From Milliman

This company, a home builder, has more than 1,500 employees, including upper management, sales consultants, and builders with projects in several cities. Plan administration can be complicated because some of the employees are full-commission sales consultants and do not receive a paycheck every period.

For support in the various operational tasks involved, the company’s benefits director says she can count on the Milliman team: Diann Johnson, DC consultant and relationship manager, who has served the client for nine years; Wes Bair, defined contribution compliance associate, employee benefits administration, who has served it almost four years; and ShiVonne Schrade-Stith, DC plan management analyst, who has served it for almost three.

“Diann has a wealth of knowledge, and if she doesn’t know the answer, she finds out,” the benefits director says. “Wes is responsible for all the audit preparations, and he does an excellent job.” She adds that he also handles the quarterly 401(k) match—which can vary significantly for employees who have variable income. “Once the quarter ends, we have five days to get that number to accounting. That’s incredibly tight and short,” she says.

“Communication is critical to the successful coordination of this time-sensitive project,” Bair notes. “[The benefits director] makes it easy—she asks the right questions, researches and responds quickly to last-minute data updates and participant changes, and is a great collaborator.”

Schrade-Stith’s job is to keep the 401(k) running smoothly, day-to-day. “It’s critical for me to be proactive, understand [the company’s] plan features, know the timing requirements and respond quickly,” she says.

Sometimes the sponsor hears from participants with issues unique to their job—e.g., employees in sales have reached out after receiving a notice about late loan payments in pay periods when they earned no commission. Schrade-Stith explains to them that their arrears will come out of their next commission check and can catch them up, and that they can make three or four payments in advance.

“They look at all of the options”—for repaying loans, but also for solving client issues in general—the benefits director says.

—Kimberly Lankford