find four or five different solutions. "
I prefer to work with both as a true
partnership. I lean on their ability
and bounce ideas off
of them and look to
them to provide expert
knowledge where
I may not have it.
-RACHELLE MOODY
When providers make a mistake, it is important for them to
own up to it, Popper said, especially if a participant or employee
is upset. With errors due to miscommunications, for instance,
vendors are expected to be upfront about them and work with the
plan sponsor, adviser and any third-party group to prevent another
occurrence, he said.
While recordkeeper mistakes are not a dealbreaker for
Moody, she said, there should be only a minimum. " If it's a
recurring issue, that's not going to be good. I haven't had the
same mistake repeated over and over again, but if there's a new
mistake, those should be few and far between. "
Considering the amount of consolidation going on in the
industry, plan sponsors could learn that their recordkeeper is
being or has been acquired. If so, Moody said, it is especially
important to speak with it and find out how the transaction
22 PLANSPONSOR.COM August - September 2021
might affect the plan. She urged employers to ask: Why is there
a need for consolidation? Does the acquiring firm offer a participant
website? How will the new investment options be chosen?
How will the new recordkeeper act as a partner with our adviser?
Does it generate revenue on its investment offerings? What does
it do to prevent data breaches in cyberattacks?
The risk of cyberattacks has especially increased since
so much of the country's workforce switched to remote work
environments last year, and more litigation over cybersecurity
lapses has resulted.
Again, plan sponsors need to ask questions, panelists said.
" It's up to us to know what's happening, " said Chepenik. " It can
no longer be 'I'm assuming my vendor is doing this.' You have to
document that [cybersecurity measures are] happening. "
-Amanda Umpierrez
'Understanding Options
For Investment Selection'
After committees decide which asset classes to include in their
retirement plan lineup, they must also decide what version of
each investment to add. Panel experts reviewed available investment
options and discussed what plan sponsors should consider
when debating between them.
Environmental, social and governance (ESG), and sustainable,
investing saw a rise in interest during the coronavirus
pandemic last year, as more participants engaged with their plan,
the experts noted.
Sharon Kacsits, director of human resources (HR) for North
America at COFCO International USA, a winner in this year's
Plan Sponsor of the Year Awards, said her company recently
added optional sustainable funds " to allow employees who are
passionate about [ESG] to be able to contribute to those funds. "
James Buccella, president of ADP Strategic Plan Services,
noted a growing demand for ESG. " I get calls from plan sponsors
saying, increasingly participants are asking about the funds
and choices available to them, " he said.
The pecuniary rule proposed by the Department of Labor
(DOL) last year during former President Donald Trump's administration
led some employers to move away from the idea of ESG
investment, as many believed showing that a sustainable fund
performed better than another fund could be " very difficult, "
Buccella said. Because President Joe Biden's administration has
since taken a different stance and appears to be more accepting
of ESG investing-including by asking the DOL to consider
rescinding the Trump-era rule-more employers are willing to
introduce these funds to attract participants, he said.
Today, plan sponsors choosing a default investment for their
plan have target-date funds (TDFs), managed accounts and even
stable value funds as options.
When Kacsits began at COFCO, the company-formed from
two businesses that merged-was still operating two separate
plans. One plan defaulted participants into a TDF, the other into
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