Do Third Pillar Investments Belong in Your 401(k) Plan?

If you were curious or brave enough to check out this episode, I promise you it does not disappoint!  For background, the most common theme we heard from our guests on our recent three part podcast mini series on 401(k) investment menu design was that investment committees should consider investment strategies outside of traditional stock & bond offerings other wise know as alternative asset classes, or the third pillar.  To help everyone get their arms around things I could not have asked for a better guest than Rob Arnott, he manages nearly $30 Billion of third pillar assets for PIMCO and he is also the Founder & Chairman of Research Affiliates.  As I hope you have come to expect from our guests on the podcast, Rob does an excellent job of explaining concepts which quite frankly others can make boring or confusing, in a way that is fast paced and easy to follow.  He also gives some concrete ideas and examples you can bring to your next 401(k) investment committee meeting to start the discussion!  As a reminder, this isn't the first time we have explored various investment strategies for your 401(k) plan on the podcast, if you want to check out others, go to www.401kfridays.com/investments.  Without further ado, I hope you enjoy the many truisms of Rob Arnott! Guest Bio Rob Arnott is the founder and chairman of Research Affiliates. He is also portfolio manager on the PIMCO All Asset and All Asset All Authority family of funds and a suite of PIMCO products based on the RAFI™ Fundamental Index™ approach. Over his career, Rob has endeavored to bridge the worlds of academic theorists and financial markets, challenging conventional wisdom and searching for solutions that add value for investors. He has pioneered several unconventional portfolio strategies that are now widely applied, including tactical asset allocation, global tactical asset allocation, tax-advantaged equity management, and the Fundamental Index approach to investing. His success in doing so has resulted in a reputation as one of the world's most provocative practitioners and respected financial analysts. Rob managed two asset management firms before founding Research Affiliates. As chairman of First Quadrant, LP, he built up the former internal money manager for Crum & Forster into a highly regarded quantitative asset management firm. He also was global equity strategist at Salomon Brothers (now part of Citigroup), the founding president and CEO of TSA Capital Management (now part of Analytic Investors, LLC), and a vice president at The Boston Company. Rob Arnott received a BS summa cum laude in economics, applied mathematics, and computer science from the University of California, Santa Barbara.​ 401(k) Fridays Podcast Overview Helps employers navigate the evolving retirement benefits landscape through weekly engaging interviews with industry leaders, subject matter experts and progressive employers with unique viewpoints. The diverse in-depth perspectives and relevant topics help employers make more informed decisions about their retirement benefit programs which will positively impact their employees and business.   We are quickly approaching our 50th podcast episode!  To explore our growing library of content, if you are subscribed to the podcast, scroll through your podcast app and pick a few episodes that catch your interest, or go to 401kfridays.com/podcasts to find prior episode descriptions, guest bios bonus information and more!