Ryan ALM
Blog
Pension Plan Sponsor: "I Wish that I could..."
In October, I will celebrate my 45th year in the pension/investment industry. I've been truly blessed, but also frustrated by activities that I deem detrimental to the successful management of DB pension plans. First and foremost, I believe that a...
Trouble Paying the Bills?
“The worst thing that can happen,” Andrew Junkin, CIO, Virginia Retirement System says, “is that you’re a forced seller in any market.” That quote appeared in a Chief Investment Officer article from March 4, 2026. We couldn't agree more with...
What is My Funded Ratio? Who Cares!
The funded ratio of a DB pension plan gets a lot of attention, especially if it is perceived to be weak. But does the funded ratio truly tell you the whole story as to the financial health of a DB...
Unfortunately, the Joke Was On Us!
I started raising alarm bells related to DB pension exposure to alternatives - mainly private equity and private credit several years ago, and have produced roughly a dozen blog posts that touch on this issue. You may recall some of...
What is the PCE Price Index Telling Us?
As most investors know, the Federal Reserve's primary inflation measure is the Core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) targets 2% annual PCE inflation while trying to balance long-term price stability and maximum employment....
It's Not Just the Price of Gasoline!
Folks (the investment community) seem to be focused on the rising price of oil for its effect on gasoline prices, but the impact of rising oil prices has far greater implications for the broader U.S. economy. Evidence indicates that a...
DB Pension Plan "Absolute Truths" Revisited
This post may be familiar to some of you, as I originally published it in October 2024. Given today's great uncertainty related to geopolitics, markets, and the economy, I thought it relevant to share once again. Please don't hesitate to...
Here's Another Example - Why, Oh Why?
In October 2022, I wrote the following: "I believe that we have overcomplicated the management of DB pension plans. If the primary objective is to fund the promised benefits in a cost-efficient manner and with prudent risk, why do we...
New Jersey's Pension System's "High" Investment Return
As a taxpaying resident in New Jersey and a huge supporter of defined benefit plans who has a daughter in the system, I was happy to read that NJ's pension systems generated strong investment returns in fiscal year 2025, reporting...
“Everybody’s looking under every rock.” Jay Kloepfer
Institutional Investor's James Comtois has recently published an article that quoted several industry members on the near-term (10-years) return forecast for both public and private markets, which according to those asked are looking anemic. No one should be surprised by...