401(k) Specialist Podcast

401(k) Specialist’s new biweekly podcast series “The 401(k) Specialist Pod(k)ast” provides retirement and 401(k) advisors with tips and strategies to optimize their business and outperform for their clients. High-profile pundits and personalities engage in smart discussions of relevant topics to educate, inform and entertain listeners.

401(k) Specialist Podcast is a business podcast hosted by 401(k) Specialist Magazine, with 142 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

401(k) Specialist Magazine hosts 401(k) Specialist Podcast, a business show with 142 episodes published.

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  Episode #142

  Rethinking Active Management for Today’s 401(k) Plans with MFS’ Jeri Savage

  Aug 10, 202625 minS7

  As market volatility, concentration risk and evolving retirement income needs reshape the defined contribution landscape, plan sponsors are taking a fresh look at the role of active management in participant portfolios. That is the subject of 401(k) Specialist’s latest “ Deep Dive ,” and it’s what we’re talking about with MFS Investment Management Lead Retirement Strategist Jeri Savage in this episode of the 401(k) Specialist Pod(k)ast . We’ll discuss why active management is back in the conversation, where it can add the most value alongside passive strategies, and how fiduciaries should think about portfolio construction as retirement plans continue to evolve. We’ll also touch on retirement income solutions, the potential impact of private market investments, and what the typical 401(k) investment lineup might look like in 5 years. SEE ALSO: 401(k) Specialist Deep Dive: Active Management in Uncertain Markets, Part 1 and Part 2

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  Episode #141

  Sheri Fitts: Personal Branding a Focus at 2026 SWAY | LIVE

  Jul 6, 202615 minS7

  SWAY | LIVE, the retirement industry’s most unique annual conference—and the only one focused on helping retirement industry professionals build their personal brand—is coming to Boulder, Colorado Aug. 2-4. Event founder and organizer Sheri Fitts, the speaker, creator and catalyst at Sheri Fitts & Co., returns to the 401(k) Specialist Pod(k)ast to tell us what makes the event so unique, and explain the value behind maintaining a strong personal brand. She also talks about the importance of developing storytelling skills, and why it’s such a key skill to have in the retirement industry. Professionals interested in attending SWAY | LIVE can register here . The event’s registration deadline is Friday, July 24. SEE ALSO: • Sheri Fitts’ SWAY | LIVE Brings Personal Branding to Boulder in Early August

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  Episode #140

  Social Security's Reckoning: Dr. Jason Fichtner Explains What the New Trustees Report Means for 401(k) Savers

  Jun 24, 202614 minS7

  The recently released 2026 Social Security Trustees Report once again shortened the timeline for when the trust funds paying out benefits to more than 75 million Americans will become insolvent unless lawmakers finally step in and do something about it. To find out what the new report really means for workplace retirement plan participants, 401(k) Specialist Editor-in-Chief Brian Anderson talks with Jason Fichtner, Ph.D. , executive director of the LIMRA Retirement Income Institute and a former acting deputy commissioner of the Social Security Administration. Fichtner talks us through the underlying issues regarding the program’s looming insolvency, how it impacts what 401(k) participants need to be thinking about along with the increasing need for in-plan guaranteed income solutions, and concludes with thoughts about possible SECURE 3.0 retirement legislation in the not-too-distant future. SEE ALSO: • 2026 Social Security Trustees Report Moves Insolvency to 2032

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  Episode #139

  Attacking the Startup Plan Tax Credit Claiming Problem with Will Hackler

  Jun 3, 202611 minS7

  When retirement policymakers sought to incentivize small businesses to begin offering retirement plans in an effort to help close the coverage gap, they did so in part by creating greatly expanded federal tax credits that would offset their cost in providing those plans. But research has found fewer than 6% of eligible employers are properly claiming the tax credit—and that’s a problem that doesn’t sit well with retirement plan advisor Will Hackler, AIF , the “401(k) Fix-It Guy” who is the Managing Partner at Integrated Pension Services. Hackler says there’s a real awareness problem regarding the tax credit, and that advisors need to step in to make sure eligible firms (and their tax-filing CPAs) know about and take advantage of a program intended specifically for them. In this episode, Hackler explains the tax credit, the problem and potential solutions.

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  Episode #138

  Exploring the Target Date Landscape with Mercer’s Preet Prashar

  May 21, 202617 minS7

  As part of 401(k) Specialist ’s Q2 Deep Dive on target-date funds, Editor-in-Chief Brian Anderson sits down with Mercer Director of Defined Contribution Strategic Research Teams Preet Prashar to discuss the rapidly evolving TDF landscape—from market concentration and glidepath design to passive investing, fiduciary concerns, lifetime income solutions, and private assets. Drawing from Mercer’s recent white paper, “ Target Date Landscape: The Evolution of Target Date Strategies and Future Considerations ,” Prashar shares key insights plan sponsors and advisors should consider as target-date funds continue to dominate the defined contribution marketplace. SEE ALSO: • $4.8 Trillion and Growing: Why Traditional TDFs are Still Key to 401(k) Success • Executive Q&A: Refining Accumulation Strategies Through TDFs with MFS’ Jeri Savage

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