Ameriprise Retirement Services Introduces Podcasting
MINNEAPOLIS, MN, October, 27, 2005 -- Ameriprise Retirement Services today launched podcasting for the retirement plan industry with a series of podcasts to its plan sponsor clients demonstrating the potential of the new medium to reach people with education and information on the go. Retirement plan participant education podcasts are proposed for development in 2006.
The first podcasts will be taken from the 2005 Ameriprise Retirement Services President's Council Symposium, held on Oct. 12-14 in Miami Beach, Fla. The Symposium featured a range of industry experts presenting sessions and leading roundtable, interactive discussions. The focus of the conference addressed trends in the retirement benefits arena, what's on the horizon for corporate benefits leaders and their businesses, and looked into the future for Ameriprise Retirement Services as part of a newly independent company, Ameriprise Financial, Inc.
"As an innovator in financial education, we feel that podcasting could prove to be an excellent method to provide retirement plan participants with important information they need to make informed choices for their retirement savings," said Rusty Field, vice president Ameriprise Financial Planning and Education Services. "Podcasting itself is simply another vehicle we are exploring to deliver education to participants when, where and how they want it."
Podcasting became popular in 2004 as a method of publishing sound files to the Internet, allowing users to subscribe to a feed and receive new audio broadcasts automatically. Unlike radio programs, which are generally listened to as they are broadcast, podcasts are transferred to the listener as a digital media file and are consumed at the listener's convenience. Podcast playback typically occurs using a portable digital audio device, such as an MP3 player or cell phone. Podcasts are available via the Internet by subscribing to an RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed using software such as iPodder or iTunes®, allowing the audio broadcast to be downloaded to a portable device and listened to at any time.
The first podcast from the President's Council is now available at www.amerprise.com/sponsors-podcasts and also via the Apple iTunes Music Store Podcast Directory.
"People can subscribe to podcasts and listen to them at their convenience—when they're on the go, while commuting, working out or traveling," said Field. "They don't have to be tied down to a place and time with a Web site, CD-ROM, seminar or video."
The seminar speakers available on the podcast include strategic business futurist and keynote speaker, Roger Herman who will address the events and trends that impact where and how we work, live and play, as well as important connections to the retirement plan industry. Ward Armstrong, president of Ameriprise Retirement Services and Ted Truscott, president of U.S. Asset Management, Ameriprise Financial, Inc., will offer their perspectives on what's next for Ameriprise Retirement Services and institutional asset management; Charles Ruffel, CEO of Asset International and publisher of Plan Sponsor magazine, will highlight emerging retirement and benefit industry trends; Denise Ferguson, vice president of Federal Government Affairs for Ameriprise Financial, Inc., will present a primer on federal retirement security legislative proposals; Fred Reish, noted ERISA attorney, will speak about critical fiduciary issues and trends; and Rusty Field, vice president of Ameriprise Financial Education and Planning Services, will speak about BluePrint DesignSM and where it's headed next.
About Ameriprise Retirement Services
Ameriprise Retirement Services, a service group of Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc., provides corporations, unions and municipalities, and more than 800,000 workers nationwide with a complete package of financial education, recordkeeping, investments and trustee services for their qualified retirement plans, as well as workplace financial education programs through Ameriprise Financial and Ameriprise Trust Company. For more information on Ameriprise Retirement Services, visit www.ameriprise.com/sponsors.
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