Participant Statements: Make the Most of a Teaching Opportunity.

• Position: Brief Article

One challenge in managing defined contribution plans is to teach employees the importance of saving and how best to invest the money they set aside. "The job never ends, and successful education programs never let an opportunity to educate go by," says Lisa Hoene, vice president of employee education at American Express Retirement Services. "Unfortunately, many plans do just that by missing the teaching moment participant statements -- those quarterly account updates -- present. Many plans put little thought into how the statement might help employees improve their investment choices."

Today, however, Hoene thinks plans can't ignore this teaching opportunity. "The participant statement is perhaps the only regularly scheduled communications vehicle that speaks directly to each individual participant. Considering how difficult it is to get messages through the noise of today's information-overloaded society, it's surprising that this opportunity hasn't been more...