We’re now less than 60 days away from the 2023 NAPA 401(k) Summit—and more than 1,100 advisors have already signed up. So this week, we asked them which workshop(s) readers were most excited about?
We’ve already heard from a number of you that the pick between one session and another is going to be …tough. That said, and as we begin making room assignments, we were looking for a little input.
These workshops are the real “meat” of the Summit “experience,” of course—but don’t forget that we’ll be kicking things off on Sunday at noon (PT) with the Hill to the Summit—and there will be LOTS to talk about—SECURE 2.0, the ESG Rule (and litigation regarding it), the Fiduciary Rule (and litigation regarding it), and so much more. This year, as always, featuring Brian Graff—and a special “guest” star…
We didn’t put the ENTIRE agenda out yet in our survey—just the first two blocks of sessions—Sunday afternoon and Monday morning. Here’s how those session(s) rated:
Sunday – April 2, 2:50 pm – 3:40 pm
37% - “Ready” Eddies: Are You Ready for the Next Big Thing? Managed accounts, retirement income, small plans, financial wellness, new regulations…zig right, zag left. With so many initiatives in our industry today, what do you need to know to be ready to move your practice forward? This session will provide insights into what’s trending in our industry to help you prioritize your time and leverage these trends to grow your practice.
27% - Reward “Ed”: Designing A Retirement Program Within a Total Rewards Comp & Benefits Strategy. Beginning with the so-called Great Resignation, employers are experiencing a very challenging and tight labor market which is requiring that they put a greater emphasis on creative benefit structures to attract and retain key talent. This session will focus on the emerging benefit trends and creative retirement plan design strategies that can play a critical role in holistic benefits and total rewards & compensation programs valued by all levels of employees. Our expert panel will share guidance that advisors can utilize to elevate their retirement plan consulting.
19% - Party “Animus”? What You Should be Getting from Your TPA Partners—and What to Do if You Can’t. Over time the role of third-party administrator, or TPA, has been diminished in the eyes of many. And yet, nearly half of NAPA 401(k) Summit advisors tell us they work with one or more TPAs. Sure, they deal with a lot of technical “minutiae”—we’re talking deep in the “weeds” here. That said, the role of plan administrator is essential—critical—to the smooth, effective, and efficient running of a plan. TPAs not only help you keep business—they can help you find it. An expert panel of industry leaders will show you the way, and we’ve got a new tool to help you get the most out of these relationships.
17% - Win “Wind”: Building the ROI Case for Financial Wellness. Do you want to win more business, improve client retention, and increase revenue? Come learn how to position financial wellness within your practice to be a win for your clients, a win for their employees, and a win for your bottom line!
Monday – April 3, 9:40 am – 10:30 am
33% - SECURE 3.0 and Behavioral Economics: Making the Best Nudge Ever Even Better. Save More Tomorrow has already benefited more than 25 million Americans. Leading behavioral finance expert Shlomo Benartzi will briefly review the history of this nudge and how it led to SECURE 2.0, and what he thinks SECURE 3.0 should do to make the best nudge even better. That includes: incorporating the latest science to fine-tune the implementation details, personalizing the solution with smarter defaults, and supplementing the flexibility of SECURE 2.0—in terms of emergency savings, debt repayment, and RMDs—with holistic financial advice.
27% - “After” Map: Congratulations! You Won the Plan, Pop the Champagne… Do a Happy Dance… Share a High Five… Now what? On-boarding your new client is a crucial step to building a long, successful relationship. We’re going to focus on the critical next steps (including do’s and don’ts) to ensure a comprehensive and positive experience for the Plan Sponsor.
21% - Suit “Routes”: Lessons Learned from Litigation. The flood of lawsuits we’ve seen in the industry over the past several years has been unprecedented. Serving as a fiduciary comes with responsibility and, without proper process, increased risk. The litigation we’ve seen should provide all industry stakeholders with both lessons learned and a path to fiduciary best practices. We’ll explore what has happened thus far, what’s changed in recent months, and focus on what you can do to help your plan sponsors stay out of court.
15% - “Guide” Paths: Managed Accounts—Pros and Cons. Some say managed accounts represent an important refinement of the “blunt instrument” approach to asset allocation provided by target-date funds. Others say managed accounts are just an expensive target-date fund. Where do you come out? Weigh in with this dynamic debate format where we’ll thrash out the issues, the inconsistencies, and the misperceptions.
4% - Leading Indicators: The Chicken or the Egg: Growing a Diverse Network for Our Industry. DEI (diversity, equity & inclusion) and DIB (diversity, inclusion, and belonging) are a growing topic sweeping the country, elevated by the increasing diversity of both participants and investors. How, as an industry, do we relate to participants if our tapestry’s fabric is monolithically focused? We’ll explore opportunities for you to expand DEI/DIB within your practice and challenge one another to create solutions to disrupt the singularity within our industry.
We also got some GREAT comments—lots of first-time attendees, as well as Summit “veterans”—we know it’s going to be tough to choose, but we’ve tried to give you a LOT to choose from. Thanks for all the questions for our various panels as well!
Next week—(even) more workshop sessions to choose from!
