Association Uncertain about Investment Performance
The challenge
An association’s finance sub-committee recognizes that their investment reporting lacks clarity, and thus, they are uncertain about how to best evaluate the portfolio’s performance and fees.
The opportunity
The association conducts an RFP for an investment advisor, seeking a partner that can better support their fiduciary oversight responsibility, and make it easy for them to verify that their performance is in line with expectations. Maximizing bottom line performance is also a priority.
The solution
RIA's proposal focused on board training, proactive client service, concise reporting, and low investment costs. In addition to managing the association’s reserve portfolio, RWM would provide fiduciary training to help the sub-committee establish benchmarks, and other reporting requirements to make policy verification easy.
RWM objective
RIA’s goal is for an association’s volunteer finance committee to become engaged and better able to focus on their responsibilities. Volunteers can be more effective when investment reports are clear and succinct. Verifying policy compliance and that performance returns are in line with expectations should be accomplished quickly, leaving more time for boards and committees to be strategic.
Nonprofit May Have Too Much Cash on Hand
The challenge
A large nonprofit organization’s leaders recognize that they may be keeping too much cash in the bank and that may be imprudent. They ask their CFO to identify potential solutions.
The opportunity
The nonprofit’s CFO reviews the Study on Nonprofit Investing (SONI) and learns how similar organizations apportion their assets among cash, short-term, and longer-term investment portfolios.
The solution
RIA’s policy development consulting starts with a review of a nonprofit’s financial statements and cash flow projections. We conduct interviews with key personnel and a high level risk tolerance survey. Based on our findings and years of experience, RIA makes recommendations for the segmentation and target risk level for multiple investment pools, and develops a comprehensive Investment Policy Statement (IPS).
RWM objective
RIA’s goal is to help nonprofits make the best use of their cash assets. One way we’ve seen this work is by maintaining an operating/cash reserve, and both short-term and long-term portfolios. The nonprofit’s IPS should include predetermined thresholds that trigger movement among the various buckets.
When Retirement Plans May Be in Conflict
The challenge
An HR director believes her association’s retirement plan broker and provider are “on the same side,” and neither one is advocating for her staff.
The opportunity
The HR director attends a seminar hosted by RWM. She learns about potential conflicts of interest related to retirement plan fees, and the commissions paid to brokers and platform providers.
The solution
If hired as the advisor to a qualified retirement plan, RWM will act as an aggressive advocate for plan sponsors and participants. We support the sponsors’ fiduciary responsibility and help participants determine their retirement goals. Giving personalized financial advice and eliminating unnecessary expenses are two of our top priorities for clients.
RWM objective
Upon conducting a retirement plan vendor RFP for a client, RWM’s initial objective is for the current vendor to reduce its fees. Our goal is for retirement plan participants to pay less for the same experience, keeping more of their assets at work for them. If the current vendor is unwilling, however, RWM will not hesitate to fully support the transition to a more cost-effective solution.
Retired Couple Eager to Streamline
The challenge
A retired doctor and his wife maintain retirement, annuity, and brokerage accounts with several advisors, and also directly manage a portion of their family’s investments. They want to develop an overall plan, streamline the process, and spend far less time thinking about their investments.
The opportunity
RWM explains that it doesn’t have to manage any of their assets to develop a plan to streamline their financial lives. Once the plan is in place, RWM can maintain an ongoing role in making sure the plan continues to perform as expected.
The solution
RWM will develop an overall retirement income plan that seeks to maximize the tax efficiency of spending from various investment accounts. By receiving direct feeds from external (non-managed) investment accounts, RWM aggregates all of a client’s investments into a single, concise report. The report shows where clients are in relation to their goals and makes it clear when it’s time to take action.
RWM objective
RWM’s goal is to enable people to spend more time pursuing their interests, and far less time worrying about their investments. We want clients to know if they are on track to meeting their financial needs. We start by making sure they have all the information they need to make great financial decisions.
