Our Initial & Ongoing Services
The Better 401(k) Source is a fee-only, Texas-based, registered investment advisor and co-fiduciary. We are not a broker/dealer, mutual fund, or insurance company and we never sell products of any kind. nor, do we ever accept hidden compensation, commissions or revenue sharing from any source. Period! This allows us to avoid any potential conflicts of interest while providing total fee transparency. Our services include:
The Better 401(k) Source is a fee-only, Texas-based, registered investment advisor and co-fiduciary. We are not a broker/dealer, mutual fund, or insurance company and we never sell products of any kind. nor, do we ever accept hidden compensation, commissions or revenue sharing from any source. Period! This allows us to avoid any potential conflicts of interest while providing total fee transparency. Our services include:
- Fiduciary Training & Education: Protecting plan fiduciaries is a top priority for us at The Better 401(k) Source. We begin each new relationship by examining a plan's internal controls and monitoring procedures to ensure that they are up to date and well documented. Then, we provide robust fiduciary training and education on an ongoing basis.
- Portfolio Management: Our model portfolios are globally diversified, risk-calibrated and optimized. They're constructed of low-cost exchange traded funds (ETFs) that cover a broad range of equity styles plus fixed income (short-term to intermediate-term bonds). We prefer passive over actively managed funds because of their superiority in cost efficiency and performance over the long term (on a net-of-fee and risk-adjusted basis). Our opinion is supported by an overwhelming amount of research that has been conducted by scholars over the past 40 years. Under certain market conditions, we will purchase broad market index put options to protect plan participants from catastrophic losses.
- Risk Assessment: We take great care in assessing each participant's capacity for risk and matching it to a portfolio with a corresponding level of risk exposure. We allow those participants who wish to construct their own portfolios to do so by selecting from a universe of funds approved by us and the Plan's investment committee.
- Plan Administration (Unbundled): As an independent registered investment advisor and co-fiduciary, we have the flexibility to work with virtually any record keeper or third-party plan administrator to fulfill your needs by use of an unbundled style of architecture. Therefore, if you, as a plan administrator, have a well established and trusted relationship with your current record keeper and/or third-party plan administrator, we can easily work with them to serve your needs.
- Plan Administration (bundled): If you want to make a clean sweep of it because of poor service, poor returns, and/or excessive fees, we can easily accommodate your needs with a bundled style of architecture that is completely fee transparent and free of any revenue sharing arrangements with mutual fund companies. In order to provide this service, we have established strategic alliances with nationally renowned record keepers, third-party administrators and custodians to provide custom plan designs, best-in-practice plan solutions, and state-of-the-art service.
- Annual Meeting: We host an annual meeting with all parties of interest to discuss the "State of the Plan". This includes: a discussion of any changes in government regulations and how these changes pertain to the plan; a review of all plan documentation (including the investment policy statement) to ensure they're up to date and the provisions are being strictly followed; a discussion of how new best-in-practice solutions (if any exist) might benefit the plan; a review and further evaluation of all internal controls and monitoring processes; and a review of all plan investments.
- Communication: We provide exceptional communication and educational programs that meet the needs of your plan participants. We host on-premises group meetings, live webcasts or a combination of both each quarter. Meetings and webcasts can be conducted before, during, or after business hours, whichever you prefer.
- Participant Reporting: We produce quarterly participant reports detailing returns, account balances, asset allocation, and itemized expenses.
- Periodic Rebalancing: We automatically rebalance participant portfolios periodically when needed.
- Quarterly Investment Committee Meetings: We meet with your Investment Committee each quarter and provide quarterly trustee reports that include: extensive analysis of plan demographics; net-returns vs. appropriate benchmarks; and robust risk analysis. This provides an excellent audit trail in case of a Department of Labor audit.
- Quarterly Enrollment Workshops: We host quarterly enrollment workshops for new hires.
- Live Quarterly Webcasts: Each webcast focuses on a specific topic. Our goal is to provide participants with the education needed to make informed decisions when preparing for retirement. And since the webcasts are live, plan participants are encouraged to ask questions for a better understanding of the subject matter. All webcasts are available on our website.
- Fee Benchmarking: We provide annual fee benchmarking of all plan expenses.