By LINCOLNSHIRE, Ill., Jan. 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- A new survey by Aon Hewitt, the global talent, retirement and health solutions business of Aon plc (NYSE: AON), finds companies, in an effort to decrease pension risk exposure and insulate their plans from fluctuating economic conditions, are increasingly rethinking their investment strategies by realigning their plan assets to match the plan's liabilities.
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According to Aon Hewitt's survey of more than 220 U.S. companies with defined benefit plans representing 5.8 million workers, 62 percent of pension plan sponsors are somewhat or very likely to adjust their plan's investments to better match the liabilities in the year ahead, compared to just one-in-six that do so today. Some companies plan to go one step further and adopt dynamic investment policies or glide paths that increase exposure to fixed income and risk-hedging options as their plan's funded status improves. Twenty-two percent of employers currently have a glide path strategy in place. By the end of 2014, 30 percent of companies are expected to have embraced this approach.
"The strong market returns of 2013 improved the funded status of many employers' pension plans," said Rob Austin, director of Retirement Research at Aon Hewitt. "Implementing an investment policy that mirrors liability movements as underlying economic conditions change allows plan sponsors to lock in these gains. In addition to changing their investment policy, more companies are establishing holistic de-risking strategies to further guard their plan's funded status and reduce liabilities."
Aon Hewitt's survey also found that companies are adopting a more thorough approach to monitoring and managing pension risk by focusing on three key areas:
1. Understanding potential risk.
Nearly a quarter (24 percent)
of pension plan sponsors have
recently conducted an asset
liability study to get a better
picture of their plan's
performance under varying
economic conditions, double the
number of companies that had
done so in 2012. Of the
companies that had not yet
conducted a study, 45 percent
are somewhat or very likely to
do so in the next 12 months.
2. Monitoring funded status. One-
in-eight employers have
already established a method to
monitor daily funded status of
its plan, twice the number of
employers than in 2012. One
quarter of the plan sponsors
that do not have this
monitoring in place are
somewhat or very likely to do
so in 2014.
"Employers used to only evaluate
their plan's funded status once
each year when they were
required to report on the
plan's performance," explained
Austin. "Now they understand
that it is critical to have a
real-time view of how market
and economic conditions are
impacting the plan to enable
them to adjust and execute
their investment strategy at a
moment's notice."
3. Reducing liabilities. Pension
plan sponsors continue to adopt
strategies to limit their
liabilities. Lump-sum
settlements through a "window"
are becoming increasingly
popular. Twelve percent of plan
sponsors recently introduced or
expanded the availability of
lump-sum windows for retirees
or terminated vested
participants, and 43 percent
are somewhat or very likely to
complete a lump-sum window for
inactive participants during
2014.
"As PBGC premiums have
increased, the fixed costs of
maintaining a qualified pension
plan have also increased,
making it more desirable for
plan sponsors to settle plan
liabilities through lump-sum
payouts," added Ari Jacobs,
Global Retirement Solutions
leader at Aon Hewitt. "These
settlements allow companies to
reduce their pension
obligations while at the same
time, give workers access to
their retirement funds much
earlier than planned."
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About Aon Hewitt
Aon Hewitt empowers organizations and individuals to secure a better future through innovative talent, retirement and health solutions. We advise, design and execute a wide range of solutions that enable clients to cultivate talent to drive organizational and personal performance and growth, navigate retirement risk while providing new levels of financial security, and redefine health solutions for greater choice, affordability and wellness. Aon Hewitt is the global leader in human resource solutions, with over 30,000 professionals in 90 countries serving more than 20,000 clients worldwide. For more information on Aon Hewitt, please visit www.aonhewitt.com.
About Aon
Aon plc (NYSE:AON) is the leading global provider of risk management, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, and human resources solutions and outsourcing services. Through its more than 65,000 colleagues worldwide, Aon unites to empower results for clients in over 120 countries via innovative and effective risk and people solutions and through industry-leading global resources and technical expertise. Aon has been named repeatedly as the world's best broker, best insurance intermediary, reinsurance intermediary, captives manager and best employee benefits consulting firm by multiple industry sources. Visit www.aon.com for more information on Aon and www.aon.com/manchesterunited to learn about Aon's global partnership and shirt sponsorship with Manchester United.
Media Contacts:
MacKenzie Lucas, 847-442-2995, mackenzie.lucas@aonhewitt.com
Maurissa Kanter, 847-442-0952, maurissa.kanter@aonhewitt.com
SOURCE Aon plc
