PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2020 - 28

RESEARCH | 2019 PLANSPONSOR BEST IN CLASS DC PROVIDERS
MIDSIZE MARKET: PLAN ASSETS >$50mm - $200mm
THE MIDSIZE MARKET segment is something of a transitional market,
combining plans just a bit larger than small and a bit smaller than
large. Therefore, plan sponsors' expectations of recordkeepers
rapidly increase as the sponsor, in an effort to secure better
servicing arrangements, begins to leverage the knowledge, experience,
scale and resources commonly found upmarket.
As was true last year, some providers have proven more
adept than others at managing this dynamic, as evidenced by
the fact that six of the 13 qualifying providers received 80% of
the Best in Class Awards presented in the market. Still, sponsor
satisfaction with recordkeeper services showed notable decline in
every service category save one: the ability to accommodate nonmutual
fund investment options such as brokerage accounts,
company stock, etc.
As one might expect, satisfaction declined the most in areas
where plan size and scale necessitate that technology play a more
prominent role. In what will become a theme among larger
plans, sponsor access to plan analytics/benchmarking offerings
(overall a 33.2% net satisfaction rating) and plan reporting
options (30.6%) were the two lowest-rated areas of service among
midsize plans. Among participant services, advice and guidance
tools and mobile offerings scored surprisingly low.
Top 5 Midsize Market Providers
By Net Recommendation/Promoter Score
1 Charles Schwab
2 Newport Group
3 Empower Retirement
4 Milliman
5 OneAmerica
Net Recommendation Rate, 2015 - 2019
64.7%
61.9%
58.2%
58.0%
2015
2016
2017
56.7%
2018
2019
Other providers and their recommendation percentage
listed in this market: Bank of America (65.5%); Fidelity Investments
(52.4%); John Hancock (36.8%); MassMutual (45.5%); Principal
Financial Group (55.6%); TIAA (0.0%); Transamerica (45.0%);
T. Rowe Price (63.6%)
Service Satisfaction for Top 5 Providers
Ordered by Net Recommendation/Promoter Score
= Best in Class
Plan Administration
1 Newport Group
2 Principal Financial Group
3 Charles Schwab
4 OneAmerica
5 T. Rowe Price
Technology
1 Charles Schwab
2 Principal Financial Group
3 Newport Group
4 Bank of America
5 Empower Retirement
Participant Education
1 Newport Group
2 Charles Schwab
87.1%
80.0%
78.1%
73.1%
72.4%
3 Principal Financial Group
4 Bank of America
5 Milliman
Sponsor Services
1 Newport Group
2 Bank of America
3 Charles Schwab
4 Empower Retirement
5 Principal Financial Group
Investment/Fees
1 Newport Group
2 OneAmerica
3 Charles Schwab
3 Empower Retirement
5 Milliman
% >8 out of 10 # of s
86.0%
77.3%
76.5%
75.7%
68.0%
5
5
4
4
3
% >8 out of 10 # of s
76.0%
71.9%
69.9%
63.6%
63.3%
6
4
4
3
% >8 out of 10 # of s
75.0%
69.1%
68.4%
68.3%
65.6%
5
3
4
2
4
% >8 out of 10 # of s
88.0%
87.8%
85.8%
85.5%
84.3%
3
3
3
3
3
% >8 out of 10 # of s
83.7%
79.3%
79.1%
79.1%
76.1%
3
3
3
3
3
28 PLANSPONSOR.COM December 2019 - January 2020
http://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/december-january_2020/TrackLink.action?pageName=28&exitLink=http%3A%2F%2FPLANSPONSOR.COM
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2020

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