I’m the guy who will travel to a Target further from my home because the Target in Farmingdale is far better than Westbury and Valley Stream and people think I’m crazy to travel 15 minutes more for a better run store with better clearance sales. When my family has had medical issues, we travel to the best doctor out there whether it’s in the same town or New York City, which has some of the best medical care in the world.
So I’m still shocked when plan sponsors want local plan providers. Shopping locally for pizza or food makes sense, but technology makes requiring your plan providers to be local is silly.
Thanks to technology, the plan provider across the country can virtually be in any meeting you need them to attend. As an ERISA 3(16) plan administrator with clients around the country, I’m always there when my clients need me even if they are in San Francisco. The Internet has made the world smaller, so there is no need to hire a local plan provider.
Since you can have online meetings and constant email messages, there are no requirements that your providers be local. Find the best plan provider out there, whether they’re in town or thousands of miles away.