401(k) Participants Seek Retirement Readiness Help

October 2, 2012 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – 401(k) plan participants prefer more proactive steps to increase their retirement readiness rather than historical transactions on their account statements, a study found.

Additionally, participants would like more analysis, solutions and a better understanding of the tools and guidance the plan provider has to help them optimize the use of their retirement plan.

Nearly half of participants feel they are behind schedule on saving for retirement and three in five wish their employer did more to educate them about their retirement plan, according to the Fourth Annual 2012 DC Participant Experience Study by KK & Company and Greenwald & Associates.

Four in five trust the recommendations of their plan provider, and the same number reported being very interested in learning more about retirement planning from their plan.

Many participants have false confidence in the effectiveness of their efforts to save for retirement, the study revealed. Of the 54% of respondents who believe their savings for retirement are on schedule or ahead of schedule, half are older than age 35 and have less than $240,000 saved in their defined contribution account (26% have less than $100,000 saved).