Defined Contribution Market Needs
Today, there are more than 680,000 defined contribution (DC) plans. Assets associated with these plans top $3.5 trillion. Spectrem Group maintains an extensive proprietary database on the U.S. pension market derived from our on-going consulting and research work as well as published sources, news articles, government studies, and statistics. That information and trends evident in our previous report analyses have been combined in the development of Defined Contribution Market Needs.
The specific research objectives of this study are:
- Provide a comprehensive understanding of buyer needs, purchase behavior and vendor selection criteria among defined contribution plan sponsors
- Determine how plan sponsors are using the free disclosure information they receive and whether this has really changed the vendor selection process
- Identify the expectations plan sponsors have of the advisors and consultants they work with as well as how well these expectations are being met
- Measure the extent of adoption of automatic enrollment and automatic deferral increases and how this is likely to affect asset growth
- Determine what changes plan sponsors are making in the menu of investment options offered to participants
- Determine what actions plan sponsors are taking with regard to the provision of investment advice
- Measure recent vendor change activity, the reasons for switching and plans to switch in the future
What are the opportunities in this marketplace and what challenges do the macroeconomic and demographic dynamics of the market present? This study provides a blueprint for industry insiders to chart a strategy in the pension industry with a combination of qualitative insight and quantitative analysis. $17,500
