I recently had a chance to talk to Mike Alfred. Back in 2003, he became an independent registered investment advisor. But over time, he realized there was a big void -- that is, in terms of useful information on the 401(k) market.
Could this be a big opportunity? Well, he wanted to find out. So, he helped to start a new online web service for 401(k)s: BrightScope. In fact, the company recently raised $2 million in capital from Steelpoint Capital Partners.
So far, BrightScope has ratings on roughly 7,000 401(k). The goal is to rate over 30,000 plans.
To get at this information, just enter the name of the company and you'll get several pages of profile information. There is even a vault of plan documents.
The ratings are purely quantative, crunching stuff like fees, returns and features (such as company matches). You can also post your comments on a profile.
So, how can BrightScope help you out? True, for the most part, your employer makes the decisions regarding 401(k) options.
But according to Alfred, you can still have some influence. For example, he recommends going to the HR department and talking about your concerns. "One popular thing is to add more asset classes to invest in," said Alfred, "such as commodities."
Alfred also says you can try to get on the 401(k) committee. This can certainly help to change things -- and perhaps make for a much better retirement.
Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook
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