401(k) Specialist Podcast

Bonnie Treichel Talks Retirement Income Solutions, the New ESG Rule and SECURE 2.0

There’s a select few people in the retirement business who seem like they’re just about everywhere, and are involved in just about everything. Bonnie Treichel from Endeavor Retirement is one of those people.

As the Chief Solutions Officer of Endeavor Retirement, she uses her unique experience as an ERISA attorney and an advisor to help remove the weight of retirement plan complexities by empowering advisors to teach their plan sponsor clients about governance and the importance of a sound process.

She also works closely with the Retirement Income Consortium to help advance its goal of accelerating the adoption of guaranteed income solutions in retirement plans. She talks about that, some key thoughts about SECURE 2.0, and the impending new ESG rule in this first 2023 episode of the 401(k) Specialist Pod(k)ast.

The Groom Law Group’s Jake Eigner Talks Final SECURE 2.0 Hurdles and New ESG Rule Impacts

Groom Law Group Attorney Jake Eigner—a rising young star in the ERISA community—highlights some of the sticking points that need to be worked out in finalizing the SECURE 2.0 retirement reform package on Capitol Hill, including differences in the three bills making up the package, RMD age timelines, and an issue with increasing access to Collective Investment Trusts in 403b plans.

Eigner—who prior to his legal career was a Vice President at a large Registered Investment Advisor—also gives his thoughts on the Department of Labor’s new ESG rule, its impact on QDIAs, and why the new rule may only be temporary.

The Carson Group’s Jamie P. Hopkins is a busy guy. A nationally recognized writer and researcher who frequently speaks at events around the country, Jamie is the Managing Partner of Wealth Solutions at the Carson Group, and he’s also a Finance Professor at Creighton University’s Business School. On top of that, he’s got a new book this month, “Find Your Freedom: Financial Planning for a Life on Purpose.”

We wanted to get his take on why he wrote the new book along with Ron Carson, but of course, while we had a few minutes with him we also wanted to get his take on some other hot-button issues facing the retirement industry right now, such as the recent midterm election and what he thinks might be the most impactful provision of pending SECURE 2.0 legislation (and why we’re not ready for it).

Surprising Findings About Participant Retirement Income Perceptions: Invesco’s Greg Jenkins  

Our friends at Invesco recently released a voluminous new study exploring 401k plan participant and plan sponsor preferences for generating long-term retirement income. The research unearthed some rather surprising findings, including that only a very small percentage of 401k participants are confident in their ability to generate a retirement income strategy on their own. And perhaps not so surprisingly, a majority of participants are worried they will run out of money in retirement.

To dive into some of the biggest surprises uncovered in the new research, our 401(k) Specialist Pod(k)ast guest today is Greg Jenkins, Managing Director and Head of Institutional Defined Contribution at Invesco. 

• Read the full study, “Show Me the Income,” here. 

What Excites, Intrigues Ascensus CEO David Musto about the Industry?

What’s happening with sequence-of-return risk, inflation, and the possibility of more delayed retirements? There are few better to answer than Dave Musto, CEO of independent recordkeeping giant Ascensus.

Musto joins us to talk about these topics and more, and as Halloween approaches, what scares him about the industry? 

Here's the Skinny on President Biden's Student Loan Debt Relief

Long expected, it's finally happened. President Biden declared student loan debt relief for certain borrowers through what the administration calls targeted cancellation.

We wanted to know what it meant for borrowers and retirement savers and what impact it might have on employee benefits, so we asked Jeffrey Hull, founder of Savvy Financial. It’s a firm that helps employers empower their employees to both save for college and pay off student debt.

SRP’s Shannon Maloney Likes to Make Tough Guys Cry—Here’s Why
Shannon Maloney is a Desert Storm veteran, Managing Director with Strategic Retirement Partners (SRP), and a monthly finalist for the 2022 Top Advisor by Participant Outcomes.

Shannon joined us to talk about ESOPs and defined benefit plans, which are two areas of her expertise. She also discussed what her military background taught her about the 401(k) business and her joy in making tough guys cry.

Vestwell CEO Aaron Schumm on Who Owns the Participant and What’s Next for Recordkeeping

We pitched Vestwell CEO Aaron Schumm a softball question to start the interview and hit him with a hard follow-up. True to form, he deftly fielded both.

The digital 401(k) recordkeeper is on a tear of late, raising money from major players, and is now named to INC. magazine’s list of the fastest growing U.S. companies. We discuss needed disruption in the recordkeeping space, a pivot to college savings, and what’s next for the industry and company.

Schroders’ Deb Boyden on Alternative Assets, ESG, and Other Investment Menu Hot Button Issues

Developing an effective investment menu for 401(k) plan sponsors is always a tricky yet interesting proposition. Include too few options and it lacks proper diversification, but add too many, and plan participants are quickly overwhelmed.

Schroders’ Deb Boyden, Head of US Defined Contribution, is here to help us figure it out.  She explains what and what not to include, the value of active and passive options, and best practices for advisors when educating employees.

intellicent’s Grant Arends Adds Another ‘F-Word’ to Fees, Funds, and Fiduciary

It’s always fun speaking with the Arends brothers about their very successful financial firm intellicents. Grant Arends, the company’s Co-Founder and President of Retirement Services, also happens to be our Top Advisor by Participant Outcomes (TAPO) for the month of July, an honor long overdue. 

He joins us to discuss his laser-like focus on worksite financial planning, how the firm defines retirement plan success and, of course, a particular client case of which he’s most proud.