Plan Design

An often overlooked aspect of the retirement plan is an analysis of the plan provisions. Proper plan design can increase participation, help avoid test failures and improve employee satisfaction. Our extensive experience makes us qualified to assist you with the plan design process.

Evaluating Your Plan

Choosing the right providers is crucial to the success of your plan. We listen to your unique requirements for record keeper, custodian and administrator and then assist with the preparation, distribution and evaluation of Request for Proposals, finalist interviews, and conversion support. For ongoing monitoring, we provide annual fee and service benchmarking for your use in determining the “reasonableness” of your plan expenses.

Is your plan successful? There are a variety of ways to measure plan success. We believe the best measure for plan success is an evaluation of how successful your participants are for being on track to reach their retirement goals. Our annual Plan Health Check Report will help you make this determination.

Investment Guidance

Representatives of IBS Financial Group are independent, fee-based plan advisors. We do not sell proprietary investment vehicles so all recommended investments are provided through external managers. The investment line-up should provide each participant the opportunity to properly diversify his/her retirement account, without appearing overwhelming. Our approach involves recommending a sound menu of investments (for your final selection) from which each “Do-It-Myself” plan participant can build a portfolio while also including choices for your “Do-It-For-Me” participants.

Under ERISA, plan sponsor fiduciaries are held to the highest standards when it comes to making investment selections available for their plan participants. As such, it is critical you have a well-documented process for the selection and monitoring of investment options. Our clients receive detailed reports for both investment screening and monitoring, based on a multiple criteria investment scoring process. Perhaps most importantly, our investment evaluation avoids conflicts of interest by using data independent from your other service providers.

Fiduciary Support

For investment advice to you as the plan sponsor, we accept our co-fiduciary role in writing. By accepting this responsibility, we commit to act in the exclusive interest of plan participants and their beneficiaries. Additionally, we have the flexibility to provide the level of co-fiduciary support that best fits your needs: either as an ERISA 3(21) co-Fiduciary or as an ERISA 3(38) Investment Manager.

When retained as a 3(21) co-fiduciary, our role is to provide you with specific recommendations for investment selection, replacement and evaluation, while you maintain authority to make final decisions. When retained as the 3(38) Investment Manager, IBS President Steve Monroe will assume final authority for your plan's investment menu. The choice is yours; we can act in either capacity in accordance with what is most effective for your plan.

We utilize multiple independent sources to provide ongoing plan sponsor support. IBS Financial Group representatives will assist in preparing your Investment Policy Statement (IPS). The IPS provides the documentation needed to demonstrate your process for making plan investment decisions. Regular, documented review should occur, including investment monitoring, provider service reviews and plan expense analysis. We provide detailed documentation and recommendations based on your IPS, to guide you and your investment committee.

Flexibility to Meet Your Needs

We are flexible and will work with you in whatever capacity is most beneficial for you. Are you only looking for a one-time due diligence review? Perhaps you just need independent guidance for your investment committee. For a complete, detailed list of the services we provide and to discuss how we can best serve you, please contact us.