Watch home mail for introductory letter from Fidelity Investments
Purdue faculty and staff should be on the lookout for a letter from Fidelity Investments that will be delivered to their homes in mid-August.
As announced following the July 9 Purdue Board of Trustees meeting, Fidelity Investments will be the new recordkeeper for the University's defined contribution and voluntary savings retirement plans beginning Jan. 1, 2011. The letter will serve to introduce Fidelity in this new role.
The move to Fidelity as recordkeeper is one component of recommendations made by the Retirement Plan Review Task Force, a University-wide group formed in the fall of 2008 and charged with making a good retirement plan even better.
The task force's recommendations have resulted in retirement plan enhancements aimed at helping Purdue faculty and staff achieve their retirement income goals. The enhancements will go into effect Jan. 1, 2011, and include the following:
* Lower faculty and staff administrative fees on retirement investments and a more transparent fee structure. For an example of how lower fees can affect investment returns over time, click here.
* Addition of a Roth retirement investment vehicle for a way to diversify the taxability of retirement income, allowing for non-taxed investment gains.
* An internal Retirement Plan Committee to select and monitor investment options offered through the plan.
* Investment choices organized into a tiered structure to address a range of investment styles. For example, participants who want a higher level of professional guidance can choose from target date retirement funds offered in Tier 1. Participants who want to assume greater management of their accounts can choose index funds in Tier 2 or actively managed funds in Tier 3.
* A self-directed brokerage window for investors who believe they have the requisite knowledge to invest outside the plan's lineup of investment funds. The self-directed window will be Tier 4.
* Flexibility to keep existing money in current TIAA-CREF and voluntary retirement investment funds or to transfer it to new investment options to be offered in January 2011.
* A West Lafayette Fidelity office dedicated to serving Purdue faculty and staff at all campuses.
More information about the work of the task force and the resulting retirement plan enhancements is available through these resources:
* Frequently asked questions.
* PowerPoint slides from May 2010 task force presentation to representatives of the faculty and Purdue's staff advisory groups.
Staff Benefits and Fidelity will be providing additional information later this summer. Watch for more on the investment options, the enrollment process, and the new tools and services that will be available. Comments may be sent to staffbenefits@purdue.edu.
