On Sept. 30, more than 80 defined contribution pension plan sponsors, consultants, asset managers and other industry stakeholders met at the Omni King Edward Hotel in Toronto for the 2025 DC Investment Forum to glean insights into the tools and strategies that plan sponsors can use to guide members into the future and support their […]
According to MFS Investment Management’s Sean Kenney, his three sisters would all fall within the same target-date age cohort, but their lifestyles and retirement goals are completely different. His oldest sister, married with three kids, makes a middle-class income, doesn’t have a lavish lifestyle and loves being at home. Kenney’s twin sister, single with no […]
KPMG in Canada is aiming to boost plan member engagement with its retirement savings programs with a host of changes, including a refreshed defined contribution plan investment lineup, a new first home savings account, financial education programming, digital tools and switching record keepers. The changes, launched in early October, stemmed from a review of the […]
When Bell Canada was communicating defined contribution plan changes to members in 2024, it turned to artificial intelligence to help personalize its message to all of its 25,000 plan members. The redesign, which aimed to respond to members’ different financial priorities, enhanced the company’s savings options with a first home savings account, a tax-free savings […]
What’s a plan administrator to do when an individual makes a claim to a pension entitlement that goes back many years after their employment — or in some cases, the employment of a spouse, partner, parent or even grandparent — has ended and available pension records are inconclusive? In a perfect world, when pension inquiries […]
While workplace savings programs have traditionally focused on retirement, there has been a shift in recent years to facilitate employees’ changing financial priorities and savings journeys. Benefits Canada’s 2025 Employee Savings Survey (formerly known as the CAP Member Survey) found three-quarters (73 per cent) of Canadian employees ranked paying for day-to-day expenses among their top […]
While many people know the reward of a hard day’s work goes well beyond a salary, an increasing number of employees don’t understand the real value of the total rewards they receive from their employer. At the same time, employers are struggling to communicate the value of the benefits they offer. One way to improve […]
A pension dashboard that consolidates all of an individual’s pension and retirement information using pre-populated data would make it significantly easier for Canadians to access and understand their retirement savings, according to a new report by the C.D. Howe Institute. “Canada’s current retirement landscape offers numerous savings vehicles, giving individuals more choices than in the […]
The implementation of variable payment life annuities in Quebec will support employee financial well-being and retirement readiness, while providing a model for other Canadian jurisdictions, says Louis-Bernard Désilets, an associate at Normandin Beaudry. “Currently, there’s approximately $1.5 trillion in retirement savings accumulated in [registered retirement savings plans] and [defined contribution] plans in Canada, with likely […]
Defined contribution pension plan sponsors are navigating the demands of a strict asset allocation guideline in accordance with Islam by incorporating Sharia-compliant funds into their plans’ investment lineups. One reason is the increasingly diverse makeup of the Canadian workforce. According to Statistics Canada, the country’s Muslim population doubled between 2001 and 2021, from two per […]