IFP Motion Solutions Inc.

IFP Motion Solutions Inc. is a motion-control company that manufactures and services hydraulic, pneumatic and electronic power systems in industries as varied as pharma and aerospace, as well as many more. While the company serves clients internationally, CEO Don Kaas sits down with each participant in its retirement plan every year, in person, to discuss the status of their 401(k) account and their saving progress.

Kaas is 83 years old and semi-retired, splitting his time between Florida and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where IFP has its headquarters. Those Cedar Rapids one-on-ones sometimes include mentoring if the employee needs guidance in saving for retirement, says Human Resources Director Valerie Burns.

“He’s always done that, every year. And even through COVID, he [met with people] through Zoom,” Burns says. “It’s very personal, and it means a lot to him.”

Burns adds that Kaas started the company’s profit-sharing plan in 1977, just five years into the company’s history. The plan remains a major selling point when recruiting new employees, she says.

The average employer contribution since the plan’s inception has exceeded 7% annually and is funded first with the intention of providing “retirement assistance to everyone, regardless of their ability to contribute on their own,” Burns says.

“The company figures out the numbers at the end of the year and determines what [it] can contribute to the profit sharing,” she says. “It’s fully disclosed how they come about it and what the final number is and what’s going into the accounts. … They put that in as a lump sum once a year, and the last couple of years it’s been maxed out per IRS standards at about 15%. If you’re looking [to receive] 10% or 15% of your income every year to retire, that’s a good way to get it.”

To be eligible to receive the profit-sharing benefit, which is based on the company’s annual earnings, an employee must work at the company for more than one year and must work at least 1,000 hours in a year. Once in the plan, an employee is always eligible to receive the benefit.

“This is very advantageous to people who are full time initially and remain with the company for a longer period on a part-time basis prior to retirement,” Burns says.

IFP also recently changed the specifics under which an employee may enroll, allowing deferrals to begin after 90 days on the job, while still requiring one year of service and the 1,000 hours minimum to be eligible for the match and profit sharing.

Average tenure at IFP is notably high. Out of 106 active employees, about 90 individuals have more than five years tenure, and 20 employees have been at the company for over 20 years.

Burns says the profit-sharing benefit could be a factor in people wanting to remain at IFP, but she also says the culture motivates people to stay.

“We have a really good culture here, and we spend a lot of time and effort working on it,” she says. “People have always had a voice in our company, and, as we get larger, we still function as a small company. You can talk to the president pretty much every time you want to, and people will listen and take [his] ideas to heart.”

She adds that IFP doesn’t cap its salesmen’s commissions, so “the sky is the limit.”

“I think [the high tenure] has to do with us just treating our employees very fairly,” says Committee Chair Mike Kaas, who is also the CEO’s son. “I think it’s just a generous plan. It’s not just a 401(k) plan—it’s the whole environment.”

—Remy Samuels