Half-Day Retirement Symposium

The WP & BC Retirement Symposium is one of the most significant and popular events of the year in Portland's benefits community, and this year's event will be no different.  Get a clear view of the future with insights from 3 different industry experts.  Please join us for this exciting and informative half-day session.

Presentations:

Stay Ahead of the Trends  

Economic Update-Capital Market Trends

Next Generation Thinking

 Legal and Compliance Updates

WP&BC Retirement Symposium

Wednesday November 11, 2015

The Standard Insurance Center | Basement Auditorium | 900 SW 5th Avenue | Portland, OR 97204

• 8:00-8:30 Networking and Breakfast

• 8:30-8:45 Welcome and Update – Chris Wolfe and Steve Nofziger

• 8:45 – 9:30 Stay ahead of the Trends – DOL update (Kelli McNamara, Columbia Threadneedle Investments) - The retirement security of American workers is a concern of the administration, albeit one that presently falls lower on the list of priorities than other important items (like tax reform). That's not to say that the retirement savings and income industry has been devoid of recent change. In this session, we will identify who in Washington D.C. is responsible for developing retirement reform measures, summarize key retirement savings and income developments over the past several months and look ahead to what the administration may be contemplating for the future.

• 9:45 – 10:30 Economic Update / Capital Markets Review (Thomas McConville, Becker Capital)  - The US equity market trades at a reasonable valuation but concerns over the impact of rising interest rates, global economic growth, and elevated corporate profit margins are driving fear and uncertainty in the market place.  Market cap weighted indexes mask the weakness in the equity market. Within the S&P500, the largest 125 companies fell 2.9% YTD, while the smallest 150 companies have fell 15.8%.  Relatively high multiple, growth-oriented stocks like Amazon, Google and Facebook have performed strongly, while value-oriented names struggled throughout 2015.

• 10:45 – 11:30 Next Generation Thinking (Brad Vaughan, T. Rowe Price) About 11,000 baby boomers have been retiring every day since 2011.  Millennials, 80 million strong, have been handed the keys to the American workforce.  But this generational transition could have a profound impact on the way DC plans operate.  Because Millennials save, invest, and engage in vastly different ways than do baby boomers, it's important for plan sponsors and service providers to adapt to the new reality.  Until now, the DC plan has served a supporting role in the retirement landscape—helping to supplement both a pension system that is slowly disappearing and a Social Security system that is at least on shakier ground.  For Millennials and future generations, the DC plan will serve as the primary retirement savings vehicle.  The industry must optimize plan design, investment menus, and methods of engagement—because participants are depending on this system more than ever.

• 11:30 Adjourn (Kara Backus)