In some ways, the second most popular post on my blog in 2025 was my favorite – and objectively likely my “best” – post of the year, in any venue. It hit early and accurately, and provided actionable advice to an at-risk population, namely employers who sponsor 401(k) plans and the fiduciaries who operate them.
Last year, I did a top ten countdown of the ten most popular posts on this blog in 2024, inspired by how radio DJs in my youth would count down the top 100 songs of the year to close out the year. It was a lot of fun and people seemed to enjoy it
Financial expert turned professional writer Susan Mangiero has a new article out on the issue of adding alternative investments to 401(k) plans. It provides an excellent summary of the issues and is particularly helpful if you are new to the topic – it will get you up to speed quickly.
I make a guest appearance
Fred Reish has an excellent article out on the technical and substantive aspects of the executive – and soon to be regulatory – efforts to open 401(k) plans to alternative investments, with a particular focus on the targeting (pun intended) of target date funds as the channel for bringing them into the investment holdings of
In earlier posts in my Plan Sponsor and Fiduciary 2.0 series I promised to provide a cheat sheet for fiduciaries confronting the push to add private equity and other alternative assets to 401(k) plans. Here it is, with a focus on private equity assets, because that is where most of the initial action currently is
Many commentators are suggesting that the recent executive order and the directive for regulatory action towards adding private equity and other alternative assets to 401(k) plans does not mean that those assets are destined to end up in 401(k) plans. But personally, I think that belief is almost certainly naïve – particularly with regard to
This is the third in my series of posts called Plan Sponsor and Fiduciary 2.0, which addresses how fiduciaries and plan sponsors should now be conducting themselves in light of operational changes, legal developments, and liability risks that have developed over the past ten to fifteen years. You can find the origin story behind this
Walk softly and carry a big stick. Trust but verify. Never bring a knife to a gunfight.
People who know me, have read my blog regularly, heard me speak on ERISA issues, or been on a jury in a case I have tried, know that I am very fond of analogies, metaphors, short examples, and
I have long been inordinately fond of the Dickens’ line “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” It is applicable to many things at many times, and I have used it in briefs, slide decks, presentations, and conversations. But at this point in time, for plan sponsors and plan fiduciaries