It has been 45 years since Congress passed the Revenue Act of 1978, making it possible for businesses to offer defined contribution plans such as the 401(k) to help employees save for retirement. The early adopters of defined contribution plans could not have known what the right formula would be to help ensure Americans could save enough to live comfortably in their sunset years. However, as the retirement savings gap has grown to nearly $4 trillion, there's a recognition the traditional model is unlikely to be the future model.

Plain and simple, our industry has reached an inflection point. While great progress has been made to expand affordable access to retirement savings, our focus must now be on increasing access and engagement to create better outcomes for individuals.

Personalization rises to the forefront

Solely relying on a pension, Social Security, and/or 401(k) savings to provide retirement income can lead to insufficient savings. Even worse, it can result in a tendency to delay or ignore creating a financial plan with clear goals. Without a real plan accounting for both spending and required savings to lead the life they want (now and in retirement), too many individuals assume they will adjust their spending patterns later in life. Unfortunately, most Americans don't know how to create a financial plan, and we know from experience they want point-in-time advice to find the right solutions for their unique and diverse needs.