My 'Retirement' Account

I’ve spent my entire working career working with retirement plans—but most of it not focused on a retirement plan of my own.

In that sense, I am perhaps like many, maybe most of you. Oh, I thought about retirement (a lot, just not mine), maxed out my 401(k) (when I wasn’t co-funding college tuitions), and was at least intellectually cognizant of the potential costs of living for decades without a salaried paycheck. Much has been made of how difficult it is for younger workers to grasp the reality of retirement—but the reality is that retirement “myopia” is not limited to younger workers.

That said, and as you will hopefully have seen in the lead post today, I have announced my “retirement” —though it’s not retirement[i] in the traditional cessation of work sense. Yes, while I love what I do and the people I do it with (for the very most part)—I’ve been cranking out a daily news service (and then some) pretty much every working day (including vacations) across multiple firms and audiences since 1995.[ii] Simply stated, I am at a point in my life where I am ready (financially and spiritually) to spend less time “working”—and more time focusing on the things I want to spend time doing.

If you’ve ever left a job you love (even for one you hope to love more), then you’ll appreciate just how important it is to be leaving your work in good hands. To that end, I am thrilled to have John Sullivan coming on board. He has been a good friend and kindred spirit over the past several years. He, like I when I joined the ARA, is excited at the prospects of helping contribute and shape retirement policy, rather than merely observing and commenting upon those efforts. I’m thrilled that both he (and Brian Graff) want me to continue to contribute content and perspective to those efforts—and that I have been asked—for at least the next two years—to continue to lead the content development of the nation’s leading, largest and most significant retirement plan advisor conference, the NAPA 401(k) Summit. 

Beyond that, my plans for “retirement” (and yes, I am going to continue to describe it with quotation marks) are still emerging. Some travel, yes—some time with family, for sure—perhaps (finally) the book that I have been meaning to write for years… but was too busy writing to get around to it.   

It has been my great good fortune to have “stumbled” as a part-time college internship into a profession that I love—one that has not only provided a good living (albeit with some bumps along the way), but to which I could, with a clear and enthusiastic conscience, invest heart and soul (not to mention blood, sweat and the occasional tears) in pursuit of a noble goal—helping strengthen and support Americans’ retirement. I’m doubly fortunate to have had the opportunity to share with—and hear from—so many of you over the years.

I’m thankful for the opportunity I have been given here, and to have the opportunity to not just explain but to shape retirement policy with your support, and those of the incredible team here at the American Retirement Association. I treasure what I have learned and continue to learn, as well as the people it has been my great joy to work with and learn from over the years. 

More importantly, I look forward with great anticipation to this next phase of my career…as we all continue working for America’s retirement.

Stay tuned!

- Nevin E. Adams, JD

 

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[i] My actual “retirement” date is still months away, of course (Feb. 28, 2023)—and with any luck at all, Congress will pass legislation sometime before the end of this year that will, once again (as it did in 2019), “complicate” my holidays. Indeed, I continue to tell folks that I am “retiring,” but not quitting. 

[ii] And working in this industry since 1978…

Are You ‘Anti’ Social?

 You may have missed it, but there’s been a bit of a “hub-bub” brewing on social media…about the impact of, and perhaps even the utility of, social media. Here’s some thoughts—and some tips. 

JD Carlson of Retireholics “fame” kicked things off with a post intriguingly titled “Forget About Social Media Content and Run Your 401(k) Business.” Oh, there were words[i] that followed, but you really didn’t have to read more than that to see where he was going.

Well, about a nanosecond after that post appeared on…social media… Sheri Fitts who, as you may know, spends a fair amount of her time and energy helping advisors (and other retirement professionals) be more effective on…social media… pushed back on JD’s basic premise. A bit.

Her argument was basically that while social media was important (we’ll come back to that), doing so without a clear focus or strategy was a mistake—but that ignoring the marketing impact of social media was perhaps a larger one.  And then, Faith Teope (who I’ve bantered with previously) took to LinkedIn to offer yet a third perspective—which seemed to be basically a message of “if it feels right for you, do it.” 

Influence Shells?

Now, all of these folks have arguably made, or at least enhanced, a name/brand for themselves on social media. They have followings, post regularly, and I think it’s fair to say—at least in the retirement space—are what would be considered “influencers.”

I’ve been on Twitter since 2008—LinkedIn even longer. Facebook (yes, I AM a Boomer, after all) since my kids got on it. I’ve read books on the subject of social media, attended conferences and training sessions (live and online) about how to use/leverage these tools—and spent a lot of time over the past couple of decades waiting for the day when the actual response to a LinkedIn (or Twitter) post…mattered. I don’t mean the “likes” that Twitter shares, or the “impressions” or number of “followers” these platforms attribute to one’s account. They’re valuable metrics, of course—widely shared (and sometimes trumpeted). 

But as much as I enjoy social media—and relish the relationships that I have found and fostered there, in my experience it's still a bit of an echo chamber—one frequented by people who are already “on” social media. Indeed, it seems for the very most part the people who are “there” are there to promote the use and value of social media to those not yet in that “club.” Not that you won’t find valuable content there—but plan sponsor clients? Participants? 

Don’t get me wrong—I am one of those folks “on” social media. I have tons of “followers” on LinkedIn, and spend some time each week cultivating and expanding that reach. People read and comment on what I post there, and I’m grateful and appreciative of that engagement. Having said that, I continue to do what I do there not because I see much current value in doing so—but rather because I feel that one day there MIGHT be—but don’t sense that that day is here yet.[ii]

What to Do (and Not)

So, at the risk of being non-controversial, I’m going to concur (I think) with most of what has already appeared in this discussion thread—and offer some unsolicited social media “guidance”:    

First things first. Doing social media, and certainly doing social media “right” takes time and energy, and my sense is that the ROI payoff for most is modest at best. It will take more time than you think, and likely return less than you hoped—and that’s time away from the business of running your business. If you’re not focusing on the business end of your business, no amount of two-minute TikTok videos (however captivating) is going to help that. Let me repeat—first things first. Unless, of course, you plan to get into the business of teaching folks how to do social media.  

