Human Resources: Securian’s behavior-driven 401(k) communication is actionable for employees

St. Paul, MN, January 28, 2010 – Employees who contribute little or nothing
to their Securian retirement plans have access to powerful tools aimed at
helping them understand why they need to save and encouraging them to take
action.

Securian’s growing suite of customized education and easy-to-use enrollment
tools are designed to target the right participants, at the right time,
with the right message, to elicit the right behavior.

Securian recently rolled out the Personal Savings Illustration, customized
specifically for employees who are eligible but not participating in the
plan. It uses data unique to each individual to show the results they could
experience under different savings scenarios. This personalized,
easy-enroll tool complements Securian’s personalized Annual Checkup, a gap
analysis that shows the difference between the employee’s savings goals and
the actual amount saved.

“The value in personalized communication for employees is that it
simplifies choice and presents the information in a personally relevant
manner,” said Jo Dahlen, marketing director, Securian Retirement. “The
Personal Savings Illustration includes an easy-enroll card with preselected
choices. The employee simply signs the card and drops it in the mail.”

Securian’s personalized Annual Checkup, now in its fourth year, is provided
via employees’ quarterly statements.

“Behavior figures strongly in the distribution method,” added Dahlen. “The
statement is the most-read plan document. It’s the ideal platform for
explaining how their current balance relates to their future retirement
security.”

The results of the Annual Checkup are encouraging. Despite the economic
downturn, the majority of those who received it are staying the course or
saving more. More than half of the plans that received the Checkup
experienced a modest increase in their average contribution rates.

Critical to the introduction of any new service is making it easy for
employers to adopt it.

“We aim to reduce our clients’ administrative work,” added Dahlen. “The
Annual Checkup helps plan sponsors fulfill their fiduciary responsibilities
with no additional cost or effort because we’re using data they’ve already
given us to perform routine plan administration.”

In addition to automatic enrollment, Step-Up Savings, auto rebalancing,
risk- and age-based asset allocation portfolios and quick enroll tactics,
Securian also sends messages in the quarterly plan statements and on the
web that are customized by age and employee behavior.

Since 1880, Securian Financial Group and its affiliates have provided
financial security for individuals and businesses in the form of insurance,
investments and retirement plans. Now one of the nation’s largest financial
services providers, it is the holding company parent of a group of
companies that include Minnesota Life Insurance Company.

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