Every retirement plan should have an annual meeting. Not the participant education meeting. Not the investment review. I\u2019m talking about a meeting where the people responsible for administering the plan sit down and ask one simple question: \u201cHow are we doing?\u201d<\/p>\n
Too many plan sponsors treat their 401(k) like an appliance. As long as it turns on, they assume everything is fine. Unfortunately, ERISA doesn\u2019t work that way.<\/p>\n
An annual fiduciary meeting gives plan sponsors the opportunity to review service providers, discuss participant issues, examine operational errors, review cybersecurity practices, evaluate plan design, and make sure everyone understands their responsibilities. It\u2019s also the perfect time to document decisions that may later be questioned by the IRS, DOL, or plan participants.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve seen plenty of clients who have excellent service providers but no process. When something goes wrong, nobody remembers why a decision was made or who approved it. Good meeting minutes won\u2019t prevent mistakes, but they can demonstrate that fiduciaries acted prudently.<\/p>\n
This meeting doesn\u2019t have to last all day. An hour or two with your advisor, TPA, ERISA counsel, and other key providers can identify issues before they become expensive problems.<\/p>\n
Think of it as preventive maintenance. You wouldn\u2019t skip servicing your car for five years and expect everything to run perfectly. Your retirement plan deserves the same attention.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re not having an annual fiduciary meeting, you\u2019re missing one of the easiest opportunities to improve plan governance and reduce fiduciary risk.<\/p>\n
The best time to schedule your annual meeting was last year.<\/p>\n
The second-best time is today.<\/p>\n
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