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| Welcome and state of the industry address |
Speakers: Blaine Aikin, AIFA® and Rich Lynch, AIFA® |
| A welcome address from the leadership of fi360, including new developments from the company, what to expect in the coming year and a look at the fiduciary landscape. |
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| No handouts are available for this session |
| Government spending and personal accountability |
Speaker: Paul O’Neill |
| Lessons advisors can learn by not following government's example in spending and investing |
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| No handouts are available for this session |
| How to take advantage of the coming golden age for independent investment advisors in the retirement plan marketplace |
Speakers: Scott Simon, Gary Allen, AIFA® and Jeff Coontz, AIFA® |
| This session is designed to equip investment advisors with an in-depth look at how they can become an integral part of the solution in the changing retirement plan marketplace. The session will provide attendees with information as well as pros and cons for each investment advisor business model. This session is actionable and relevant for any investment advisor interested in the retirement plan marketplace. |
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| Non-normal distributions, portfolio construction, and client communication |
Speakers: Dr. David Esch and Dr. Johann Klaasen, AIF® |
| Almost any analysis shows that financial returns are non-normal. However, in many situations it may still be advisable to use the normal distribution when constructing portfolios. Dr. David Esch will examine the benefits and hazards of various methods using non-normal distributions, particularly with respect to optimization. Given the current, widespread conversations about non-normal and “fat-tail” returns, Dr. Johann Klaassen will then discuss how best to communicate these themes with clients. |
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| Evaluating stable value investments in a challenging market environment |
Speaker: Tess Malone |
| What every fiduciary must know to appropriately monitor stable value investments in 401(k) plans. |
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| fi360 Toolkits: The basics |
Speakers: Mike Limbacher, AIF® |
Are you thinking about implementing the fi360 Toolkits in your practice? Are you a new Toolkit user who would like to quickly climb the learning curve and begin to use the software more efficiently? Come and learn about the fi360 Toolkits during this basic session.
We will review the core features of the Toolkits, including the Investment Analyzer, the various reporting options, our new Proposal Generator and all of our client features. From investment policy statement creation to Watch List management to FINRA-reviewed client reporting, the fi360 Toolkits help advisors deliver a procedurally prudent process through a turnkey system that is easy to use, easy to replicate and easy to understand. |
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| Fees, expenses and revenue sharing: Regulation, litigation, legislation and best practices |
Speaker: Fred Reish, AIFA® |
| Revenue sharing and the compensation of service providers are the greatest source of controversy in the 401(k) community. The most controversial payments are 'indirect' payments, which are made by and between the investment providers and service providers to the plan. Many of these payments are now required to be reported for large plans on the Form 5500; the DOL is working on a regulation to require disclosure by advisers and providers; those payments, together with company stock, account for almost all of the high publicity 401(k) litigation; and Congress is working on legislation that would require much more disclosure to both fiduciaries and participants. These indirect payments are the top risk management issues for plan sponsors and a key consulting issue for advisers. |
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| The US economic outlook: Is the recovery sustainable? |
Speaker: Tom Higgins |
| The US economy appears to have emerged from the 2008-09 recession in the third quarter of last year as a result of massive doses of fiscal and monetary stimulus. The question is whether the recovery will stay on track when the training wheels come off in the second half of 2010 as the impact of government spending fades and the Federal Reserve begins contemplating interest rate hikes. The key to sustainable economic growth is a recovery in private demand in the form of consumer spending and business investment. We are beginning to see some hopeful signs on this front, but investors will need to lower their expectations for future growth since American households are undergoing a multi-year deleveraging process where they will need to rebuild savings and pay down debt. Our presentation will discuss these issues as well as the implications for interest rates, taxes and your portfolios. |
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| Improving defined contribution retirement benefit adequacy via participant-level fiduciary best practices |
Speaker: Greg Kasten, AIFA® |
| Inadequate retirement benefits from defined contribution plans are a serious national concern. Fiduciary advisers and plan sponsors understand that defined contribution plans must operate more like pension benefit plans. This session explains how participant-level prudent practices can be implemented, and monitored within a deliverable system, producing greatly improved plan participant benefit adequacy. |
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| Articulating your value as an AIF and AIFA Designee |
Speaker: Marie Swift |
| Economic turmoil and scandals on Wall Street have left clients shaken and confused. In the wake of the great recession, how have public perceptions changed – and how are AIF and AIFA designees redefining and articulating their value propositions to position themselves in the best light? Join marketing coach and industry influential Marie Swift as she shares new research and observations gleaned from dozens of conversations with leading advisors and industry thought leaders. |
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| The effect of new and proposed regulations on investment advisers |
Speaker: Brian Hamburger, AIFA® |
The past year has proven that past performance is not indicative of future results. The same is true of regulatory compliance. Yesterday’s hot issues are old news. It is important to keep up with the latest regulatory and compliance trends, but equally important that you are not the next enforcement target. Every day there is a new proclamation from a politician, attorney general or regulatory commissioner that there is going to be rapid and expansive regulatory reform affecting investment advisers. Most of these statements never come to fruition.
