Among retirement plan advisors who serve the small-plan market, what are the best practices of successful advisors? Principal’s Tom Donnelly offers three:1. Keep your prospect pipeline full. Follow up thoroughly — remember that “no” often means “not right now.”2. Develop an “octopus” practice. What... READ MORE

In a FINRA report released this week, the SRO warned members about potentially abusive sales practices and lack of oversight, with an emphasis on broker compensation. The report, the product of a study involving 14 member firms, cited concerns about sales incentives on commissioned-based products... READ MORE

The ERISA consultants at the Columbia Management Retirement Learning Center Resource Desk regularly receive calls from financial advisors on a broad array of technical topics related to IRAs and qualified retirement plans. A recent call with an advisor in New Jersey is representative of a common... READ MORE

According to a Reuters report, Vanguard is threatening to impose a ban on trading in three of its funds in the Southwest Airlines pilots’ 401(k) plan due to what it claims is unexpected and excessive trading due to recommendations by an investing newsletter to which many participants subscribe. The... READ MORE

The DOL usually releases the annual 401(k) and other plan limits right about now, but this year delays are expected due to the government shutdown. Citing “credible sources,” 401kHelpcenter suggests that the limits will remain virtually unchanged in 2014. The complete estimate can be found here. Of... READ MORE

Is the move toward using a 3(16) fiduciary inevitable? According to the folks at Fiduciary Plan Governance, the answer is yes. But what does it mean to plan advisors, and should they be adopting the model?ERISA 3(21) and 3(38) fiduciaries make investment recommendations, with the latter “enjoying”... READ MORE

Drinker Biddle provides some concise guidance for advisors interested in using custom target date funds. While the use of packaged TDFs has skyrocketed, the use of custom TDFs is limited. The DOL guidance on TDFs seem to favor the custom approach because they can use a plan’s existing investment... READ MORE

Stopping short of requiring fiduciary education by plan sponsors, the DOL is asking more questions about how companies are training their committee members, according to a report by BNA citing attorneys at the law firm of Trucker Huss. Citing two recent investigations, attorneys from the San... READ MORE

Though much of the government is shut down, there are some deadlines that are not — like Form 5500 filing and other deadlines, such as plan funding. According to David Levine of the Groom Law Group, a skeleton crew of 20 IRS staffers exempted from the furlough will focus on statute protection and... READ MORE

As the financial services industry braces for changes in the definition of a fiduciary, SEC Chair Mary Jo White indicated at a Washington, DC conference this week that the uniform fiduciary rule remains a “major focus” at her agency — although she would not specify a time frame in which the... READ MORE

Have you ever forgotten a password at the precisely the wrong time — like when you need to access a website or make a crucial payment? Do you still use “1111” as your password or rely on ones stored on your browser? If the answer is yes, or if you have been using the same password for years, you... READ MORE