Description: Near the end of a pension plan's lifespan, after benefit accruals have ceased and the plan has reached fully funded status, a plan sponsor has the option to begin the plan termination process immediately or to maintain the plan for an extended period of time (often referred to as 'hibernation' as an alternative to termination). While immediate termination appeals to some plan sponsors, others choose hibernation for a number of reasons, including paternalism, fiduciary obligations, perceived cost differentials or simple inertia.

Description: This article advocates that DC plan sponsors implement programs of retirement income in their plans, and that actuaries are ideally qualified to help plan sponsors with that task. A program of retirement income offers a menu of choices to convert savings to income, along with appropriate communications to help retiring employees make informed choices.

Description: Discusses key issues to improve the retirement system in the U.S. in a primarily defined contribution environment. Focuses on age at retirement, how people retire, and covering risks including disability and longevity risk. Some ideas are feasible within current environment and some require policy change.

Description: The PowerPoint summarizes the research. This paper is intended to help plan sponsor fiduciaries understand existing options and carry out their due diligence when studying retirement income solutions for DC retirement plans. It educates human resources and financial professionals at plan sponsors about the potential issues, solutions, and processes involved with implementing, administering, and communicating a retirement income program for their plan participants.

Description: This paper discusses some key challenges of embedding guarantees in DC plans, including setting an appropriate guarantee level, designing effective cost funding and risk management strategies, and fair treatment of plan participants with different investment strategies.

Description: Interview with Blaine Aiken to learn about recent developments in fiduciary responsibility and financial and retirement advice. New developments will extend the fiduciary requirements financial advisors are subject to. These developments are linked to changes in the code of ethics that apply to CFPs.

Description: This session discussion was a primer on hybird pension plans, in particular cash balance plans and age weighted profit sharing plans. Included nondiscrimination issues, IRS issues and communication about the plans to participants.

Description: Book review of Steve Vernon’s Money for Life, Turn your IRA and 401(k) into a Lifetime Retirement Paycheck

Description: Highlights of recent media contributions by actuaries.

Description: This is a summary of the employer costs for pension plans published by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) as of December 2013.