Countless articles mention the burgeoning US federal deficit, as if it is a rival to the Covid-19 virus, getting ready to unleash long-term harm the likes of which we've never witnessed. They are WRONG! Yes, deficits for individuals, businesses, states/municipalities,...

We are huge fans of cash flow driven investing (CDI). We believe that securing pension benefit payments is the number one objective for a DB plan. Maximizing the efficiency of the asset allocation process is also critical, especially for those...

Every once in a while I read something that just makes me shake my head in disbelief. Today I had such an experience. The gist of the article to which I am referring had to do with a question that...

The Covid-19 crisis has raised awareness regarding many social ills, including the lack of emergency funds, the fragility of the labor force, especially for older workers, and inequality in general. These all need to be addressed in time, but there...

Of course they are! Recently, there has been more reporting about 401(k) participation taking a hit amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, that is a shocker. According to folks at LIMRA Workplace Benefits Research, their findings reveal that among workers with...

Here is the question of the day: If your pension plan beats the ROA, but loses to liability growth, did you win? I suspect that most plan sponsors and many consultants would suggest that they have won the game. But,...

The New Jersey Pension Fund has reported that the system generated a -2.47% return for the 10-months ending April 30, 2020, which is obviously quite poor given their annual return on asset target (ROA) of 7.5%. Furthermore, they are reporting...

The most significant cause of the current pension crisis is the failure to contribute enough to these plans! As a result, too much emphasis has been placed on generating out-sized returns, which have failed to materialize. Oh, we've had brief...

Anyone who knows Ryan ALM and who has followed our blog posts for years knows that we are big supporters of DB plans as the primary retirement vehicle for the masses. We've discussed our rationale for this stance numerous times....

Representatives from the Federal Reserve Bank in St. Louis recently discussed on a defined contribution webinar the implications for the retirement industry as a result of the Covid-19 crisis. The key action items discussed were all significant issues prior to...