Description: Women have different resources and experiences than men in retirement, partly due to demographic and life cycle differences and partly due to societal practices. This article reviews the differences, the situation 25 years ago, and then compares the situation 25 years ago to the situation today. Some of the big long lasting issues are differences in life spans and periods of disability, differences in pay, different shares of caregiving responsibility and differences of time out of the workplace. It finds some things that have improved, but other issues that existed 25 years ago have still not been addressed. New issues have arisen. The article draws on a presentation given at the 25th anniversary of the Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement (WISER). It also focuses on the impact of COVID and the changes that have taken place in the workplace in the last few years. It provides insights into and discussions of the pros and cons of remote and hybrid work arrangements. It provides insights into issues that still need to be addressed.

Description: The article describes the factors that should determine the asset allocation of an employer's QDIA, especially Target Date Funds, and suggests that in general QDIAs have insufficient equity in retirement asset allocations.

Description: Describes the challenges of using replacement ratios for retirement planning and suggests alternative approaches including spending strategies such as the 4% rule or divide your age by 20 (Feel Free spending) rule. Identifies and prioritizes different types of spending needs including sustenance, lifestyle, health care and bequest. In addition the article provides data showing how spending typically drops as retirees age and discusses how to take this into account when planning when to retire or how much to spend in retirement.

Description: This article provides an overview of the relationship to COVID-19 to issues related to caregiving, family and long-term care, and related SOA research. The SOA has addressed these topics in several research reports not related to COVID-19 and in recent reports related to COVID-19. It is currently working on new projects to help people better address some of the issues. The article also includes some highlights of efforts by ASEC, the ERISA Advisory Council 2020 projects, and an educational program focused on these issues. It then focuses on a number of things that employers might do to be supportive in addressing these issues. The employer issues focus on employees, retirees and caregiving employers. In thinking about this, employers can focus on financial wellness programs, employee assistance programs, and prepaid legal programs. A list of topics to considered for educational offers is included.

Description: This article shows how COVID-19 affected retirement risks, and how retirement planning was impacted by COVID-19. It ties together COVID-19 and its economic consequences with results of two recent consumer surveys that examine retirement risk perceptions and financial well being and a more complete discussion of retirement risks. The Managing Post-Retirement Risks guide divided retirement risks into economic risks, risks and personal planning considerations, and unexpected and unpredictable events. Each of the risks discussed in the guide is discussed in the article with commentary on COVID-19 and its impact, and information about how to manage the risk. For each risk, there is information provided about any insights gained in the two surveys. Results of the two surveys linked to COVID-19 are also discussed.

Description: This article highlights the Late-in-Life Decisions Guide recently published by the SOA. It includes interviews with three retirement professionals.

Description: Defined benefit plans have been disappearing from the private sector retirement program landscape. 401k Plans that have taken their place are not designed to provide retiree lifetime income. Individuals seldom work for a single employer and thus have many retirement accounts spread about. This commentary discusses an alternative approach to providing retirement income a voluntary basis in a vehicle that is decoupled from employers.

Description: This is a summary of a multi-faceted research project focusing on how to help people better manage money when they no longer can. Article includes interviews with the three co-researchers. Research is focused on understanding when people need help and what actions will encourage them to make proper arrangements. Research includes focus on words and actions that lead to implementation of plans. The team is multi-disciplinary and the research included interviews with experts and individuals, focus groups, and a survey. The research was sponsored by the Society of Actuaries Aging and Retirement strategic research initiative.

Description: An article presenting updated results as of 12/2021 by using analgorithm that formed part of a paper presented at the AFIR-ERMColloquium which took place in Panama, in 2017. This article starts by proving that the conditions that have to be met in order for the formula to apply that were present in 12/2015 still hold.

Description: The article is an interview with Barbara Hogg who summarizes the results of a survey of Americans about their awareness of financial risks faced in retirement and how they are managing those risks. The survey was commissioned by the SOA and is the 11th iteration of such a survey.