Data and Research March 30, 2021

Participants Want Simplified Investment Education

In addition to personalized advice, this includes easy to understand plan investment menus and investment options.

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Fewer than half of investors polled for Capital Group’s “Wisdom of Experience” investor survey series (46%) reported receiving written materials or tools from their employer, whether that was when they were initially enrolled into a sponsored plan or on an ongoing basis after enrollment.

More than one-third (35%) of investors say they use their employer-sponsored retirement plan’s administrator most for advice about how to invest for retirement, and 29% say they use a financial adviser outside of work.

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When asked what types of tools and information they wish plan sponsors would provide, both women and Millennials said more personalized advice on what to invest in topped the list (37% and 42%, respectively). Millennials are also interested in simplified plan menus and improved fund descriptions to help them make better investment decisions.

Roughly one-third of Generation Xers (34%) want clearer explanations of the plan’s investment options and regular updates about plan changes (33%) in addition to personalized advice about what investment(s) to choose (33%).

Retirement industry sources say simplifying a defined contribution (DC) plan’s investment menu can encourage more employees to participate in the plan. Some recommend a fund lineup of between 10 and 15 options. Offering white-labeled funds can also simplify choice for participants while adding more diversity. For example, a fund may be called the “large-cap stock fund” but have multiple underlying fund managers within it.

Capital Group’s survey report, “Retire that thinking: Uncovering better strategies for retirement readiness,” can be found here.

Products March 30, 2021

OneAmerica Offers Online Benefit Enrollment and Administration Platform

The platform from Integrated HR Systems lets employers manage group and voluntary benefits in one portal and offers employees help with comparing options.

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OneAmerica has announced it is offering a new online benefit enrollment and administration platform for customers of its Employee Benefits line of business.

Integrated HR Systems LLC (iHR) provides an easy-to-navigate, mobile-friendly system that walks employees through the process of comparing coverage options, electing their benefits and designating beneficiaries. Experts say employees are increasingly realizing that voluntary benefits are sources of income protection.

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“The shift to a virtual environment in the past year has only accelerated trends that were already in motion—more and more, we’ve seen employers and employees alike expect the benefit enrollment and administration process to be easy and convenient,” says Steven Lynch, vice president, national sales and service for OneAmerica Employee Benefits. “That means being able to find what they need online, when they need it, supported by a system that provides a complete solution for benefits shopping, enrollment, billing and administration.”

For employers, iHR provides a single portal, giving them the ability to manage elections, billing options, employee changes and reporting on group and voluntary life and disability products with increased accuracy and efficiency.

“With iHR, we are able to offer a technology solution designed to create a better end-to-end benefits experience for our customers,” Lynch says.

A fact sheet about the solution, “Online Administration and Enrollment Made Easy,” is available at https://sforce.co/3s9Lo2G.

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