This session will focus on the current regulatory climate with particular attention spent filtering out the noise with regard to proposed rules, congressional legislation as well as the regulatory rhetoric regarding future reform with a focus on those areas that are most likely ripe for change. |
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| Ask the expert: An open discussion on fiduciary exposure and ERISA bonding |
Speakers: Gary Sutherland and Jason Roberts |
Mr. Sutherland has regularly presented primers on fiduciary liability and ERISA bonding at previous fi360 conferences. Often weeks later in follow up questions, we are asked for answers outside of our presentation that we think would add value to other investment professionals.
This panel will bring together experts in the insurance, financial and legal industries to answer specific questions from fi360 members. Email blast to conference attendees prior to conference will allow them to pre-submit questions. It is our hope that a more open dialog regarding fiduciary insurance and bonding will best serve the fi360 member base. |
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| How to analyze the fees in insurance company (GAC) 401(k) plans |
Speaker: David Wade, AIF® |
| Participants will be taken through a step-by-step process that will give them the ability to analyze Group Annuity Contract Fees. They will learn how mutual funds are converted to GAC, which will give them insight as to the true fees being paid by plan participants. They will also review GAC documents and a Plan Fee Analysis that will enable them to take what they have learned and apply it in their own fee analysis of a client’s GAC 401k plan. |
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| fi360 Toolkits: Analyzing plan fees & expenses |
Speakers: Dave Palascak, AIF® |
This session will focus on the Fee & Expense section of the fi360 Toolkits that was released in late December. The new Toolkit area is split into three sections which will be covered in detail: (1) Plan Level Fees; (2) Operational Fees, which include revenue sharing; and (3) Shareholder Fees, which include Loads and redemptions fees among other things.
During the session, you'll learn the differences between these various fees, where to find the data, how to input the data, and most importantly, how to interpret and present the final report. If you're currently performing this analysis and reporting by hand (or not at all), this session is a must attend. |
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| Washington update |
Speaker: Brian Graff |
| An insider's perspective on what's going on in DC that could dramatically impact the advisor community |
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| Pre-allocated portfolios as the next-generation customized level of portfolio management |
Speaker: Josh Itzoe, AIF® |
| Although target-date and lifecycle funds are more prevalent within the retirement plan industry, growing numbers of plan sponsors and leading advisors are utilizing pre-allocated portfolios as the next-generation, customized approach to asset allocation within 401(k) plans. This session will show how advisory firms can take a more “hands-on” approach to delivering successful and consistent investment outcomes for participants and discuss some of the fiduciary implications, best practices, practice management considerations, adoption rates by participants and approaches to education that must be considered. |
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| What you don’t know about risk tolerance |
Speaker: Geoff Davey |
| The presentation will share knowledge accumulated from psychology (which is only now beginning to make its way across to finance and economics), latest research findings, best practice assessment techniques and a best practice methodology for incorporating your client’s risk tolerance into the financial planning process. |
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| Acting like a fiduciary under CFP Board rule 1.4 |
Speaker: Sunny Loveland |
Congressional debate of the terms “duty of care of a fiduciary” and “fiduciary standard” might be taken to mean that such terms aren't universally understood – let alone agreed upon.
