Part conference, part party, part awards ceremony (con-par-mony?), it’s back. Excel 401(k): The Advisors’ Conference returns to Las Vegas October 28 to 30, 2018.
Ross Marino and his Rekon Intelligence team are pulling out all the stops this year, hosting what’s been dubbed Conference 2.0 at the iconic Caesars Palace.
In addition to a new venue, Excel 401(k) will feature all the elements that have been lauded by past attendees, including keynotes and panels led by elite advisors, peer-to-peer roundtable discussions, countless networking opportunities and—of course—plenty of top-notch eats, drinks and entertainment (cuz Vegas).
The Women in Pensions Network (WiPN) will get the party rolling Sunday night with a cocktail hour at the Vista Restaurant—a perfect chance to chat up some great women and take in some great views (as long as you’re a lady).
Then there’s the welcome reception, where all can join in on the fun, hosted back at Caesars in the Heart of the Omnia. Attendees will be greeted with an open top-shelf bar and heavy hors d’oeuveres.
But imbibers beware: the real deal begins early Monday.
Conference chairman Marino will deliver opening remarks at 8:30 a.m., directly followed by an award ceremony honoring 12 advisors who have gone above and beyond to cultivate successful participant outcomes. Each was nominated by their peers to contend for the 2018 Top Advisor by Participant Outcomes (TAPO) award.
Together with sponsor J.P. Morgan Asset Management, 401(k) Specialist will kick-off the conference by unveiling which of the finalists has been selected as the overall 2018 Top Advisor.
After that, TAPO finalists will sit in on panels in a number of breakout sessions to share the expertise and knowledge that got them recognized.
And 401(k) Specialist’s media crew will once again be on-hand for the duration, covering the goings-on from top to bottom, including video interviews with industry insiders and web and print coverage of key insights, trends and strategies presented throughout the conference.
This year the academic portion begins with Pete Swisher, senior vice president and national sales director of Pentegra Retirement. He’ll be speaking on “De-Gapping the U.S. Retirement System,” exploring the past and current state of retirement through the lens of four “gaps”—coverage, participation, savings and retirement income.
It’s off and running from there with up to 30 breakout sessions per day, led by a wide array of industry-leading talent like Rebecca Hourihan, Thomas Clark, Don Trone, Patrick Delaney, Brent Hines and Jamie Greenleaf (to name very few).
401k marketing guru Hourihan of (what else?) 401(k) Marketing presents “How to Gain Recognition as a 401k Expert and Rise Above Your Competition” Monday, October 29. Through an interactive exercise, attendees can assess their current marketing strategy and learn actionable ways to enhance their business.
After lunch, Clark, partner at the Wagner Law Group, addresses the ongoing surge in 401k lawsuits in his talk “ERISA Litigation Against Advisors—Case Studies and How to Prepare.”
Co-founder and CEO of 3ethos, Trone, is up next with “Are Great Advisors Born, or Made?” Trone dives deeply into the neurological and psychological factors that may greatly impact the quality of a retirement advisor’s decision-making processes.
“In many ways, this research is a natural extension of the Nobel Prize-winning work on Behavioral Finance, except now the focus has shifted to examine the behavior of the retirement advisor instead of simply the individual or participant,” according to organizers.
Being Vegas, the first day wraps up with a party on the Omnia Rooftop, where revelers can gaze down at the Bellagio fountains while enjoying bites and bevs that are as impressive as the view.
Tuesday, October 30 begins with (surprise!) an HSA presentation by Delaney of T. Rowe Price. In “Health Care Savings Options: Is There A Cure-All Solution?”, Delaney sifts through the multitude of health care savings options that exist and outlines ways in which advisors can thoughtfully use the topic of health care to differentiate their practice.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a 401k conference without a session on financial wellness. Hines invites attendees to “come learn firsthand from the Foundation for Financial Wellness (of which he is the executive director) how they created a business model that serves others while creating an abundance of qualified, future clients.”
Greenleaf presents thereafter, tackling the ways in which employers can recruit and keep talent despite the current challenges that come with a low unemployment rate. Principal and lead consultant of Cafarao Greeleaf, she’ll share how she works with plan sponsors to design custom benefit packages.
Finally—and obviously—there’s the discussion of fiduciary. An all-star panel takes the stage Tuesday afternoon to talk about best practices. “Fiduciary or Not, This Makes Sense…” will feature Keith Gredys of Kidder Benefits Consultants, Mark Tonelli of Sheridan Road Financial and Kimberly Shaw Elliott of Independent Financial Partners.
Considering all that (and tons more we didn’t mention), it’s not surprising that many advisors now consider the conference a can’t-miss annual event. In its fourth (?) year, Excel is dialed in and truly delivering on its intent to engage, inspire and energize attendees in order to create a lasting, valuable impact on their practice.
Fresh perspectives. Fresh digs. We’ll see you there.
Jessa Claeys is a writer, editor and graphic designer.
