Missing Participants: What Sponsors Must Do Before Forfeiting or Distributing
A missing participant is a fiduciary problem, not a mailroom problem. Here is the search, documentation and distribution path plan sponsors should follow before forfeiting or cashing out an account.
Controlled Groups and Affiliated Service Groups: When Another Entity Joins Your 401(k) Plan
Controlled group and affiliated service group rules decide which employees must be counted in your 401(k) testing. Here is what plan sponsors must verify and document.
Switching 401(k) Providers Mid-Year: The Sponsor’s Transition Checklist
A plan sponsor’s transition checklist for switching 401(k) providers mid-year: what converts, what breaks, and which fiduciary duties never move.
Employee Benefit Plan Committee Charters: A Plan Sponsor’s Starter Guide
A benefit plan committee charter turns informal 401(k) decision-making into a documented fiduciary process. Here is what to put in one, how to run meetings, and what you can delegate.
Hardship Withdrawals and Loans: What Plan Sponsors Must Document
Hardship withdrawal documentation and participant loan records are the files auditors ask for first. Here is what plan sponsors must collect, retain and reconcile.
Plan Sponsor Year-End Compliance Calendar: The Deadlines Employers Miss
The year-end 401(k) compliance calendar is where most plan sponsors lose control of their plan. Here is the sequence, phase by phase, and who is actually accountable for each step.
Did You Actually Review the Form 5500 Before You Signed It — Or Would You Rather Someone Else Signed It?
The Form 5500 signature is a personal attestation under penalty of perjury. Here’s what plan sponsors should review before signing — and how to move the signature itself off your desk.
401(k) Eligibility & Entry Dates: Where Employers Get Tripped Up
Eligibility and entry dates are where employer 401(k) errors start. Here is how sponsors read the plan document, track service correctly, and fix improper exclusions.
Not All 3(16) Providers Are the Same: 401(k) Administration With Payroll, Compliance and TPA Support
Two vendors can both call themselves 3(16) and leave you with very different liability. Here is how plan sponsors compare 3(16) providers on scope, payroll integration, compliance support and the 402(a) appointment.
Automatic Enrollment Notices: What Plan Sponsors Must Send and When
Automatic enrollment notices are one of the easiest ERISA requirements to satisfy and one of the most commonly botched. Here is what employers must send, to whom, and when.
