Every group has its own lingo. When football coaches speak about designing receiver slants, hitting the A-gap, or running stunts, players quickly understand their roles. Likewise, as theater buffs converse about moving stage left, blocking, and striking, no one bats an eye. But if you’re not part of either group, it might just sound like gibberish.

The retirement industry has this problem, too. Advisors and plan sponsors use technically-correct language to describe company plans, features, and savings strategies, but the jargon is causing a disconnect. Research has revealed participants find their retirement plans to be confusing; their desire for clearer language should be a loud call for our attention. If they don’t understand their options, participants may be less likely to make appropriate decisions about their retirement plan account.

As mentioned in previous posts, different generations desire different benefits options, but they also have unique communication needs. This is true for not only how we communicate but what we communicate. A baby boomer may be looking for financial advice, while a millennial might prefer a financial coach or financial counseling.

Plan enrollment is a critical time to help employees see the big picture. Defined contribution is a somewhat clunky term – employees can be encouraged to participate in their workplace savings plan. And instead of talking about a deferral rate, employees might better understand phrases like the amount you contribute or the percentage of your paycheck that you put in the plan.

The employer match is also a point of confusion, but clarification is critical for increasing participants’ savings rates. Telling participants about free money and the ability to significantly increase their total amount of retirement savings resonates with their goals.1 After defining the company match, it’s important to explain how that money is vested – but very few employees have any idea what a vesting schedule is. They might, however, be very interested to hear about the rate of ownership for that free money.

Finally, it’s easy to quickly get in the weeds when it comes to investment terminology. Target date funds are the victims of plenty of industry jargon. A helpful explanation about their intent may include language about a customized strategy that is managed for you and designed to help achieve your goals.1 Talking about a glide path may illicit blank stares, while a risk-reduction path1 over the course of working years is easier to understand.

Ultimately, no language choice will be the perfect fit for all employees, but it remains essential for advisors to prioritize speaking in more understandable and relatable terms.

 

 

 

 

 

1https://www.invesco.com/static/us/dc/contentdetail?contentId=b1ffcd42afa28610VgnVCM1000006e36b50aRCRD&dnsName=us

No matter our job titles here at Shepherd Financial, we are all nerds. Every last one of us. Case in point: every year, the IRS announces new contribution limits for retirement savings.

Because it’s vital information for how we operate, timeliness is essential – so at a meeting several weeks ago, I jokingly suggested there would be a prize for the team member that conveyed the new information to me first. Perhaps the IRS caught wind of our challenge; instead of releasing the limits mid-October, as they traditionally have, we waited with bated breath until November 1st.

(I’m completely serious when I tell you one team member set her Twitter account to alert her every time the IRS tweeted. She still didn’t win.)

In brief, the new limits: in 401(k), 403(b), and most 457 plans, the contribution limit was raised from $18,500 to $19,000. Not a huge jump, and the limit tends to increase by about that much every year. Significantly, though, the IRS has increased the contribution limit for traditional individual retirement accounts (IRAs) for the first time since 2013 (the limit is now $6,000).

But what’s the big deal, you might be asking? Essentially, the government has enabled Americans to save more. Larger retirement contributions can mean lower tax bills and more income in retirement. And if you happen to be an American with a late start on your retirement savings, this is good news. If you’re over age 50, between your 401(k), IRA, and catch up contributions, you could save $32,000 in 2019. That doesn’t even take into account an employer match or integrating a health savings account in your retirement investment strategy.

And that’s where saving smarter comes in. All these investment vehicles play a unique role in your overall retirement savings strategy. If you’re not sure about how to best utilize each one, call our team at Shepherd Financial. We nerds have a great time figuring this out every day.

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