Disruption is among today's most misused buzzwords. People frequently use it to describe innovations regardless of their impact, as well as anything that presents even a mild challenge to an organization. But disruption is more than that. Disruptors can severely impact revenue or have a crippling effect on a business or an entire industry. Join this thought-provoking interactive discussion to learn what forces truly pose the greatest disruptive threats to the retirement industry and what you can do to not only guard against them, but go on the offensive and even be the disruptor.

This session explores the intersection of data technology and public policy in workplace retirement programs.

Across all segments of the financial industry, the potential for blockchain technology is generating a lot of attention.  Most financial institutions are evaluating the technology to determine how they can use it to improve cybersecurity, automation, customer service and  achieve competitive advantage.  As  part of the LIMRA partnership with the Institutes, several LIMRA-member firms have joined the Institutes’ RiskBlock Alliance to develop industry-level blockchain solutions. This session, designed for “non-technical” people, will provide a basic understanding of blockchain technology and discuss current applications in development as well as future applications being considered.  

Asia is going through a rapid demographic transition. Not only is its population ageing, it is ageing at a speed never seen before. LIMRA-SOA jointly commissioned an Asia wide research to study the current state and future opportunity of the retirement markets in Asia. Attendees will hear the products features consumers have identified in the study, providing insight for our Industry to help address the looming retirement funding (public and private) gap. One size does not fit all, the right products, for the right products segment, through the right channels will also be unveiled.

(1.0 EA Non-Core Credit Hours)
Acclaimed behavioral economist Shlomo Benartzi will reveal how we can apply the latest behavioral economics research to important financial decisions. After briefly summarizing the lessons of Save More Tomorrow, the nudge he developed with Nobel Laureate Richard Thaler that has boosted the savings rates of more than 15 million Americans, Benartzi will shift to the future, looking at how new digital technologies can transform financial planning. In particular, he’ll outline a set of new "personalized finance" principles that can measure the biases and preferences that shape our financial lives. Thanks to companies like Amazon and Netflix, consumers have come to expect a high degree of personalization. It’s time for the financial industry to catch up and offer personalized solutions.

Sponsored by Voya

(1.2 EA Non-Core Credit Hours)
For most Americans, retirement savings happens in the workplace. Plan sponsors are uniquely positioned to understand and influence the savings behavior of millions of U.S. workers. Learn about the issues and trends that affect plans sponsors as they navigate the challenges of today’s employee benefit programs. A panel of plan sponsors will share their perspectives on topics like financial well-being, plan design, HSAs, retirement income, and employee communication. Learn what sponsors wish you knew.

Amidst significant change in the individual annuity market, sales are moving away from the unique benefits the insurance industry can provide, guaranteed lifetime income. This session will explore is the industry missing on this significant opportunity. This session will also preview results from LIMRA’s upcoming Annuity Buyer/Non-buyer study and look through the lens of recent buyers and non-buyers of annuities, providing a strategic outlook on how to navigate an uncertain future. 

(1.5 EA Non-Core Credit Hours)
Hear key results of two related research studies implemented for the Society of Actuaries. The 2017 SOA Retirement Risk Survey, ninth in the biennial series, focused on key financial concerns, housing issues, financial wellness and long-term care risk. The Late in Life Study was comprised of 62 in-depth interviews of people ages 85 and over on how they handle their finances and their perception of their financial situation. This research provides deep insights into how people assess and deal with financial risks and financially manage through retirement.

(1.5 EA Non-Core Credit Hours)
“Financial Wellness”…it’s something everyone’s talking about; but, on many levels, it remains an elusive concept. This session will shed light on what financial wellness is, what it means for employers and individuals, and what providers and other stakeholders are doing to promote it.

This session will focus on how retirement industry experience in the product development/actuarial world can be successfully applied in the sales and marketing world. the two speakers both have expertise in both environments.

This luncheon and interactive session will focus on current retirement topics impacting the Canadian market and is open to all attendees interested in Canadian-specific issues. Pre-registration is required.

Sponsored by CANNEX Financial Exchanges

Experts will discuss the issues and trends seen in the annuity market from a product development perspective. We will discuss new annuity product designs and their financial treatment. Join us for a review of recent market activity, and learn the impact of new industry regulations and macro-economic changes on annuity product offerings. Covered products include fixed, fixed indexed, variable, income, and structured annuities. At the conclusion of the session, attendees will be able to identify new types of product offerings and trends, determine considerations when evaluating their current product portfolios, and understand the current climate for new annuity product development.

Small employers are, in many ways, a "last horizon" for workplace plan formation — and many of them are being challenged to offer payroll deduct retirement plans to their employees. Learn about the forces and factors at work in this key marketplace.

Advisors’ practices are constantly shaped by both internal and external dynamics. These forces cause advisors to remold their practice models and upgrade their value propositions to clients. Organizations serving advisors must effectively align their products and services to explore and engage with desired advisor segments. This session will share early findings from the LIMRA-Ernst & Young advisor study on evolving advisory practice models regarding retirement, the drivers of productivity, and the services and support advisors demand from their organizational partners.

