2019 CRI Annual Policy Innovation Forum

Generating and Protecting Lifetime Income:
An Examination of Key Challenges and Solutions

For the first time, defined contribution (DC) plan assets account for more than 50% of total retirement assets in the seven largest pension markets globally. With the shift from traditional pensions to a DC-centric system, the responsibility for making complex retirement savings and investment decisions has shifted to individuals.

Key objectives for retirement income include stability, maximization, longevity protection, growth potential, cost, and liquidity.  How can lifetime income solutions can help improve retirement outcomes by looking at potential income strategies and balancing the risk trade-offs associated with each solution?

Although few would dispute the need for lifetime income solutions, adoption rates by plan sponsors and participants have been low.  The easier that policymakers and regulators make it for plan sponsors to offer lifetime income solutions, the greater the likelihood employers will adopt them.

The Georgetown Center for Retirement Initiatives (CRI) held an exclusive, invitation-only Policy Innovation Forum and released a new research report illustrating how a select set of different lifetime income solutions can help achieve retiree objectives.

MONDAY, JUNE 17

5:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Networking Reception (for invited guests only)
The Monocle Restaurant (drinks and hors d’oeuvres)

TUESDAY, JUNE 18

7:30 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.

Registration Open & Breakfast Networking

8:00 a.m. – 8:15 a.m.

Welcome & Opening Remarks

  • Hank Kim, Executive Director & Counsel, NCPERS
  • Ari Barkan, Managing Director, KKR
  • Angela Antonelli, Research Professor & Executive Director, CRI

8:15 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.

What is Adequate Retirement Income and How Do Spending Patterns Shift Pre- and Post-Retirement?

Moderator: Wendy Carter, Vice President & DC Director, Segal Consulting

  • Jennifer Gregory, Senior Analyst, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), and Amrita Sen, Senior Analyst, U.S. GAO (view presentation)
  • Jack VanDerhei, Research Director, Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) (view presentation)

9:00 a.m. – 9:50 a.m.

What are the Unique and Varied Challenges Facing Different Populations in Planning and Preparing for Retirement?

Moderator: John Adler, Chief Pensions Adviser & Director, Office of Pensions & Investments, Office of the Mayor, New York City

  • Karen Andres, Director, Policy & Market Solutions, Aspen Institute
  • Annamaria Lusardi, Distinguished Scholar, Professor, and Director, Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center (GFLEC), George Washington University School of Business
  • Robert Raben, President & Founder, The Raben Group, and Director, Diverse Asset Managers Initiative (DAMI)
  • Marisabel Torres, Senior Policy Analyst, UnidosUS

9:50 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

BREAK

10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

If Income Replacement is the Goal, How Do You Solve for Risk?

Moderator: Martin Noven, Executive Director, State Universities Retirement System (SURS) of Illinois

  • Matthew Forester, Chief Investment Officer & Director of Investments, Lockwood Advisors, BNY Mellon
  • Steve Jackson, Ph.D., Assistant Director for Research, American Academy of Actuaries
  • Tom McCartan, Vice-President, LDI Strategies, PGIM
  • Grady M. Smith, Vice President & Senior Portfolio Manager, Dimensional Fund Advisors

11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.

How Do Lifetime Income Solutions Affect Retirement Readiness and Security?

Moderator: Charles E.F. Millard, former Director, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)

Presentation: David O’Meara, Director, Willis Towers Watson (view presentation)

  • Anne Ackerley, Managing Director & Head of the Retirement Group, BlackRock
  • David C. John, Senior Strategic Policy Advisor, AARP Public Policy Institute and the Retirement Security Project, Brookings Institution
  • Anne Lester, Portfolio Manager and Head of Retirement Solutions, JPMorgan Asset Management
  • Adam Polacek, Managing Director, Client Portfolio Management, TIAA
  • Chris Weirath, Senior Vice President, Global Client Management, Retirement & Workplace Solutions, Morningstar Investment Management

12:15 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

LUNCH BREAK

1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

What Will It Take for Plan Sponsors to Adopt Lifetime Income Solutions?

Moderator: The Honorable Seth Harris, former Acting Secretary & Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of Labor; and Founder & Owner, Seth Harris Law

  • Kevin Barry, Director, Retirement Plans, First American Financial Corporation
  • ​Vern Cushenbery, Chief Investment Officer, Two West
  • Jim Gearin, Chief Operating Officer​, Ascensus
  • Keith Welks, Deputy Treasurer, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
  • Diana Winalski, Head of 401(k) Product Management, International Paper

2:00 p.m. – 2:50 p.m.

What Role Can Policymakers Play to Facilitate the Adoption of Lifetime Income Solutions and Strategies?

Moderator: Melissa Kahn, Managing Director, Retirement Policy, Defined Contribution, State Street Global Advisors

  • Kara Getz, Chief Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. Representative Richard Neal (D-MA)
  • Kendra Isaacson, Senior Pensions Counsel, U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA)
  • Lori Prater, Policy Director and Tax Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. Representative Mike Kelly (R-PA)
  • Kevin Walsh, Principal, Groom Law Group, Chartered

2:50 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Closing Remarks

A Special Thank You to Our Event Sponsors

From L to R: Angela Antonelli, CRI; John Wasilisin, Maryland$aves; Sarah Mysiewicz Gill, AARP; Mary Fay, Connecticut Retirement Security Authority
From L to R: Michele Brennan, Willis Towers Watson; Dana Hildebrandt, Willis Towers Watson; Anne Lester, J.P. Morgan Asset Management
From L to R: Andrew Sherman, Segal Consulting; Tom McCartan, PGIM Fixed Income;  Grady M. Smith, Dimensional Fund Advisors
From L to R: Wendy Carter, Segal Consulting; Amrita Sen, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO); Jennifer Gregory, U.S. GAO; Jack VanDerhei, Ph.D., Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI)
From L to R: John Adler, Office of Pensions and Investments, Office of the Mayor, NYC; Karen Andres, Aspen Institute; Annamaria Lusardi, Ph.D., Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center (GFLEC), George Washington University School of Business; Justin Wilson, The Raben Group; Marisabel Torres, UnidosUS
From L to R: Martin Noven, State Universities Retirement System (SURS) of Illinois; Matthew Forester, Lockwood Managed Account Solutions, BNY Mellon; Steve Jackson, Ph.D., American Academy of Actuaries; Tom McCartan,  PGIM Fixed Income; Grady M. Smith Dimensional Fund Advisors
From L to R: Charles E.F. Millard, former Director, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC); David O’Meara, Willis Towers Watson; Anne Lester, J.P. Morgan Asset Management; Anne Ackerley,  BlackRock; David C. John, AARP Public Policy Institute and Brookings Institution; Adam Polacek, TIAA; Chris Weirath, Morningstar Investment Management
From L to R: The Honorable Seth Harris, former Acting Secretary & Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of Labor; Kevin Barry, First American Financial Corporation; ​Vern Cushenbery, Two West; Jim Gearin, Ascensus; Diana Winalski, International Paper; Keith Welks, Deputy Treasurer, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
From L to R: Melissa Kahn, State Street Global Advisors; Kendra Isaacson, U.S. Senate HELP Committee, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA); Kara Getz, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. Representative Richard Neal (D-MA); Lori Prater, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. Representative Mike Kelly (R-PA); Kevin Walsh, Groom Law Group