Acting Like a Fiduciary is an exploration of the practical applications of the bifurcated standard contained in CFP Board Rule 1.4. The key elements of fiduciary duty – loyalty, obedience, due care, and utmost good faith – will become clearer as Keith Loveland leads an interactive discussion of the six real-life case studies.
This course has been accepted for CFP Ethics Credits. |
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| The legislative and regulatory future of the fiduciary duty |
Speaker: Mercer Bullard, AIF® |
| This session will look at legislative and regulatory trends and their effect on how a fiduciary standard of care is defined, who it applies to and how advisors should prepare for a new environment of increased scrutiny on fiduciary processes. |
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| Best practices in target date fund investing |
Speakers: Ron Surz and Fred Reish, AIFA® |
| Despite their growing popularity, fiduciaries have much to learn about target date funds (TDFs). TDF status as a qualified default investment alternative (QDIA) provides a safe harbor for the type of investment but fiduciaries are still responsible for selecting good TDFs. This session is designed to differentiate the good from the bad. |
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| Delivering a prudent process from a wirehouse |
Speakers: Kevin Mahoney, AIFA® and Ward Mayer, AIF® |
| In the current regulatory and business environment wirehouse advisors may feel like they are between a rock and a hard place. Plan sponsors are demanding more fiduciary services, while many broker-dealers are adamantly opposed to formally acknowledging fiduciary status. In this session we will discuss developing prudent processes that can protect plan sponsors while operating within wirehouse compliance regulations. |
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| 401(k) participant advice: How to protect your plan sponsors and yourself |
Speakers: Chad Griffeth, AIF®, Jason Roberts, Scott Holsopple and Mike DiCenso, AIF® |
The number of employers acknowledging the need for participant advice continues to grow. Media coverage is embracing a fiduciary standard for advice as being consumer-friendly, while behavioral finance studies continue to reiterate investors' shortcomings as investment managers.
How do you fill the need for ongoing fiduciary advice? What are the risks? What are the benefits? What could be the impact on your business and business model? The panelists will discuss the regulatory proceedings, various options for providing advice yourself or outsourcing, as well as some key points to consider for each approach. |
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| fi360 Toolkits: Utilizing the new & enhanced Proposal Generator |
Speakers: Dave Palascak, AIF® |
This session will focus on the new version of the fi360 Proposal Generator. We will cover all of the new features available including the streamlined user-friendly interface, the 4 ways to import data, the mapping options, and much more!
During the session, we will run through a few example scenarios to demonstrate the ease and flexibility that is now available. Creating proposals has never been so easy. Attend this session and you'll see why! |
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| The next agenda in financial planning |
Speaker: Bob Veres |
| In the next 10 years, the financial planning profession undergo significant transformations in its regulatory environment, practice management activities, client services and investing paradigm, and the changes will usher in a new golden age for those who are prepared to meet the challenges and accept the opportunities. |
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| No handouts are available for this session |
| Retirement readiness: THE question for our industry |
Speaker: Tom Kmak |
In the middle of the 1970’s, America was experiencing its first energy crisis. Gas station lines were over 2 miles long as concerned Americans fretted over their ability to obtain the fuel needed to live their lives. In response to this crisis, the government passed the CAFÉ standards (Corporate Average Fuel Economy). Within a decade the car companies doubled the miles per gallon for vehicles on the road. And recently, General Motors announced it was building a car capable of 230 miles per gallon.
