This week we try something a little different.  This episode is the audio portion of a webinar I hosted a few weeks ago.  The content was great and I thought it would make sense share with you.  My conversation features Sam Henson and Ethan McWilliams, both members of Lockton's ERISA regulatory and compliance team and both spent time as investigators with the Department of Labor.  We start with a quick overview of an employer's fiduciary responsibilities, then compare and contrast how they relate to retirement and benefits plans, next we hit on the DOL's enforcement priorities, the every popular topic of HSA plans and where they fit in the fiduciary conversation, plan assets and fees and close out with everyone's favorite topic compliance and reporting. 

I host several webinars are year, if you did not get an invite to this one and would like to in the future, just go to www.401kfridays.com/subscribe today and join our email list.  Next one is coming up in November and will feature a prior podcast guest as we talk about how a plaintiff's attorney views your retirement plan.

Guest Bios

Sam Henson serves as Director, Legislative & Regulatory Affairs for Lockton Retirement Services. He acts as a subject matter expert on ERISA compliance, DOL/IRS activities, and the legislative landscape. In addition, Sam supervises compliance services for more than 1,000 Lockton retirement clients and 100 retirement Associates.

Prior to joining Lockton, Sam spent almost 10 years with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration. While with the DOL, Sam was a Senior Investigator, conducting more than 100 civil and criminal investigations of employee benefits plans, service providers, and fiduciaries. Sam supervised enforcement efforts for benefit plans funded by prevailing wage laws under the Service Contract Act and Davis-Bacon Act. In his current role, Sam is able to leverage his past experiences to assist employers with reducing their fiduciary risks.

Ethan McWilliams brings five years of ERISA regulatory compliance experience to his position as Lockton Benefit Group’s Senior Compliance Analyst. At Lockton, Ethan’s primary responsibility is heading up the newly launched simulated Department of Labor investigation service, ACE.

Working with client or prospect representatives and Lockton’s account teams, Ethan simulates every step of the DOL investigation process with the ultimate goal of preparing plan sponsors for the process of a real DOL investigation. Through a review of plan documents and mock fiduciary interviews, Ethan identifies red-flag items and suggests available remedies, recommends the implementation of best practices where established procedures may be weak, and educates plan sponsors on exactly what to expect when their benefit plans are chosen for investigation.

Before joining Lockton, Ethan worked as an Investigator for the US Department of Labor - Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA). At EBSA, Ethan conducted a variety of employee benefit plan investigations on both the retirement and health/ welfare sides, running the gamut from complex defined benefit pension plans and 401(k)/403(b) defined contribution plans to multi-option medical, dental, and life insurance plans. Ethan also served as a member of several regional and national project teams, including initiatives aimed at identifying best practices for plan procedural prudence and establishing baselines for reasonable plan fee calculations.

401(k) Fridays Podcast Overview

Struggling with a fiduciary issue, looking for strategies to improve employee retirement outcomes or curious about the impact of current events on your retirement plan? We've had conversations with retirement industry leaders to address these and other relevant topics! You can easily explore over 150 prior on-demand audio interviews here. Don't forget to subscribe as we release a new episode each Friday!