OneAmerica has unveiled a new retirement plan solution that eases administration and retains independence for businesses seeking to gain the scale that comes with a pooled or multiple employer plan approach.
The firm’s “OneConnect” offering features flexible plan design and streamlined fiduciary oversight. “OneConnect provides a dynamic solution for consideration by retirement plan sponsors as they investigate ways to optimize plan design and streamline administrative requirements,” notes Sandy McCarthy, President of Retirement Services for OneAmerica. “OneConnect offers many of the benefits of pooled plans, but with greater simplicity.”
The SECURE Act mandates the involvement of up to four financial professionals: an ERISA 3(16) fiduciary; a third-party trustee responsible for contribution collections; a Pooled Plan Provider; and a separate 3(21) or 3(38) fiduciary responsible for plan investments. OneConnect, instead, allows the plan’s advisor to act in the 3(21) or 3(38) capacity, while OneAmerica functions in the 3(16) role, the announcement notes. Moreover, while the PEP provision of the SECURE Act only pertained to 401(k) plans, OneConnect is available to all types of ERISA plans, including tax-exempt 403(b) and 457 plans.
“All too often, retirement plan administrators find themselves lacking the time and expertise to manage the daily administrative operations of a retirement plan,” says Steven Kofkoff, Vice President, Retirement Services Strategy, Product Management and Practice Leadership at OneAmerica. “Our approach takes that task off their hands while allowing plan sponsors to retain ultimate ownership of a valuable talent recruiting and retention tool.”
