Small plans frequently have big service needs, and a special National Association of Plan Advisors task force has developed a template designed to make it easier for advisors to obtain a consistent, apples-to-apples comparison of service features from 401(k) recordkeepers.
The NAPA Recordkeeping Platform Assessment Template is the outcome of months of discussion, analysis and collaboration by a diverse task force of individuals from some of the nation’s leading recordkeeper and advisor firms from both NAPA and the Council of Independent 401(k) Recordkeepers (CIkR).
Focused on the essential requirements for smaller plans (those with $5 million to $10 million in assets), the template was designed to highlight critical service elements in a manner that would make it easy and efficient for recordkeepers to respond in a consistent manner, simplifying the comparison process for retirement plan advisors and the small business owners they support. Plans in that size range are more likely to be working with advisors who are not retirement specialists, making a standardized request for proposal (RFP) an essential service enhancement.
“In my experience conducting benchmarking and provider searches for hundreds of retirement plans, as well as our firm’s RPAG Benchmarking System, the cost of delivering services to the small market plan can be challenging,” explained Julie Ward, Vice President, Consulting at NFP’s Retirement Division, who co-chairs the task force that developed the template. “If an advisor does not have access to a powerful benchmarking tool, it can be very time consuming and cumbersome to create a compelling comparison for their clients. We based the NAPA Recordkeeping Platform Assessment Template on our combined experience and knowledge of the provider landscape.”
The NAPA Recordkeeping Platform Assessment Template deals with three key service aspects:
- Administration Fee Detail (including per-participant, asset-based, and participant and document services)
- Plan Service Highlights (including data submission, reporting and testing, and call center services)
- Investment Program Overview (including fund menu requirements, and revenue-sharing methodology)
The 6-page NAPA Recordkeeping Platform Assessment Template is available at no charge in PDF format on NAPA Net's Industry Intel tab, here.
