by JoAnn Cassell | Aug 18, 2021 | 401k Audit Firm, 401k Compliance Error, 401k Plan Audit, 401k Plan Audit Documentation, Audit Procedures, Eligible compensation discrepancies, Employee Corrective Contribution
It happens… you’ve performed your audit and discovered some discrepancies. If you’ve ever found yourself in this position, you’re definitely not alone. In fact, eligible compensation errors are so common that they’re included in the IRS...
by JoAnn Cassell | Jul 22, 2021 | 401k Audit Firm, 401k Plan Audit, 401k Plan Audit Documentation, Merger & Acquisitions, Plan Sponsors, Record Retention, Retirement Plan
Congratulations to your organization, on selling (or buying) a business! Now comes the fun part: Figuring out what to do with all of those employee records. When you’re a 401(k) retirement plan sponsor, the question of what to retain through the merger and...
by JoAnn Cassell | Jun 16, 2021 | 401k Audit Firm, 401k Audit Oversight, 401k Plan Audit, 401k Plan Audit Documentation, Audit Procedures, Virtual Audits
We all know that 401k plans provide benefits to employees and employers alike, offering enhanced retirement security for workers and acting as an enticement when recruiting new employees. But for those charged with managing 401k oversight, these popular plans bring...
by JoAnn Cassell | May 18, 2021 | 401k Audit Firm, 401k Compliance Error, 401k Plan Audit, Audit Procedures, Fiduciary, Retirement Plan
You’ve probably heard that recent litigation over breaches of fiduciary duty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) has been making a stir. It’s important to recognize that fiduciaries of retirement plans for small businesses have the same legal...
by JoAnn Cassell | Apr 19, 2021 | 401k Audit Firm, 401k Plan Audit, Audit Procedures, Personal Protected Information, Virtual Audits
With more people than ever working from home, the convenience and ease of digital filing systems are more relevant than ever. This fact was driven home early last year when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. As offices locked down, our team at Cassell Plan Audits quickly...
by JoAnn Cassell | Mar 20, 2021 | 401k Audit Firm, Personal Protected Information, Virtual Audits
When the pandemic hit in 2020, some of our customers faced an unexpected curveball. We’ve been doing virtual 401k audits for years, but many companies had maintained their relevant audit records on paper … until last year. COVID revealed a compliance gap that hadn’t...
by JoAnn Cassell | Feb 15, 2021 | 401k Compliance Error
Errors with eligible compensation—or, the income that counts toward your 401k retirement plan—were the number one compliance issue we saw in the 2020 audit season. It’s counterintuitive, because the definition of “eligible compensation” is dictated by the employer...
by JoAnn Cassell | Jan 15, 2021 | Audit Procedures, SECURE Act
Happy 2021! Like everyone else, we are thrilled to welcome in a new year. Just like last year, we’ll be sharing helpful tips and insights each month to keep your retirement plan administration compliant and on track. Back in November, we wrote about our top 7...
by JoAnn Cassell | Dec 16, 2020 | Retirement Plan
Every industry was affected by COVID-19 this year, and retirement planning is no exception. The CARES Act and the SECURE Act in particular had such a significant impact that we’ll take an in-depth look at both of them in future posts. For now, as we move into the...
by JoAnn Cassell | Nov 25, 2020 | Gratitude, Virtual Audits
As we enter into the 2020 holiday season, we at Cassell Plan Audits have been reflecting on gratitude. It’s always meaningful to consider what we’re thankful for, but in 2020, it feels even more important to put our thoughts down on paper . . . virtually, anyway. For...
