The Participant Standard

Other standards just don’t measure up to The Participant Standard.

Participant Standard

The Participant Standard is StrategIQ’s measure of success for retirement plans. In order for a plan to satisfy this stringent standard, each material aspect of the plan must perform to our highest standard:

Plan committee members should be performing at an expert level. If that expert level is not met, then changes will be recommended by StrategIQ to re-distribute functions to other experts. 

Participants have an expectation that the plan sponsor and the plan committee always act in the best interest of participants. And, no matter whether the plan sponsor volunteered or was appointed, assumed the role reluctantly or willingly, the fiduciary responsibilities of the plan sponsor to participants remains the same.

Education should be well-rounded and provided to the plan committee, plan sponsor, and participants. StrategIQ provides well-rounded education to all such stake-holders.

All of the fiduciaries (including co-fiduciaries), plan sponsor, and plan committee should be independent and  should minimize conflicts of interest. StrategIQ provides guidance to minimize any conflicts of interest.

StrategIQ’s compensation is tied to the value of assets it advises on: when the value of the plan’s investments increases, StrategIQ earns more, and vice versa. This aligns the financial interests of the plan and plan participants with the financial interests of StrategIQ.

StrategIQ selects funds that are best of breed in their respective classes, offering participants an assortment of class leading funds. An important part of StrategIQ’s work is to ensure that all participants have options matching their investment needs. This last point is very important and often overlooked: when choosing a mix of investment options, the fund criteria should not represent the personal interests of the plan committee, but rather reflect the diversity of the participants and their specific needs.

The experts at StrategIQ get to know all of the stakeholders of the plan. We believe in active interaction and availability. Getting the plan committee and the plan up to ERISA standards is only the beginning. Active guidance gives participants a resource to help them make “Better Outcome” decisions, which is ultimately a reflection of your performance. Being an active participant means that we share in the success and failures of the participants we help. Gaining this understanding of the participants means delving into areas of their financial and personal lives that you, as a plan sponsor, may not feel comfortable with or may not have experience with and, in order to adequately discharge your fiduciary obligations, with which you may want the assistance of an experienced advisor. This is where we come in - our job is to help you carry out your fiduciary responsibilities.

One important element of the Participant Standard is maximizing the level of participation. We assess the percentage of employees that do not participate in your retirement plan and devise (with your input) and implement strategies to increase such participation percentage, thereby creating better financial outcomes for participants who may have otherwise missed out.

Fiduciary Standard

Our advisors are bound to the “Fiduciary Standard,” the highest standard in the investment advisory industry that requires us to put our client’s interests above our own. The fiduciary standard is one that you, as a plan administrator, are also held to because you take on a fiduciary role managing a retirement plan. However, in your role, your fiduciary responsibility is to your participants, you being one of them.

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