Similarly, America is experiencing a retirement crisis. Ultimately, the definition of “What is Winning” in our industry is quite simply, Retirement Readiness. This session will examine this important universal standard for our industry and provide useful insights like:
-Which factors are most important with respect to Retirement Readiness
-Just how important are fees with respect to Retirement Readiness
-Which factors can you influence as an advisor to help your clients
-How can the concept of Liability Driven Investing that is so popular with pension plans be used for DC plans
The session will be fun and interactive and guaranteed to provide you with some insights that will impress your clients. |
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| Fiduciary responsibility to the core affluent investor |
Speakers Erwin 'Skip' Sorensen, AIF® |
| We will apply insights from behavioral finance and complex systems research to consider how to modify our assumptions about risk and returns as they apply to the unique 'liability profile' of the core affluent investor. We will also look at ways to use planning tools to measure risk affordability as well as risk tolerance. |
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| Every investment committee needs a fiduciary assessment. Will you be the hammer or the nail? |
Speaker: Scott Reed, AIFA® |
| Our firm began doing formal fiduciary assessments under the fi360 framework in 2008. We have had to ramp up our capabilities in order to keep up with demand. It is the fastest growing segment of our business. For the first time in the quarter century that I have been in the investment business, investors are proactively seeking a thoughtful, ethical investment process which has been something we have often had to force upon them in the past. Those who are willing to act have the opportunity to grow their business and their reputation by teaching and implementing the global fiduciary standards of care on behalf of the investment committees that manage the lion’s share of the wealth in this country. |
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| Due diligence and procedural prudence under ERISA |
Speakers: Gene Maloney |
| This session will include an in-depth review of what a financial intermediary should understand about selecting investments, which are then presented to plan sponsors for ultimate use by plan participants. Extensive handouts covering each component of the topic will be distributed to attendees. |
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| Session handouts to be made available at conference |
| Mission driven investing: Pricing the mission and developing a framework for success |
Speaker: Bob Smith |
| Foundations and charitable organizations have great latitude when it comes to investing – their long-term missions often allow them to be very flexible and aggressive in their asset allocation process. All of this freedom, from an investment standpoint, has often left fund fiduciaries at a loss when it comes to developing the 'correct' investment strategy for their particular organization. Mission Driven Investing ('MDI') helps non-profit organizations, and their fiduciaries, make sense of their multi-faceted and often loosely defined disbursements by offering a clear and transparent basis for making investment strategy decisions based on their actual financial requirements. After all, the top priority of a non-profit fiduciary should be ensuring that their investment strategy meets the organization’s charitable mission. This presentation will include a discussion of the current status of charitable organizations and foundations, an introduction to the concept of 'Pricing the Mission', and a real, dynamic case analysis, including scenario testing and assumption assessment, to illustrate the power of MDI. |
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| What plan sponsors really want: A behind-the-scenes look at the RFP selection process |
Speaker: Eric Paley and Christian Hancey |
A plan sponsor issues an RFP for a new fiduciary consultant, and you pitch your services.
-What is being said about your presentation after you leave the room?
-What has the plan sponsor’s legal counsel or other adviser told the sponsor to look for?
-Have you addressed the concerns of your audience?
-Have you offered something that truly sets your service model apart from the others in a meaningful way?
In this session, two experienced employee benefits attorneys will offer a behind-the-scenes look at the plan sponsor’s deliberative process. Attendees, in turn, will garner practical insights into how they can vastly improve their odds at securing new engagements. |
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| fi360 Toolkits: Creating and reporting on 401(k) model portfolios |
Speaker: Mike Limbacher, AIF® |
This session will focus on the new feature available within My Client Manager which enables the reporting on models within a standard 401(k) plan. Unlike the earlier version of My Client Manager which only permitted storage of the plan lineup, you can now also include one or more models that are offered to the plan participants.
