When your primary goals are managing costs and increasing revenue, how do you sufficiently entice new recruits and reward current staff members for continually putting their best efforts forward?...
Continue readingRetirement Advisor Council: The Retirement Plan Sponsor
Retirement Plan Sponsor Series: Partner with a Professional Retirement Plan Advisor and Achieve Higher Participant Retirement Readiness Scores A fundamental research study of 400 employers that sponsor a 401(k) or 403(b) plan found that sponsors who partner with a Professional Retirement Plan Advisor enjoy superior outcomes in many areas. In particular, partnering with a Professional Retirement Plan Advisor entirely dedicated to retirement plans helps plan sponsors enhance the retirement readiness of employees. Professional Advisors Enhance Participant Retirement Outcomes Enhancing the retirement preparedness of plan participants is a primary objective of many plan sponsors. Increasingly, sponsors look to their Advisor and service provider to keep participants apprised of personal progress toward achieving retirement readiness. The study provides evidence partnering with an Advisor entirely dedicated to retirement plans may confer plan sponsors an edge: The vast majority of participants in plans that partner with such an Advisor receive an indicator of their personal retirement readiness. Going one step further, most sponsors partnering with an Advisor entirely...
Continue reading
How can I get an estimate of my Social Security benefits?
The easiest way to get an estimate of your future Social Security benefits is to use the benefit calculators available on the Social Security Administration’s website, www.ssa.gov. You can estimate your retirement benefit based on your actual earnings record using the Retirement Estimator calculator, then create different scenarios based on current law that will illustrate how different earnings amounts and retirement ages will affect the benefit you receive. Other benefit calculators are also available that can help you estimate disability and survivor’s benefits. You can also sign up for an account so that you can view your online Social Security Statement. Your statement contains a detailed record of your earnings, as well as estimates of retirement, survivor’s, and disability benefits. It also includes other information about Social Security that will be very useful when planning for retirement....
Continue reading
The Retirement Income Gender Gap – Dealing with a Shortfall
When you determine your retirement income needs, you make your projections based on the type of lifestyle you plan to have and the desired timing of your retirement. However, you may find that reality is not in sync with your projections, and it looks like your retirement income will be insufficient to meet your estimated expenses during retirement. This is called a projected income shortfall. There are many reasons why women, on average, are more likely than men to face a retirement income shortfall. Because women’s careers are often interrupted to care for children or elderly parents, they may spend less time in the workforce. When they’re working, women tend to earn less than men in similar jobs, and they’re more likely to work part-time. As a result, their retirement plan balances and Social Security benefits are often smaller. Compounding the problem is the fact that women often start saving...
Continue readingUnderstanding Social Security
Over 59 million people today receive some form of Social Security benefits, including approximately 38 million individuals age 65 or older. (Source: Fast Facts & Figures About Social Security, 2011) But Social Security is more than just a retirement program. Its scope has expanded to include other benefits as well, such as disability, family, and survivor’s benefits. How does Social Security work? The Social Security system is based on a simple premise: Throughout your career, you pay a portion of your earnings into a trust fund by paying Social Security or self-employment taxes. Your employer, if any, contributes an equal amount. In return, you receive certain benefits that can provide income to you when you need it most–at retirement or when you become disabled, for instance. Your family members can receive benefits based on your earnings record, too. The amount of benefits that you and your family members receive depends...
Continue reading