PLANADVISER - July/August 2021 - 24

research / 2021 PLANADVISER Small-Plan Services Survey
Small-401(k)-Plan Market (Assets Under $5mm)
Plan Assets, Plans and Participants
$486.2b
$426.4b
$393.0b
Total plan assets
$486.2b
$340.4b
4 Ascensus
2013
2015
2017
2019
2021
5 ADP Retirement Services
524,748

Total plans
524,748
412,894
2013
2015
2017
2019
12,127,573

Total participants
11,815,861
F
10,159,379
2013
10,363,618
2015
10,458,364
2017
2019
2021
11,815,861
13 PCS Retirement
14 Lincoln Financial Group
15 Equitable
or plan sponsors, 401(k)s mean
many choices in terms of recordkeeper
options available. The harder
decisions, says Brian O'Keefe, PLANSPONSOR/PLANADVISER
director of
research and surveys, are: How should
you differentiate between providers
that offer different value propositions:
asset managers vs. banks vs.
insurance companies vs. administrators?
Do you use a third-party administrator
(TPA) for some plan work, or
bundle with the recordkeeper? Maybe
bundle payroll or health savings
account (HSA) platforms?
The SageView Advisory Group LLC
request for proposals (RFP) management
team maintains a database of
over 200 potential RFP questions, says
Managing Director Jon Chambers, with
the firm in Moraga, California. With
RFPs for a large, complex 401(k), the firm
might use 100 to 150 of the questions;
for a smaller 401(k) with a mainstream
investment and plan design, it might
use 40 to 50. Chambers typically asks
each vendor how much the number of
participants in its plans has grown and
declined in the past 10 years. " If there
are several years of participant headcount
contraction, that could indicate
problems retaining clients, " he says.
" We don't ask questions about
specific investment lineups, " he notes.
" We anticipate creating a new plan
menu after the RFP is complete. We do
$8,409mm
$7,821mm
$5,365mm
2021
447,010
480,315
466,610
6 Paychex, Inc.
$37,450mm
$34,763mm
$33,708mm
7 Principal Financial Group $32,702mm
8 Voya Financial
$26,927mm
9 Fidelity Investments
10 Transamerica
11 Nationwide
12 Newport
$20,290mm
$18,615mm
$18,131mm
$15,099mm
$437.0b
1 Empower Retirement
2 John Hancock
3 American Funds
$69,360mm
$54,353mm
$52,430mm
Small-401(k)-Plan Providers,
By Plan Assets
ask about investment flexibility. "
The question list continues to
evolve, Chambers says. Besides asking
about service standards, recordkeeping
systems, payroll interface and fee
models, SageView now also seeks to
know, for instance:
* Has your firm experienced a cybersecurity
or physical security breach
in which an unauthorized person or
entity accessed your environment/s,
that required notification be sent to
sponsor/s or participant/s?
* What diversity and inclusion
statistics are relevant for your organization,
and what initiatives has your firm
taken to further its diversity and inclusiveness?
-PA
24 | planadviser.com July-August 2021
http://www.planadviser.com
PLANADVISER - July/August 2021

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