During the session, we will cover how to create a 401(k) Model, add investments to the model, write commentary, produce the new 401(k) Model Report, and much more! If your clients have models within their 401(k) plans, don’t miss this session! |
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| The changing face of 401(k) plans: Perceptions, products and laws |
Speaker: Fred Reish, AIFA® |
| Just a few years ago, 401(k) plans were viewed as supplemental savings plans. However, the perception has changed dramatically. Almost all of the 401(k) events of the past few years can be explained by that change of perception. Participants obviously need help with prudent investing if they are to accumulate adequate benefits for retirement. Some solutions to that problem are target date funds, QDIAs, and managed accounts. Participants need help understanding the amounts that they need to save for retirement to have adequate retirement income. The response is proposed legislation to require that participants be informed of projected lifetime income and other services like gap analysis. Retired participants need help making their 401(k) income last for a lifetime. The industry has developed products, like guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefits, and the Departments of Labor and Treasury have issued a request for information on lifetime income. This program discusses the consequences to the 401(k) industry, regulators and legislators. |
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| ETFs and their place in the 401(k) market |
Speaker: Greg Porteous |
| Financial advisors and plan sponsors are increasingly seeking transparent, efficient and low cost investment options for their retirement plans. Attend this session and learn why ETFs should be part of a 401(k) investment menu, how advisors are using them as a differentiator and why new technology is increasing the utilization of ETFs in employer sponsored plans. |
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| What makes you a qualified advisor? |
Speaker: David Witz, AIF® |
| This session will explore the fiduciary obligation to retain experts where that expertise is lacking and how to identify the expert from the amateur. Advisors will be informed of the minimum standards of criteria necessary to be a qualified advisor and the available tools to support and promote the claim of expertise. |
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| Rescue strategies for defined benefit plans |
Speaker: Chip Hunt, AIF® and Tom Bowler, AIFA® |
In midst of the 2008 the global credit crisis, plunging interest rates and falling asset values devastated the funded status for most pension plans. According to some surveys, today 85% of pension plans remain less than 80% funded. Now that these funding deficits are appearing on the company’s balance sheet, plan sponsors are in urgent need of straightforward, skilled advice.
Chip Hunt and Tom Bowler will present a recent case study and a conceptual discussion of the steps to be taken when designing a rescue strategy for plan sponsors of traditional defined benefit pension plans. |
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| AIF Capstone Training Program Day 1 |
With Accredited Investment Fiduciary® (AIF®) training, you’ll learn how to implement a prudent investment process for yourself and your clients and can earn a professional credential that demonstrates knowledge and competency in the area of fiduciary responsibility.
Topics include:
-Applicable laws and regulations
-Asset allocation
-Investment policy statement development
-Investment and service provider due diligence
-Ongoing monitoring processes
-Fiduciary record keeping
-And other related subjects
Learn More | Register |
| AIF Capstone Training Program Day 2 |
With Accredited Investment Fiduciary® (AIF®) training, you’ll learn how to implement a prudent investment process for yourself and your clients and can earn a professional credential that demonstrates knowledge and competency in the area of fiduciary responsibility.
Topics include:
-Applicable laws and regulations
-Asset allocation
-Investment policy statement development
-Investment and service provider due diligence
-Ongoing monitoring processes
-Fiduciary record keeping
-And other related subjects
Learn More | Register |
| Getting started with the fi360 Toolkits |
Speaker: Mike Limbacher, AIF® |
This two hour pre-conference session is ideal for new users or for those users who want a basic overview of the features available in the Toolkits. We will cover the Investment Analyzer, entering and analyzing client data, including the fi360 Fiduciary Score™, working with and interpreting the various reporting options, and the new Proposal Generator. We will also review the areas in the Toolkit that you can customize to become an efficient user. A brief review of the Watch List Management tools will conclude the session.
Registration is limited for this free pre-conference event. Secure your seat today by emailing your name, company name, phone number and email address to tools@fi360.com. Indicate the name of the pre-conference session in your email as well. |
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| What's new in the fi360 Toolkits since the 2009 Conference? |
Speaker: Dave Palascak, AIF® |
This one and a half-hour pre-conference session will cover the new, major features of the fi360 Toolkits that have been released since last year's Conference. We will cover: (1) the new and enhanced Proposal Generator, (2) the Fee & Expense Report, and (3) the ability to add 401(k) Models in My Client Manager. The session will provide an overview of the new features which also will be covered in detail during three separate, focused break-out sessions during the Conference.
Registration is limited for this free pre-conference event. Secure your seat today by emailing your name, company name, phone number and email address to tools@fi360.com. Indicate the name of the pre-conference session in your email as well. |
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