WHAT A GOOD 401K PLAN ADVISOR LOOKS LIKE

It’s 2025, and the 401K area is changing, like everything else. Just picking an investment lineup isn’t good enough anymore. Likewise, only speaking to the employer/plan sponsor isn’t good enough either. So here are some areas your Advisor, that’s me the plans go to person, should be reviewing for you.

Plan Stats/Analytics – The Advisor should review your plan stats at least once a year. This means employee participation rate, level of contributions, employee loans, and distributions.

Education – Education for employees and employers should be continuous. This is probably the most underrated and most needed area of Advisor service. Monitor the plan and educate the employer and the employees after the initial conversion or startup. Newly eligible employees didn’t see the initial presentation but still need the same valuable information.

Review Plan Expenses – each plan could be set up in different ways, from individually choosing all the plan professionals to a bundled package of services. Either way, the overall costs, TPA, recordkeeper, custodian, and advisor fees should be within benchmarks, and services should be performed accordingly. Some older plans that haven’t changed in years or a decade or so could be grossly overpaying compared to today’s rates.

Investments – Investments should be reviewed and benchmarked at a minimum of yearly. Comparing yields and costs after the initial setup or conversion is a practice that should be continually done.

Other Plan Professional’s – Monitoring the other professionals is something else that should be done. Chances are the advisor helped you select them or has already established his connections.

All listed items are general guidelines, and each plan has its makeup of owner(s), employee demographics, knowledge levels, and complexities.

As always, seek the advice of your financial professionals before implementing any method on your own.