RETIREMENT PLAN 1Retirement Plan CommunicationTotal CompensationHRM/324RETIREMENT PLAN 2Types of Available Retirement PlansAs a Human Resources manager of a newly formed organization, I would first consider the twotypes of retirement plans, which I could make available to the employees; as well as how eachplan works. The first plan to consider is the Defined benefit plan, where the amount of benefitsto be paid at the time of the retirement are calculated using the formulas. It is usually paid eachmonth. The second plan is the defined contribution plan, where the amount of future benefitsavailable to the employee are based upon the amounts contributed to the plan by the employeeand the employer. It is also based on the interest that is earned over time. The “DefinedContribution plans” include the plans like the “Profit Sharing,” “Employee Stock Ownershipplans(ESOPs),” “Savings Incentive Match plans for the Employees(SIMPLE),” “SimplifiedEmployee Pension plans (SEPs),” and the series “401(k)s, 403(b)s and 457s.”Communication Methods and Frequency In order to ensure that the plan is successful, employee participation is very important,and clear communication is key. A qualified expert consultant should be hired to design the plan,and then explain the benefits of the plan to the employees in groups. The employee’s need to beeducated, and informed regarding the nature and the benefits of the plan, and this should be on acontinual basis. Updates to the plan need to be made available in a timely manner so thatemployee’s are kept up to date, on a regular basis. It should never be that the employee was notmade aware of a change, and suffered because of lack of information about their plan. Thecompany should encourage the employees to the plan by ensuring that different investmentopportunities are available within the plan. Gone are the days when there were only three or fouroptions. The average plan must be equipped with 18 options. In an effort to encourage theemployees the plan needs to be furnished with 11 to 20 options. In order to achieve buy in aswell as, attain a level of trust of the plan from the employees; the company needs to explain tothe participants of the plan that the investment options are being examined and monitored by thecompany. In addition, the financial advisors should have face to face meetings with the participantsto ensure them that the retirement goals will be met. The employees should have the access to theinformation to make sure that the employees feel that they are part of the retirement plan. Thecompany needs to conduct “401k” meetings to communicate the benefits and the features of theplan to the employees. When we talk about the participation of the employee in the “401k” plansit is important to for the company to have personal communication with the employees. Theresearch shows that the employees having access to individualized statements contribute 0.85percent more (of salary) than the employees who do not get such information. The companyusing individualize statements to inform and tell the employees about the “401k plan” have ahigher rate of participation as compared to the companies which do not use the individualizestatements. The companies which communicate the issues concerning information regarding“time value of money” are able to attain much higher employee participation. The research andstudies have revealed that the targeted communication for the employees is one of the provensuccess strategies to change employees’ behavior and increase the value of the 401k plan.Overcoming Resistance No matter how clear the communication there will always be some resistance to change, and its important to factor in the best way to deal with resistance. We can overcome the employee resistance to participation in the plan by designing a plan that meet the goals and objectives of the company and making sure that the plan is according the employee demographics. Furnish the plan with the useful information and tell the employees about the features and the benefits of the plan. Provide the employees with the facility of loans andhardship withdrawal options. Tell and educate the employees that there are a wide range of investment options available to them. In addition, we will equip and furnish the plan with all the relevant information to make the plan more attractive for the participants. The plan must be communicated in way that tells the employees about the features and the benefits of the plan. If we are successful then the resistance will be easily converted, to excited employees about what their future entails as a result of a solid retirement plan. ReferencesRetirement Plans, Benefits & Savings, retrieved from:http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/retirement/typesofplans.htmHow To Increase Employee Participation In Your Retirement Plan, retrieved from:http://www.bpp401k.com/articles/how_to_increase_employee_participation.htmlDEVELOPING EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATION PLANS, retrieved