Press Release
American Express Retirement Services Introduces Education Program for Plan Sponsors
Education Program Helps Plan Sponsors Better Manage Their 401k Plans
MINNEAPOLIS, July 15, 2002 — American Express Retirement Services has introduced Plan Sponsor Ed. from American Express, an interactive education program designed to provide retirement plan and pension training to the benefits professionals who manage 401k and other defined contribution retirement plans. Plan Sponsor Ed. courses, provided free of charge to client organizations, help keep plan sponsors educated about topics relevant to retirement plan management and assist them in working through turnover, as well as adding and retaining personnel. American Express Retirement Services leveraged its own training courses for its account team employees to create this new plan sponsor curriculum.
"We invest a great deal in training and educating our account team professionals to meet a constantly changing retirement plan environment," said John Baker, chief operations officer of American Express Retirement Services. "Our plan sponsor clients face the same challenges to stay current on regulations and trends. Plan Sponsor Ed. is a way for us to add value by offering interactive courses that our clients’ benefits professionals can easily access. And, because it is our own training curriculum, the cost is not a factor."
American Express Retirement Services launched the first Plan Sponsor Ed. course on 401k/401(m) testing in December 2001 and since then has added a course on Form 5500 filing – the key annual plan registration document required by the IRS. Additional courses on retirement plan basics and various testing of qualified plans will be launched later this year.
Plan sponsors interested in taking a course either receive copies of training courses on diskette or via an email attachment. Specific courses can also be accessed via links through American Express’s Plan Management Center web site – a single, web-based platform for client access to plan news and information.
American Express Retirement Services, in conjunction with American Express Trust Company, provides services for defined contribution and 401k plans with total combined assets of more than $31 billion and a participant base of more than one million as of December 31, 2001. Based in Minneapolis, they provide corporations, unions and municipalities nationwide with a complete package of financial education, recordkeeping and trustee services for qualified retirement plans. For more information on American Express Retirement Services, visit http://www.americanexpress.com/sponsors.
###
401khelpcenter.com, LLC is not the author of this press release and is not associated or affiliated with any firm or organization mentioned unless otherwise noted. Use of any information obtained from this press release is voluntary, and reliance on it should only be undertaken after an independent review of its accuracy, completeness, efficacy, and timeliness. Reference to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, service mark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not constitute or imply endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by 401khelpcenter.com, LLC.
