Pinnacle Plan Design Adds Consulting Actuary

Okum will be responsible for the design and administration of defined benefit retirement plans, with a focus on the mid-sized to large plan markets. She will consult with employers that are looking to implement a defined benefit retirement plan as well as other third-party administrators that are looking to outsource their actuarial needs. Additionally, she will be part of Pinnacle’s team that offers continuing professional education (CPE) and other industry education to financial advisers, wholesalers, certified public accountants (CPAs), attorneys, and third-party administrators.

Prior to joining Pinnacle Plan Design, Okum was the owner and chief actuary of Premier Actuarial Solutions in the San Francisco Bay area. During her 20-year career in the field, she has also held advanced actuarial positions at a Big Four accounting firm, a large national human resources consulting firm, and a third-party administrator.

She has earned several actuarial designations, including Associate of the Society of Actuaries (ASA), Enrolled Actuary (EA), Member of the American Academy of Actuaries (MAAA), and Member of the Society of Pension Actuaries (MSPA). Okum received her bachelor’s degree in actuarial science from the University of Illinois and her master’s degree from Harvard’s School of Business Administration.

Okum is active with the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA). She is currently serving a three-year term on ASPPA's College of Pension Actuaries (ACOPA) Leadership Council. She was on the ACOPA Actuarial Symposium Conference Committee in 2011 and 2012, and has served as the Committee Chair since 2013. Okum is also on the Editorial Board of Plan Consultant magazine.

"During my 20-year career as a pension actuary, I have worked with both small and large plan sponsors to cover the gamut of defined benefit plan issues," says Okum. "My expertise includes the design and administration of increasingly popular cash balance plans for professional service employers, as well as financial accounting under FASB's Accounting Standards Codification No. 715 for larger organizations. I look forward to joining a talented team of client-focused pension professionals."

Okum will be based in northern California and will provide Pinnacle Plan Design's actuarial services throughout the West Coast and nationally.

Pinnacle Plan Design is a national provider of qualified retirement plan design, administration and actuarial consulting services for traditional defined benefit, cash balance, 401(k), and profit-sharing plans. It is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona, with offices in Phoenix, Houston, Texas, and Denver, Colorado. For more information, visit www.pinnacle-plan.com.