What is the goal of FACS™?
The goal of FACS™ is to eliminate plan sponsor deficiencies in fiduciary governance and to elevate the Plan Sponsor’s standards of fiduciary conduct.
The FACS™ Program identifies core fiduciary monitoring functions, describes how those functions are accomplished and provides the tools to document their completion. Full documentation, including plan sponsor instructions as to the purpose and use of each document, is provided as part of SummitPlan™ services. SummitPlan™ professionals provide full monitoring and consulting assistance to aid the plan sponsor in the process. FACS™ processes support consistent application of ERISA’s governing principles - the Exclusive Benefit Rule and the Prudent Investor Rule.

What is the benefit of FACS™?
FACS™ focuses on the process of plan management employed by a Plan Sponsor. It upgrades the process of Plan management by delivering a comprehensive governance monitoring system. Substantive documentation of the process serves to discourage plaintiff’s counsel or government investigators/auditors questioning deficiencies in governance.

This protects all plan fiduciaries, starting with your Board and including your company. The culmination of the process is accomplished by completion of the FACS™ 1.11 Report, an annual fiduciary compliance report issued from the Plan Committee/Trustees to the Board certifying that governance and monitoring activities have been completed. Fiduciary protection is further enhanced as use of the FACS™ Program will result in a Plan that is more effectively and efficiently governed to achieve its goal of delivering retirement accumulation and benefits.

Why does SummitPlan™ include FACS™?
The scrutiny of how an employer manages its ERISA retirement Plan has already increased. This trend will continue into the foreseeable future. Enhancements to corporate governance required by Sarbanes-Oxley have added new emphasis on sound governance and control practices in retirement plans. Plan sponsor use of FACS™ represents a material upgrade to the management of the Plan and an integral part of the fiduciary protections embedded in SummitPlan™.

Doesn’t my EXISTING Vendor Protect Me?
Many Plan Sponsors have operated under the mistaken belief that their retirement services vendor handles their fiduciary monitoring activities for them. Most retirement service vendors are clear to refute any fiduciary responsibility. To protect themselves from liability Plan Sponsor’s need an independent systematic solution that assesses fiduciary risk, implements monitoring procedures and adopts a best practices approach to Plan management. SummitPlan™, and FACS™, provides that solution.