Products June 17, 2013

WMSI Expands Call Center Platform

June 17, 2013 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – WMSI has launched a new call center platform with expanded capabilities.
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The platform provides clients with the flexibility to aggregate unlimited plan, participant and adviser data feeds from internal, external and vendor sources into one centralized processing platform to provide retirement plan participants in transition with better education about their distribution options and opportunities to preserve their savings for retirement. Utilizing WMSI’s Web-based platform, clients can create a centralized system that can be accessed easily by call center representatives in multiple locations, and clients can benefit from straight-through processing efficiencies for multiple transaction types.  

The WMSI platform is designed specifically for call centers in the retirement services industry to help representatives process retirement-related transactions in the most efficient way possible, the company said. The offering also enables clients to create and leverage customized workflows and logic in support of each transaction type.  

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Initially designed with individual retirement account (IRA) rollovers in mind, WMSI has expanded the platform’s servicing features to support several additional types of transactions, including retirement plan enrollments, plan-to-plan rollovers, annuity processing, distribution processing and fund mapping elections. WMSI’s technology can also repurpose recordkeeping data to facilitate product account openings or to channel lead referrals to advisers. The system provides clients with the flexibility to customize the user interface to provide meaningful, real-time guidance to their representatives during point of call.  

The system also provides clients with optional features outside the call center environment, such as the ability to run on-demand custom reports and data mining queries, and the ability to print personalized marketing collateral using WMSI’s in-house print and fulfillment capabilities. WMSI can also create and provide files to print vendors on behalf of their clients.  

“In today’s competitive retirement landscape, increasing assets under management is highly dependent upon a firm’s ability to leverage data to deliver more personalized services and value to customers in point of service interactions,” said John Geli, CEO of WMSI. “Our call center platform is a very cost effective way for firms to harness data, streamline process flows and enhance customer interactions to yield quantifiable results.”  

For more information about WMSI, visit www.wealthmsi.com.
Benefits June 17, 2013

Higher Ed. Faculty In No Rush to Retire

June 17, 2013 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – Baby Boomer faculty at higher education institutions say they will delay retirement or not retire at all.
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Results of Fidelity Investments’ “Higher Education Faculty Study,” which examined the behaviors and attitudes of Baby Boomer (ages 49 to 67) faculty members at higher education institutions, found 74% plan to delay retirement past the age of 65 or never retire at all. When asked the reasons for this delay, 81% cited professional reasons, while 69% cited economic concerns.  

Boomer faculty who plan to delay retirement due to professional reasons said they will do so because they want to stay busy and productive (89%), they love their work too much to give it up (64%), and they are unwilling to relinquish continued access to—and affiliation with—their institution (41%). Of those who say they will delay retirement for economic reasons, 55% are unsure they have enough retirement savings, 42% want to maximize Social Security payments, and 42% believe they will need continued health insurance.  

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Many Boomer faculty members indicate they need help in specific areas as they consider their financial future. Six in 10 (61%) are confident they can learn about investments and finance on their own, but 70% do not have a formal investment plan in place for their retirement savings.

Additionally, seven in 10 (70%) say they have at least some experience as investors, but when asked in which areas they need financial guidance, 43% say they need help choosing specific investments, 36% want help developing a formal plan for their retirement savings strategy, and 35% want help assessing their overall financial picture, goals and needs.  

“Making the decision to retire is difficult for any Baby Boomer, but it can be even more complex for faculty who are deeply dedicated to education, and the students and institutions they serve,” said John Ragnoni, executive vice president of Tax-Exempt Retirement Services at Fidelity Investments.  “We understand that financial security is an important factor for faculty contemplating retirement, and that personal and professional considerations will also weigh heavily as they decide when they will retire.”  

The study also found many institutions have implemented retirement programs aimed specifically at providing faculty with financial, professional and personal incentives to support them in making the transition to the next phase of their lives (see “Holistic Retirement Programs Help Higher Ed. Staff Transition”).

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