Did you know that in the U.S., insurance makes up just 11% of the total amount needed to fund aging people's needs? To make our solutions more relevant to seniors, we need to better understand their widely varying needs and how they make decisions. Learn about better ways to segment the market, how to build winning solutions and what will make products more likely to be purchased. Leave with insights and fresh ideas from Swiss Re's consumer research.

RIA’s and annuities may be an unlikely pairing, but it can be an effective one. With continued growth in the RIA channel and movement to fee-based models, there is an opportunity in this market. RIA’s themselves will discuss how annuities can complement solutions offered to clients, and panelists from various aspects of the RIA channel will share how annuity providers should (and should not) approach this growing market.

Consultant influence on plan sponsor actions is clear. Understanding how retirement plan consultants view the retirement industry today and where they see significant change, is essential for retirement service providers of all types. Hear a candid, practical discussion with thought leaders in retirement consulting, which could well shape your thinking in 2018.

Insurtech is changing the insurance industry with new perspectives, technologies and customer-centric approaches to doing business. This session will highlight some of the entrepreneurs bringing exciting new innovations to the aging and retirement space. They will provide backgrounds on their businesses, perspectives on partnering with established companies and their outlooks on the future opportunities in this space.

(1.2 EA Non-Core Credit Hours) 
This interactive session begins with Brightwork Partners’ Merl Baker discussing DC trends from a distribution perspective, then builds with interactive audience participation with discussion of driving trends and interactive polling about what’s important to you.

It's no surprise to those of us in the financial services industry that the retirement industry is rapidly changing in many ways. Common themes include longevity, technology, regulation and the economy. However, the bigger questions involve identifying the ways those factors will impact our business and steps we can take to shape our role in the future. Maria Ferrante-Schepis will offer her perspective on how to answer those questions for the industry and more specifically for your company. Her intention is to help you find your unique and ownable corner of the industry among an abundance of opportunities to innovate, grow, and serve current and new customers.

Join us at the Chicago Sports museum, a ten minute walk from the Chicago Marriott, for a high-tech, interactive experience with unique sports memorabilia and an impressive collection of game-used treasures and other artifacts.

Sponsored by S&P Dow Jones Indices

Come hear a Washington insider’s view on the new political landscape and its effects on the retirement industry. With expertise in corporate governance, retirement security, and tax policy, Crawford will discuss how government, public policy, markets and globalism have converged to impact everyday Americans and financial services consumers.

(1.2 EA Non-Core Credit Hours)
We are living longer and spending more time in retirement that ever before. According to the Society of Actuaries Longevity Illustrator, for a 65 year old couple in average health, there is a 50% chance that one will live until 90 years old. Great-West Financial is collaborating with the Stanford Center on Longevity to bring you research and data on how to incorporate longevity planning into the way we do business. Specifically, we will present the three tenants of long life- mind, mobility, and money with an emphasis on how retirement income strategies can fit into clients’ portfolios.   

Times are changing in the annuity products space.  Gone are the days of cookie cutter products and flat sales.  What are the product designs that are benefiting most from the tsunami of baby boomer retirement funds?  This session will take a deep dive into fixed indexed annuities and variable annuities with a particular focus on risk control frameworks for variable annuity volatility management, products that are creating a winning proposition for carriers and consumers.

(1.2 EA Non-Core Credit Hours)
Hear an update on ERISA litigation in the 401(k) and 403(b) worlds. Attorneys will discuss both the status of existing situations and best practices to consider in avoiding litigation in the first place.

While the media focuses on the lack of retirement preparedness of Americans, another significant issue is brewing — many affluent retirees are not spending down their portfolios, and are unnecessarily constraining spending to the point where they are living well below their means. Our industry needs to do a better job aiding these retirees and helping fight this other retirement crisis. Attend this session to learn about what might be causing this behavior, the role behavioral biases may play, and what products and solutions advisors can utilize to help retirees confidently spend more and improve their quality of life.

(SOA Professionalism Session)
This session will discuss three important actuarial standards of practice (ASOP) exposure drafts titled: Pricing of Life Insurance and Annuity Products; Modeling; and Setting Assumptions; recently proposed by the Actuarial Standards Board. Focused topics of discussion will address what these newly proposed ASOPs mean for the actuary. At the conclusion of the session, attendees will understand the overview of these ASOPs, identify opportunities to implement newly proposed guidance in their organizations; and evaluate their own pricing, models and assumption setting processes to determine if there are existing processes that would benefit from improvement.

(1.2 EA Non-Core Credit Hours)
Annuity placements are an increasingly attractive and popular form of pension de-risking. This session overviews the annuity placement process from the perspectives of both the plan sponsor and annuity provider with panelists from both areas. Drawing on recent case studies and current trends, the session will cover a wide range of issues that are impacting annuity placements including data, mortality, state of issue, benefit types, transition, contract structures such as ‘split deals’, assets in kind and other investment considerations.

Government market specialists examine the current state of government DC and discuss any changes they expect to see in the market over the next few years.