Country music and southern cuisine are part of the allure in Nashville this week, as Fi30 heads to Music City for its annual conference.
The fiduciary-related education and technology firm, widely known for its professional designations, will kick it off Wednesday with a keynote on the U.S. market outlook from Charles Schwab chief investment strategist Liz Ann Sonders.
The event, held at the Omni Nashville Hotel in the heart of the city, was named as a ‘Top Advisor Conference’ by noted industry personality and pundit Michael Kitces, who will speak Thursday in two separate sessions.
The first is about safe withdrawal rates, and whether—as some suggest—they should be expanded. The second covers tax planning development and opportunities under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017.
ERISA attorney and expert Fred Reish will be on hand later that morning to discuss (what else?) fiduciary-related matters and specifically the “Plan Investment Conflicts” project.
As Reish explains, “This project reflects the growing recognition among regulators, including the DOL, SEC and FINRA, that 401k plans are highly dependent on the services of outside experts, such as investment advisors. The focus is on conflicts of interest, primarily involving compensation.”
Cuna Mutual’s Randy Fuss tackles “Adaptive Selling to Plan Sponsors: Understanding the four distinct buying and selling behaviors” on Thursday afternoon.
Cambridge Fiduciary Services “provides services aimed at reducing fiduciary risk for institutional investment committees, investment advisors and asset managers, through consulting advice and assessments of their conformity with a fiduciary standard of care.”
CEO Roger Levy will deliver, “How to Bullet Proof a 401k Plan from Fiduciary Breach Risk – PROCEDURALLY!” It will cover the procedural steps necessary for plan fiduciaries to mitigate the risk of fiduciary breach liability, the documentation to necessary to support a prudent process in managing a 401k plan and the requisites for serving as a plan fiduciary.
Zvi Bodie, financial consultant, educator, and Professor Emeritus at Boston University, will present “Lifecycle Finance: Theory and Practice,” as first defined by Bodie, Paul Samuelson and Nobel Prize winner Robert Merton.
401(k) Specialist columnist Rebecca Hourihan, chief marketing officer with 401(k) Marketing, will present “Influence to Inbound: Learn How Content Marketing is the New Key to Business Success” in her trademark entertaining and engaging style.
Jason Roberts, founder and CEO of the Pension Resource Institute, will help close it out on Friday with “Reverse Engineering 101: Litigation Avoidance Strategies for You and Your Clients.”
“Over the past decade, retirement plans and their service providers have become the subject of unprecedented scrutiny from both plaintiffs and governmental regulators,” Roberts says. “There are several common themes that emerge when studying those which have been successfully defended.
During this session, Roberts will deconstruct some of the more consequential disputes and instruct attendees on how to implement proactive measures to lessen the likelihood of becoming the target of a claim and be in best position to obtain a speedy and cost-effective resolution.
Health savings accounts
Of course, health savings accounts will also be covered with Shelby George among the presenters of “Acting on HSAs: Practical Considerations for Offering HSA Advice.”
“Everyone is talking about Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), but how do you add HSA capabilities to your services? This session will offer a framework for thinking about HSA advice including tips for working with your compliance team, scaling service efforts, communicating the value to participants and sponsors and pricing your offering.”
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.
