If you’re like most plan sponsors, you don’t wake up one morning and decide to change your 401(k) plan auditor. It’s usually a slower process.
Perhaps first, there’s a delayed response. Then another. Then, an engagement that takes longer than expected. And then, a fee increase that somehow arrives faster than the audit report.
Eventually, someone on the team asks: “Are we getting what we’re paying for?” It’s a fair question.
And if you’ve been asking it lately, you’re not alone.
Sign #1: You spend more time managing the audit than the auditor does
A good audit requires effort from both sides.
But if you’re constantly:
- tracking down status updates,
- repeating information to multiple team members,
- answering the same questions more than once,
- or trying to figure out who is actually responsible for your engagement,
the process may not be working as efficiently as it should.
One common frustration we hear from plan sponsors is that communication becomes fragmented as engagements pass through multiple levels of staff.
You explain something to one person. Then another person joins the engagement. Next a manager asks the same question. Then a senior asks for a document you already provided before he’ll sign off.
By the end, everyone has communicated, but not efficiently.
Sign #2: The team changes every year
Some turnover is normal in public accounting.
It’s been part of the profession for decades. Research consistently identifies turnover as a long-term challenge across accounting firms, particularly larger firms.
The question isn’t whether staff change. It’s whether knowledge transfers with them.
If every audit feels like you’re onboarding a brand-new team that knows nothing about your plan, that’s worth paying attention to.
Institutional knowledge has value.
Especially when your auditor already understands your plan’s history, operational structure, and prior-year issues.
Sign #3: You’re paying for layers, not expertise
This is where audit firms tend to operate very differently.
Some firms use multiple layers of staffing and review. That model works well in many situations.
But it can also create duplication:
- More handoffs.
- More internal review time.
- More people asking questions.
- More billable hours… so ultimately, more cost.
Plan sponsors don’t necessarily care how many layers exist inside the firm.
They care whether the audit is accurate, efficient, and completed on time.
What should you expect from a 401(k) auditor?
At a minimum, your auditor should:
- Communicate clearly and within a reasonable timeframe.
- Have deep expertise in employee benefit plans.
- Provide clear and consistent leadership in the engagement.
- Collaborate seamlessly with your TPA, team members and other 401(k) plan service providers
- Explain issues in plain English.
- Deliver a quality audit without creating unnecessary work for you and your team.
That sounds obvious.
But when sponsors start shopping for a new auditor, it’s often because one or more of those things stopped happening.
Why some sponsors move toward specialized firms
Over the last several years, we’ve seen many sponsors and advisors reevaluate the “bigger must be better” assumption.
For employee benefit plan audits, specialization often matters more than firm size.
A focused employee benefit plan audit practice can frequently provide:
- more direct access to senior professionals,
- greater continuity from year to year,
- fewer communication layers,
- and a more streamlined process.
In other words, less time explaining your plan and more time actually auditing it.
So, is it time to change your 401(k) plan auditor?
Changing auditors isn’t something you should do lightly.
But neither is staying with a firm that’s no longer meeting expectations.
If your audit process feels increasingly heavy, frustrating, or difficult to navigate, it may be worth asking a simple question:
If you were choosing an auditor today, would you choose the same one again?
The answer is often surprisingly revealing. (And if you are a client and would choose us again… Thank you! We appreciate you.)
If you are not yet a client and would like to explore what Cassell Plan Audits offers, contact us today.
Photo by Vlada Karpovich
