Retirement plan review and investment guidance offered through Fidelity

Faculty and staff interested in receiving help with reviewing their retirement accounts have retirement planning experts available through Fidelity as part of Purdue’s retirement program.

“The University partners with Fidelity to offer a full range of retirement planning services. From analyzing employees’ retirement portfolios to building an income strategy in retirement, Fidelity retirement planning experts are able to meet faculty and staff where they are in the process and help create a plan to achieve their retirement planning and savings goals,” says Candace Shaffer, director of benefits in Human Resources.

In 2011, Fidelity became Purdue’s official provider of education, guidance, and assistance related to retirement plan investments and decisions. For those with pre-2011 retirement funds in a TIAA-CREF account, similar services for those plans are available from TIAA-CREF’s West Lafayette office.

Although other organizations may be advertising retirement services and calling or emailing Purdue employees, the University does not have business relationships with, nor does it endorse, other financial advisors. Employees who receive unsolicited communications from other organizations are advised to clearly inform the callers that they wish to be removed from the call list.

“Planning for retirement can be an intimidating task, and it can be difficult to know who to turn to for help. We encourage our faculty and staff to take advantage of Fidelity’s expertise with Purdue’s plan offerings and investments, before they consider paying additional fees for outside assistance,” Shaffer says.

Fidelity’s guidance is objective, according to Shaffer, who points out that there are no Fidelity funds included in the first three investment tiers of Purdue’s retirement plan platform, therefore removing the possibility of conflict of interest within the investment offerings.

Fidelity offers no-cost confidential consultations to all interested faculty and staff. Employees are welcome to bring a spouse or anyone involved in their financial planning to the appointment.

During an appointment, Fidelity can guide participants in a variety of ways, including:

• Starting to save for retirement.
• Reviewing investment options.
• Assessing if the participant is on track with his or her retirement goals.
• Creating a retirement income plan.
• Consolidating retirement accounts from multiple financial investment sources.

To schedule a one-on-one appointment, go to Fidelity's Purdue-dedicated website and click "Meet with Us."