In the life of every financial professional who works in the retirement business, there comes a time when future growth relies on a systemized approach. It’s one thing to provide diligent, personalized attention when your client roster is small. But as your practice grows, the demands on their time and attention grow as well. A reliable plan management system can become crucial.
At least, that’s how it was a few months ago.
Now consider the effect of getting displaced from both your office and your clients’ places of businesses. The challenge is to keep your retirement plan practice functioning while the only reliable resources you have available are a laptop, a phone, a web connection, and, for some, a kitchen table.
“Never has an automated approach to plan management been as important to financial professionals as it is today,” says Gary Tankersley, Head of Retirement Sales and Distribution at John Hancock. “Though clients’ businesses have been disrupted, they expect continued attention to their plan and employees. In fact, the ability to service plans is even more vital with this type of turbulence.”
John Hancock introduces free access to plan management tools for financial professionals
This spring, John Hancock added a suite of planning tools for financial professionals on its public retirement site. These are newly redesigned and enhanced versions of resources that the company has provided to financial professionals for nearly a decade.
The company’s plan manager tool automates the process of servicing and optimizing each client’s 401(k) plan. A user can create an annual calendar service encompassing both client planning sessions and participant engagement activities simply by choosing their preferred planning sequence (annual, semiannual, or monthly). The showpiece is a detailed service activity plan, which summarizes the timing and substance of every planned interaction.
Plan manager helps you frame the service experience for each client by choosing how much emphasis to place on plan health, compliance and risk mitigation, and plan design outcomes. It also allows you to control the subject matter of participant communications—and whether it’s delivered online or in print.
“Today, our participant engagement communications focus on investing in volatile markets,” explains Tankersley. “We’re committed to keeping our resources timely and relevant.”
Practices looking for help prospecting will find Coach’s Corner helpful. This interactive system guides financial professionals through identifying retirement plan prospects, establishing contacts, and transforming them into clients.
Enriched by data from Form 5500 filings, auditors’ reports, and other industry sources, Coach’s Corner lets users sift through plans based on geography, plan size, and industry. Once you’ve identified potential prospects, you can produce “scouting reports”—summaries of plan characteristics that could open the door to a discussion and, ultimately, a sale.
“With all that’s happening for employers today, plan sponsors aren’t waiting around for you to call on them,” says Tankersley. “Coach’s Corner arms financial professionals with a wealth of information on where local plans may be falling short and, in turn, strategies for how they could be doing better.”
Also included in the initial release of John Hancock’s financial professional suite is the onboarding resource center, which provides open access to best-practice communications and education for engaging new enrollees and gets them off to a strong start.
According to Cerulli Associates’ recent survey of retirement specialists, the participant experience is the most valued service among their plan sponsor clients (see “The Cerulli Report: U.S. Defined Contribution Distribution,” 2019). Whether it’s a client’s first plan or a conversion, our onboarding resource center provides the best-practice support you need to get employees up to speed and to shape better choices.
Why effective plan management techniques will always be in style
As Gary Tankersley explains it, versatile and readily accessible plan management tools have always been crucial to gaining traction in the retirement plan business.
“The two key words are efficiency and scale,” he says. “As the business grows or the environment gets challenging, can you maintain the consistency and quality of the services you provide? This is where a reliable and systematic approach becomes so important.” But the advantages don’t end there.
Tankersley points out that, with plan management under control, financial professionals are free to hone their value proposition, including thought leadership. “You end up with more time and energy to keep your knowledge and skills sharp, offer more consultation, and build stronger relationships.”
And these, he insists, are the things that set the most accomplished retirement practices apart.
Plan manager, Coach’s Corner, and the rest of John Hancock’s financial professional resources are available on the company’s retirement website at retirement.johnhancock.com. Visit the site for details, including overview videos and fact sheets.
Use of the tools and resources indicated may be subject to approval by your broker-dealer. Please check with your firm prior to use.
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John Hancock Life Insurance Company, U.S.A. is a Boston-based insurance company.
