Have you ever wondered how the MO Deferred Comp Plan got its start? Well, here's a little history lesson for you. In August 1974, legislation was passed that created the Missouri Deferred Compensation Commission under the supervision of the Office of Administration. But the retirement savings program didn’t become active until 1978, offering various investment products to state of Missouri employees. In 1980, the plan hired it’s first Third Party Administrator, PEBSCO. A third-party administrator provides operational services, such as claims processing, general recordkeeping, communication, and other services to another company or State employer, as in this case. To reinforce the importance of saving for retirement, the State of Missouri offered its first employer match in 1996. The plan kept on “truckin” for several years and in 2006, deferred comp changed recordkeepers, hiring Citistreet. A big change took place in August of 2007 when the oversight of the plan moved from the Office of Administration to the Missouri State Employee’s Retirement System, otherwise known as MOSERS. From there the plan really started to evolve and take shape. In 2008, deferred comp developed the RetiremenTrack calculator, a tool that helps employees estimate income replacement amounts from the defined benefit pension, social security, deferred comp and other personal savings, giving employees a clear picture of their retirement income. The State of Missouri Deferred Compensation Plan underwent another major change in April 2009, as it transitioned from its lengthy 31 investment option menu to a streamlined, lower cost investment line-up, including the mapping of the invested dollars from old options to new custom target date funds. This change significantly benefited state of Missouri employees as it cut costs by approximately 70%! In the fall of 2009, a new front-end website for the deferred comp plan went live offering a one-stop shop to view important plan news, financial education, publications, forms and more. In March 2010, the State of Missouri suspended the state matching incentive for employees. While this news did cause turmoil, it did not waiver state employees’ dedication for saving for their future. Two big things happened in 2011, first the plan selected a new recordkeeper, ICMA-RC, now known as MissionSquare Retirement and secondly, the plan enhanced marketing, education, and communication efforts in house, by establishing deferred comp’s social media presence, video production, targeted participant messaging, and more. Automatic enrollment for new employees went into effect July 1, 2012. This change boosted plan participation and helped to kick-off retirement savings for many state employees. Today, more than 80% of state employees save with the plan because of auto-enrollment. Keeping the automatic theme rolling, in March of 2013, the plan developed and implemented the Automatic Increase tool, which allows participants to automatically increase their savings every year by an amount of their choice. Pocket Change, the plan’s comprehensive financial wellness program, was created in 2014 and then in the spring of 2016 the plan underwent a complete rebrand, including a new website, logo, and an updated name – the MO Deferred Comp Plan – which was better aligned with how state of Missouri employees referred to the savings plan. Deferred comp’s field staff (now known as Financial Education Professionals) will always be one of the plan’s best assets and an important employee resource. Since the inception of the plan, field staff had always been employed by the recordkeeper. In July of 2017, the field staff shifted from the recordkeeper to MOSERS who oversees the deferred comp plan. This transition helped shed the vendor persona and open new avenues for employee engagement. After years of dreaming and planning, MO Deferred Comp brought the Grow Your Retirement Savings Calculator to life in 2018. This illustrative calculator shows how making regular contributions over a period of time can have a big impact on your total retirement savings. In 2022, the State of Missouri reinstated the incentive match, once again reinforcing the state’s commitment to helping state employees save for retirement. In addition all these events, the MO Deferred Comp Plan has won numerous awards throughout the years for its hard work and service to state employees, including PlanSponsor of the Year in 2013, the Pension & Investments Excellence & Innovation Award in 2015 and 2019, eight NAGDCA Leadership Awards, 7 Pension & Investments Eddy Awards, and three Governmental Communicator Awards. From 1974 through present day, the MO Deferred Comp Plan has gone through some significant changes, but one thing that hasn’t changed is our dedication to helping state of Missouri employees improve their financial future by providing you with the best tools and retirement savings education available in the industry!
