2021
DC Plan Benchmarking Survey

By studying trends in DC plan design and usage, sponsors can benchmark and improve their own plans.

2021 Survey

2021 Survey

Plan Sizes

It has long been known that plan size correlates to differences in plan design, with larger plans—i.e., those with $200 million or more in plan assets—adopting more progressive features long before their smaller counterparts. Larger plans were among the first to adopt automatic enrollment and remain twice as likely to offer the feature today. They also come with a size and scale that can lead to higher levels of plan oversight and lower investment fees. Collectively, plan size may be the most important yardstick by which to benchmark your retirement plan.

Offers Automatic Enrollment

<$5MM
22%
$5MM – $50MM
47%
>$50MM – $200MM
66%
>$200MM – $1B
83%
>$1B
89%

Uses a Default Deferral Rate of Less Than or Equal to 3% of Salary

<$5MM
65%
$5MM – $50MM
51%
>$50MM – $200MM
44%
>$200MM – $1B
33%
>$1B
35%

Uses a Target-Date Fund as a Default Investment

<$5MM
68%
$5MM – $50MM
76%
>$50MM – $200MM
67%
>$200MM – $1B
82%
>$1B
91%

Uses an Investment Committee for DC Plan

<$5MM
41%
$5MM – $50MM
79%
>$50MM – $200MM
97%
>$200MM – $1B
96%
>$1B
100%

Uses an Investment Policy Statement for DC Plan

<$5MM
57%
$5MM – $50MM
81%
>$50MM – $200MM
90%
>$200MM – $1B
89%
>$1B
97%

Average Asset-Weighted Expense Ratio of All Investment Options

<25 bps
25–50 bps
>50 bps
<$5MM
26%
42%
32%
$5MM – $50MM
26%
36%
38%
>$50MM – $200MM
24%
46%
30%
>$200MM – $1B
25%
50%
25%
>$1B
55%
42%
3%

 

PLANSPONSOR Industry Reports 2022

Unique defined contribution (DC) benchmarking tools based on feedback from roughly 3,000 employers

PLANSPONSOR Industry Reports in a nutshell:

  • 65+ pages in PDF format
  • Cover DC plans in 50 different industries
  • Compare client plans to others in the same industry and asset class, and overall
  • Available with your firm's branding or logo on every page
  • Distributable to sales staff or adviser network; post on your client site behind registration

Availability: December 2021
Download more information here.
Contact Rob Reif / 212-217-6906 / robert.reif@issmediasolutions.com