Investment Changes

Is my investment lineup changing?

Yes. Wilshire Advisors, the independent third-party investment fiduciary that makes investment decisions for your plan, is updating the fund lineup. It is replacing a large, complex list of Vanguard funds with a simpler three-tier structure. Additionally,  the new funds cost less—which means more of your money can be invested and work for your retirement.

How much cheaper are the new funds?

The savings on core index funds have low expense ratios. For example:

• The new Equity index fund costs 0.01% vs. 0.04% previously (69% reduction )
• The new US Bond index fund costs 0.02% vs. 0.04% previously (50% reduction )
• Most other index funds are 40–50% less expensive than the investment options offered by Guideline. 

Over a long investing horizon, lower costs can add up to thousands of dollars more in your account at retirement.

Do I need to do anything about the investment change?

On August 19, 2026, your assets will be automatically moved to the default investment option selected by your plan sponsor when it registered with Vestwell. Once the update has been completed, you can stay in the default investment option or select different investments at any time, without penalty.  As a participant in your retirement plan, you are always solely responsible for making your own investment decisions.  Vestwell does not provide legal, tax, or investment advice to any individual. 

What is the three-tier investment structure?

Your plan’s investments are now organized into three groups:

• Professionally Managed: Age-Based or Goal-Based Investing 
  • Professionally managed target date funds and goal-based managed accounts for savers who want a pre-built, less hands-on investment approach.
• Risk-Based Investing: Choose Your Risk Level
  • Professionally selected risk-based models where savers can select how much risk they want to take on while not having to select underlying holdings.
• Build It Yourself: Invest on Your Own
  • A range of index-tracking and actively managed funds for savers who prefer to choose and manage their own investment allocations.

Can I just stay with the default option or do I need to log into my Vestwell account and make changes after the new line up is in place? 

As a participant in your plan, you always control and decide your investments. If you would like to do so, you can keep your investment in your plan’s default (age-based or goal -based) investment option. The default option under your plan falls into the “Professionally Managed” option. Whether age-based or goal-based default, there are professionally managed portfolios that adjust based on your age and other factors that are designed to help you maximize the chances of achieving your stated savings goals. 

Goal-Based Investing

What is goal-based investing?

Goal-based investing, also called managed accounts, is an automated advice engine built and maintained by Franklin Templeton.   Instead of only investing based on your age (like a target date fund), it considers your salary and your stated retirement goals, risk tolerance, outside accounts, when you plan to draw Social Security benefits, and other factors to assign you to an asset allocation. You answer three questions to get started.

Am I automatically enrolled in goal-based investing?

If your employer chose it as your plan’s default investment strategy, yes. If your employer selected age-based (target date funds) as the default, you will be invested in target date funds. You can change your investment selections anytime after August 19, 2026, by logging into your Vestwell account. 

Does goal-based investing cost extra?

If you are enrolled in goal-based investing, you pay 0.35% of your account balance per year. This fee is billed monthly, using the participant’s average daily balance for the days that they are enrolled in the goal-based investing feature.  These fees are shown on your retirement plan statement and in your transaction log in your Vestwell account portal. Your employer pays no additional cost. For example, a $10,000 account pays $35 per year for this service.

What if I don’t want goal-based investing? Can I opt out?

As a participant in your retirement plan, you can always change your investments and you’re responsible for your investment decisions. If you prefer a target date fund or a custom mix of funds, log into your Vestwell account and update your investment elections anytime after August 19, 2026. 

What happens if I’m in goal-based investing but haven’t answered the personalization questions?

The technology still works for you. Even without completing the questionnaire, the system uses information your employer provided about you, including your age, compensation, and account balance—to assign your account into an initial portfolio.  The feature gives you the opportunity to add other information about your savings, such as outside accounts. This is among the ways a managed account feature differs from a target date fund, which only accounts for age and the number of years before reaching the plan’s retirement age. You can complete the questionnaire at any time, and the feature will use it to further customize your asset allocation within a managed account portfolio.  Read more about goal-based investing here.

What else is included with goal-based investing?

In addition to a layer of personalization with one of the Wilshire portfolios, goal-based investing includes:

• Social Security integration: Factor in your projected Social Security benefits for a fuller picture of retirement income
• Outside accounts: Link outside accounts to get a more holistic view of your total retirement picture
• Automatic portfolio adjustments as your goals or life circumstances change
• Read more about goal-based investing here