Professor Robert Merton delivered a keynote address at the P&I West Coast Defined Contribution Conference on October 25, 2010. In this address, he described how defined contribution plans have become the default strategy for employers because they make costs more predictable and take risk off the balance sheet. The problem, he said, is that traditional DC plans place a tremendous burden on employees, who are not equipped to make complex financial management decisions. The solution? Merton proposes a "next-generation" DC solution that satisfies the goals of employers while also providing retirees with a simpler planning process. He believes that employees should be given choices, but the choices should be ones that are meaningful to them. Download the slides

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