2017
Defined Contribution Survey
Plan sponsors assess their DC plan providers- categorized in six asset sizes.
Methodology
The following pages summarize plan sponsor satisfaction with defined contribution (DC) plan recordkeeper offerings in 23 areas of participant/sponsor services covering five broad categories: technology, education, plan administration, fees and investments, and account/client service teams.
Results were compiled from the 2017 PLANSPONSOR DC Survey—which distributed more than 50,000 questionnaires to DC plan sponsors listed in the PLANSPONSOR database—as well as from client lists supplied by DC recordkeepers; a total of 3,750 responses were received by the close of the survey, November 14, 2017.
To qualify for inclusion in the published results, a provider had to meet specific quotas in each of six asset-based markets (see charts for details). A total of 24 providers qualified for listing; additional details on these and other providers can be found in our 2017 Recordkeeping Survey (available at plansponsor.com/research).
Sponsor satisfaction within a given area of service was derived from the percentage of respondents “completely satisfied” less those that were “neutral” or “dissatisfied.”
The three highest-scoring providers in each service category earned a “Best in Class” Award, as did those providers with a net satisfaction rate above the asset group’s benchmark score (also listed in each chart). A “Service Commendation” was given to each recordkeeper that did not receive a Best in Class honor but exhibited strong client satisfaction within a service attribute—i.e., more than 50% of clients were “completely” satisfied with the service offering.
Results also include the percentage of completely satisfied ratings received across all categories in each major area of service and the provider’s net recommendation rate, based on Satmetrix Systems’ Net Promoter ScoreSM.* For more information, contact brian.okeefe@strategic-i.com.
*Net Recommendation/Promoter Score represents the percentage of respondents “very likely to recommend” the provider (i.e., giving it a score of 9 or 10 on a 10-point scale) minus the percentage of scores of 6 or below (i.e., “neutrals” and those “likely to recommend against”).
