The Frugal Fiduciary Small Business 401(k) Blog
Get the latest industry news, deadlines and tips you need to know to help tackle your fiduciary responsibility needs.

There are no “economies of scale” in 401(k) plans – unless you are trying to beat the market
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By: Greg Carpenter
December 17th 2014
Do economies of scale exist in small business 401(k) plans? To improve the quality of small business 401(k) plans we need to set and enforce fiduciary standards
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
Multiple Employer Plans (MEPs) are a marketing play, not a way to cut costs. We don’t need them.
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By: Greg Carpenter
December 10th 2014
Multiple Employer Plans (MEPs) are not a way to reduce costs in small business retirement plans.
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Reforming Roth provisions may be key to improving savings rates for Millennials. My proposal.
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By: Greg Carpenter
November 20th 2014
Millennials are not saving enough for retirement. The Roth 401k concept is outstanding and provides an excellent way to build long-term wealth with tax benefits
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Let’s put “Income” back in ERISA
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By: Greg Carpenter
November 13th 2014
We recommend the government and industry nudge plan participants toward better retirement income results. Tweak ERISA by allowing more competition.
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
MassMutual settled its “functional fiduciary” lawsuit – a cause for hope for greater fee transparency.
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By: Greg Carpenter
November 10th 2014
MassMutual Life Insurance Company settled its functional fiduciary lawsuit. Revenue sharing payments were not disclosed to the plan sponsor.
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
Small business owners are redefining the market for 401(k) plans. Result: Mass market “products” are about to go extinct.
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By: Greg Carpenter
October 29th 2014
Small business retirement 401k plans value choice over all other buying factors. That’s a common observation across all markets and professions.
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
Edison International case highlights a needed reform: Share class restrictions in 401(k) plans.
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By: Greg Carpenter
October 23rd 2014
The time has come for share class reform in 401(k) plans. The use of multiple share classes for mutual funds in 401k plans is confusing small business retirement plan sponsors.
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Hiring an ERISA 3(38) Investment Manager can be the simplest way to limit 401(k) investment liability.
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By: Greg Carpenter
October 15th 2014
The need for a professional investment manager for small business retirement plans should not be overlooked. It limits 401(k) investment liability
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
Financial wellness is impossible to achieve without plan participation. Here’s how to address the issue with your employees.
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By: Greg Carpenter
October 8th 2014
Financial wellness is difficult to achieve without 401k plan participation. The primary reason employees do not participate in 401k plans is their personal budget.
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Why small business retirement plans with high asset balances actually pay more for their plan services.
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By: Greg Carpenter
October 2nd 2014
Benchmarking fees of small business retirement plans or small business 401k recordkeeping is way more difficult than it needs to be.
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