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Michael Bushnell

By Michael Bushnell | 5/7/2015
A new study reports that Americans are more committed than ever to save money for their retirement, and with Millennials and Gen Xers expressing record levels of concern about the future of Social Security, more workers are feeling like they have no other option.Over the winter, Transamerica, in... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 5/7/2015
The Internet has made it easier for Americans to do all sorts of things themselves that were once largely handled by paid professionals, with booking travel and hotels being a prime example. Writing in the Spring 2015 issue of NAPA Net the Magazine, columnist Fred Barstein asks whether automation... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 5/6/2015
As globalization and capitalism have spread throughout the world, so has the concept of phased retirement. According to a new HSBC study on worldwide retirement trends, what workers hope to do as they get older varies widely continent by continent.According to the study, 56% of working-age... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 4/29/2015
Numerous organizations have conducted surveys on compulsory enrollment in retirement plans, and the trends are clear: Automatic plan features work — at least when plan sponsors offer them.Writing in the Spring issue of NAPA Net the Magazine, Nevin Adams says that there is a mountain of evidence... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 4/28/2015
Many plan sponsors don’t know exactly what their role as a fiduciary is, creating a major opportunity for plan advisors to step in and provide guidance, according to a new survey from AllianceBernstein. The study also highlighted remarkable growth in auto-enrollment features over the past few years... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 4/23/2015
Taking a risk is supposed to be a good thing in business. But many plan sponsors would rather say “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” than make an effort to improve their retirement plan’s design.Writing in the Spring issue of NAPA Net the Magazine, Judy Ward quotes industry insiders who describe... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 4/15/2015
We’ve come a long way from the Atari and Commodore 64 days. Today, nearly every working-age American has a super computer in their pockets, with the ability to download thousands of games in less than two minutes. In the latest issue of NAPA Net the Magazine, John Iekel highlights a few financial... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 4/9/2015
Technology and marketing, with external wholesalers working in concert with internals, marketing and product people as well as key accounts, will benefit the highly productive “star” wholesalers in the future, while mediocre professionals will be ferreted out, says industry insider Fred Barstein.... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 4/8/2015
As businesses continue to recover from the Great Recession, the number of employers that offer retirement plans has nearly returned to pre-crisis levels, according to a new survey from the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies. However, many pension plans that disappeared during the downturn... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 4/1/2015
As the 401(k) industry expands in both size and complexity, it’s harder than ever for advisors to help clients without inadvertently creating legal and compliance risks in the process. In the winter issue of NAPA Net the Magazine, David Levine explains how advisors have to focus on doing right by... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 3/25/2015
For years, the common belief was that wealth management drove the DC industry, while corporate and individual retirement plans were just a nice niche to maybe round out the portfolio. But since the Great Recession, the opposite has been true, notes Fred Barstein in his most recent “Inside the... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 3/16/2015
Baby Boomers who have yet to cut the financial cord with their adult children are increasingly finding that tether to be more like an anchor keeping them from reaching retirement.According to a new study of Baby Boomers by Hearts & Wallets, only 21% of Baby Boomers who still support adult... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 3/12/2015
Just 2% of all gainfully employed respondents in a recent survey said they would cash out their DC plan’s balance if they switched jobs, but in reality, 45% of all transitioning workers do so. In the Winter issue of NAPA Net the Magazine, Warren Cormier examines why so many people take the money... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 3/11/2015
Millennials know that they should save for retirement, but a new study from Principal shows that many young workers are finding that to be easier said than done, creating a major opening for advisors.Financial security rates as Millennials’ top life goal, with 70% of respondents saying it was a... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 3/4/2015
Plan trustees who also serve as fiduciaries tend to make the same kinds of mistakes. Writing in the most recent issue of NAPA Net the Magazine, Steff Chalk offers some suggestions to help sponsors and fiduciaries avoid potentially damaging errors.  Chalk lists three common mistakes that plan... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 3/2/2015
When Callan Associates surveyed plan sponsors in early 2014, more than a third of the respondents said they would make changes to their target date funds during the coming year. The firm’s just-released 2015 survey shows that many of those sponsors were true to their word.According to the survey,... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 2/25/2015
Even as the economy has bounced back from the dark days in the late 2000s, an overwhelming number of working-age Americans still have concerns about their finances.A new study conducted by Harris, on behalf of the Million Dollar Round Table reports that 84% of Millennials (ages 18-34) and 83% of... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 2/13/2015
Buoyed by a rising stock market, most DC plan participants stayed the course, according to a new survey published by the Investment Company Institute.The trends largely reflected a continuation of patterns that have been going on since at least 2011, when the country really began pulling out of the... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 2/9/2015
As life expectancy rates rise and the ratio of Social Security supporters to beneficiaries shrinks, NAPA Executive Director Brian Graff says Americans are going to have to accept the truth: something needs to change about how we as a country view retirement. Writing in the Winter 2014 issue of... READ MORE
By Michael Bushnell | 2/4/2015
Americans’ satisfaction with the DC retirement system is on the rise, and they’re averse to the government making any changes to it, a new report by the Investment Company Institute indicates. All told, 71% of households have a favorable impression of 401(k) accounts. That number had held... READ MORE

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