While the Department of Labor (DOL) does not necessarily mandate
plan sponsors to regularly run a request for proposals (RFP) to monitor their vendors, the regulatory agency does assume that "… plans normally conduct RFPs from service providers at least once every three to five years …" in anticipation of changes to provider fee structures and service disclosures.
“Defined contribution [DC] retirement
plan sponsors can strengthen their plan governance and improve their plan’s return on investment [ROI] by using detailed analytics that evaluate specific segments of their employee population, based on age, job category, tenure and benefit structure,” says a recent Willis Towers Watson “Insights.”
The program asks
plan sponsors to consider important plan criteria including objectives, risk tolerance, demographics and expected participant behavior.
Plan sponsors with fiduciary oversight of their organization's 401(k) plan need to understand the way in which investment management firms apply revenue sharing generated on 401(k) plan asset investments.
According to the firm, the site helps
plan sponsors and plan consultants manage and optimize plans, drive outcomes and engage employees.
401(k)
plan sponsors are responsible for offering an array of appropriate investment options, and participants are responsible for directing their investments among those options.
This has triggered a healthy competition among
plan sponsors desiring to enroll Medicare participants in their prescription drug plans.
Many
plan sponsors "appear to be shoring up their plans with an eye toward eventually winding them down," the firm says.