Mark Twain said, “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.” Twain wasn’t a retirement plan sponsor or non-profit board member, but his words reflect the understanding many fiduciaries have of their fiduciary responsibilities. If you know for sure that you are fulfilling your fiduciary duties, please take this Self-Assessment of Fiduciary Excellence (SAFE). The SAFE is intended to analyze how well your organization meets a defined global fiduciary standard of excellence.
For fiduciaries who did not fare well on the Fiduciary Self-Assessment, a Fiduciary Vulnerability Assessment is a good first step. The two primary causes of fiduciary breach law suits has been excessive fees and sub-par investment options and these are the only these two areas this assessment reviews.
Examples of the investment option portion of a fiduciary liability assessment can be found for 401k & 403b plans, Defined Benefit Plans and Foundation/Endowment. And here is an example of the Fee & Expense portion.