If you’re going to do it, do it right. That means having something interesting to say, something worth sharing. Share it regularly—and professionally. This is about building a brand (you). But remember you’re marketing you and your expertise—not a product. You know how you fast forward past the commercials on a DVR? People will scroll past sales pitches even faster (though LinkedIn may still count that as a “view”).

Set reasonable, modest goals. I have had the benefit (inherited, for the most part) of a large and widespread email audience for more than two decades now (though I hope I’ve since earned and expanded on that). My expectations for social media engagement were (and remain) high, likely too high, compared to email clicks and opens. Know that going into it you probably won’t get much, if any, in the way of “return.” 

Nurture the engagement you do get. Like, share, forward—but by all means COMMENT as you do on the content you see as valuable. It will be good for your visibility, likely expand your network—and it will keep you engaged with topic(s) you care about. It’s also good for your “shelf life.”        

Remember that you don’t need to do it. Honestly, my sense is that most of the folks you ostensibly want to reach (clients and prospects) aren’t (yet) spending a lot of time on LinkedIn (or Facebook, or Twitter, or even TikTok—at least not intentionally). Doing it before you’re ready will be counter-productive at best, and if your clients—prospective or current—aren’t “there,” do you really need to be?  If you’re not yet ready—don’t. 

After all, there are plenty of advisors enjoying a great deal of success today…without relying on social media.

- Nevin E. Adams, JD

 

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[i] For those of you who like more words, “What’s more effective, a post on LinkedIn with 11 likes and one comment from your co-worker or good old-fashioned marketing concepts like strategic partnerships, custom emails, networking, webinars, mailings, events, email blasts, client referrals programs, etc.? For most of you, the latter will crush 100% of the time when talking about actual ROI.”

[ii] And if you’re unaware of the “hub-bub” about which I started this piece, you are proving my point.

Have You Hugged Your TPA Today?

If you work with TPAs—third party administrators—you might want to avoid bugging them this week. 

As you may well know (certainly if you work with TPAs), this year, Monday (Oct. 17th) is the deadline to file Form 5500s, and for most TPAs, that’s a pretty all-consuming focus. So much so that every year on the day AFTER the Form 5500 filing deadline, John Hancock declares an annual day of recognition for TPAs. 

Now, to its credit, John Hancock goes so far as to note that National TPA Day is also a reminder to financial professionals (especially those still getting established) that partnering with TPAs may be an important pathway to success. Not that everyone feels that way, of course.

I’m talking about the disconnects in focus between retirement plan advisors and TPAs—an issue that is, perhaps, as old as ERISA itself—this “tension” between these two critical roles. Not in every case, of course—there are plenty of advisors that will tell you how many times their TPA partner has gotten them out of a real mess, and TPAs that will commend the leadership demonstrated by their advisor teammate. But that, it seems, isn’t the majority experience, though it proves it can be that. 

As it turns out, I’ve spent some time on both sides of that “divide,” and a fair amount of time able to observe both from a distance. I’ve listened to groups of TPAs gripe about advisors who “won’t stay in their lanes”—and advisors frustrated with TPAs who, when asked what time it is, insist first on explaining how a watch is made. I can remember personal experiences trying to explain complex plan design decisions with real-world implications—only to have the decision-makers decide it was time to step out for the equivalent of “brandy and cigars” with the plan advisor, leaving the decisions—undecided.   

The beauty of these times—and our associations—is that I was able to reach out on an ad hoc basis to folks that I knew could also appreciate both sides of the “debate,” and who cared enough to try and do something about it. This core group—Mary Patch, Chad Johansen, JD Carlson, Shannon Edwards, Justin Bonestroo & Amanda Iverson—have given up a LOT of their time and energy over the past many months to this undertaking. COVID helped in some ways—nobody was travelling as much, and we’re all now well accustomed to meeting virtually to solve problems. 

Our collective sense was that what makes the difference in these relationships is having a shared set of goals and expectations, alongside role clarity and confidence in the perspectives and expertise of the partner(s). We started with posts that have run on NAPA-Net on a monthly basis beginning last year (links below), came to something of a crescendo with a special TPA panel at the 2022 NAPA 401(k) Summit, and ultimately culminated in a checklist of sorts that you can find here. Think of it as a relationship pre-screener.

That checklist alone (and we’re hoping you’ll reconsider Compliance Administrator or Compliance Consultant as replacements for that awful TPA moniker) won’t solve all communication/expectation issues, but we hope it will be a solid foundation to open a dialogue. At its most basic, it should allow you to find out what services potential (or current) TPA partners provide, which are standard to their practice(s), and which are “extra.” But ultimately—and most significantly—it is designed to align expectations. 

There may well be things on this list of which you are unfamiliar—if so, this would be a good time to find out more about them, as I assure you, they are important, and SOMEBODY should be attending to them.  The core team is now working on some background explanations—if some jump out at you for a quicker explanation, please let me know. I—and indeed the entire core team—would love for you to begin using this checklist in your partner discussions—and to let us know what works—and of course, what doesn’t in the days and weeks ahead.

My undying thanks again to the core team for the love, humor, friendship and passion on this effort–– and to about a dozen advisors (you know who you are) who provided some terrific insights and perspective as the checklist neared completion. 

And ultimately to you, gentle reader, for helping us build this bridge…

- Nevin E. Adams, JD

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