The Plan Sponsor Council of America, part of the American Retirement Association, last week announced the winner of its Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as Signature Awards winners, at its National Conference in Orlando, FL.
Annette Grabow was named by PSCA as the recipient of the 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award. This prestigious award is given annually to individuals for their noteworthy contributions to the defined contribution industry. Winners of PSCA’s Lifetime Achievement Award are nominated by PSCA members and then voted on by the PSCA leadership committee.
Grabow is the Retirement Plan Manager for Sonepar USA. She received separate nominations from three PSCA members who have worked with her throughout the years.
“In the past 30 years, Annette has done more than anyone associated with defined contribution plans to showcase plan sponsor commitment to helping employees become retirement ready through leading-edge and time-tested workplace education and communication strategies,” shared Tony Verheyen, former PSCA Executive Director.
This commitment to education and communication has garnered Grabow approximately 70 industry awards including multiple PSCA Signature Awards, P&I Eddy awards and Plan Sponsor Magazine’s Plan Sponsor of the Year Award, among others.
“Annette deserves the Lifetime Achievement Award for her multiple decades serving as a plan sponsor and a valuable partner for plan advisors and the greater vendor community. I greatly stand behind her love for financial education and the best-in-class plans she has led throughout the years,” noted Ira Finn, Vice President, Compensation and Benefits at Ryan Specialty, and a current member of PSCA’s Leadership Council.
Among other things, Grabow has spoken at numerous events and webcasts to share her expertise on plan governance and other topics. She provided expert guidance around the fee disclosure and auto participation rules when they came out many years ago. She has also provided expert testimony before the ERISA Advisory Council.
“Annette’s belief in the importance of defined contribution plans has provided her participants a best-in-class experience for their financial future and has demonstrated to the industry a best practice in how to be a plan sponsor,” stated PSCA’s Executive Director Will Hansen.
2023 Signature Awards Winners
PSCA’s Signature Award competition is one of the longest-running, most distinguished retirement plan education and communication recognition programs of its kind.
The Signature Award program recognizes exemplary plan education with an emphasis on creatively targeting education to an employer’s workforce, resulting in tangible positive outcomes. Workplace retirement plans continue to be a key differentiator in an organization’s value proposition to attract and retain employees. But, having a world class program doesn’t matter if no one knows about it or how to use it. PSCA notes that this year’s winners demonstrate how to effectively get the word out while overcoming obstacles and barriers to participation.
“Every year, some employers go above and beyond in implementing education campaigns to help their employees save, save more, or save more effectively,” explains Hansen. “This year’s winners serve as case studies in how to assess a challenge, create a targeted solution, and collect data to measure results, increasing the retirement security of their employees in the long run.”
A panel of 23 business leaders evaluated and selected the winners of the 2023 Signature Awards from 66 entries in eight key categories.
The 2023 Signature Award Winners are:
Conversions
• 1st – Acrisure with Principal Financial Group
• 2nd – Duquesne University with TIAA
• 3rd – Nestlé with Financial Finesse
Emphasizing Diversity and Inclusion
• 1st – ADP TotalSource with Voya Financial
• 2nd – Fidelity National Financial with Principal Financial Group
Events and Workshops
• 1st – Edward Jones with Empower
• 2nd – City and County of San Francisco with Voya Financial
• 3rd – Rolex Watch U.S.A. with Principal Financial Group
Financial Wellness
• 1st – L’Oréal USA, Inc. (SalonCentric) with T. Rowe Price Retirement Plan Services
• 2nd – Medical College of Wisconsin with Transamerica
• 3rd – Muncie Power Products with OneAmerica
Investment Education
• 1st – Dell Technologies with Fidelity Investments
Overcoming Obstacles
• 1st – Sonepar USA with Charles Schwab Retirement Plan Services
• 2nd – Trek with Transamerica
• 3rd – Schneider National, Inc. with Principal Financial Group
Plan Changes
• 1st – University of Pittsburgh with TIAA
• 2nd – UPS with Voya Financial
• 3rd – Northern Arizona Healthcare with Transamerica
Promoting Participation
• 1st – Muncie Power Products with OneAmerica
• 2nd – Ryan Specialty
• 3rd (tie) – Highgate Hotels with Principal Financial Group
• 3rd (tie) – Uline with Principal Financial Group
The summer 2023 issue of PSCA’s Defined Contribution Insights magazine will feature more detailed information about these campaigns.
