PensionPro 2.0 - Using Distributions

Tracking and processing distributions is made easy in PensionPro. The distribution module enables users to track and expedite the initiation and processing of distributions and loans within your firm. Distributions and loan requests are initiated by the TPA in PensionPro. Plan sponsors are able to send and receive files via Secure File Exchange or PlanSponsorLink (PSL). Distribution fees are populated during the processing of the distribution to make billing more efficient. In order to successfully utilize the distribution module, users must first set up Distribution Fees, maintain Distribution Preferences, enable Distributions for a plan, and finally launch a distribution project template.

Tier Availability: Essential, Premium, Business

Add-On Availability: Distributions, PlanSponsorLink

Security Rights Required: Add/Edit Projects

Just like any other project, a Distribution template needs to be set up. The distribution template can be organized in such a way that it tailors to a firm's specific structure and procedures. Users need to import or create distribution templates. Sample Distribution Templates can be found here to serve as a building block. It is recommended that users edit the information within these templates prior to using it as a launching distribution project.

Add Distribution Fees

A default Fee Schedule must first be set up in the system in order for the Distribution Module to function. Multiple Fee Schedules can be added, making the process flexible. For instance, users can create multiple schedules to allow for different distribution fees across various investment providers. The Add/Edit Fee Schedule Security Right is required to add and edit Fee Schedules. Fee Schedules can be accessed by navigating to Maintenance > Preferences > PensionPro and selecting Fee Schedule from the menu on the left. Any active Fee Schedule templates will show in the Template grid.

Creating a Fee Schedule

From the Navigation Panel, click Maintenance > Preferences > PensionPro and select Fee Schedule from the menu on the left.
Click the Add icon in the upper right corner of the grid and enter a Template name in the Add Template pop-up window.
Double-click the template to open it, then click the Add icon in the upper right corner to add a Fee Schedule Item.
Complete the information in the Add Fee Schedule Item pop-up window. Fee Type, Fee Amount Type, Fee Frequency, Fee Payor, Fee Payment Source, and Category are all List Values. Click Save.

Editing/Deleting a Fee Schedule and Fee Schedule Items

From the Navigation Panel, click Maintenance > Preferences > PensionPro and select Fee Schedule from the menu on the left.

To edit the Template name, click the Edit icon and edit the Name in the Edit Template pop-up window.
To edit the Default Fee Schedule Items, hover over the item and click the Edit icon. Edit the information in the Edit Fee Schedule Item menu. Fee Type, Fee Amount Type, Fee Frequency, Fee Payor, Fee Payment Source, and Category are all List Values. Click Save.
To delete the Default Fee Schedule Item, hover over the item and click the Delete icon. A Please Confirm pop-up will appear asking "Do you want to delete this fee schedule item?"
Click Yes.

Distribution Fee Schedules can be a one item template if needed.

Modify Distribution Preferences

Distributions are customizable within PensionPro to match the process that works best for the user's firm and employees. Maintaining these preferences will ensure the distribution process works in the way the user needs it to. The Maintenance Security Right is required to make changes to any Distribution Preferences. Distribution Preferences can be found by clicking Maintenance > Preferences > Distributions from the Navigation Panel. For more information on Distribution Preferences, please review Maintaining Distribution Preferences.

General Menu

The General menu enables preferences for Fee Schedule defaults and general emails sent to clients pertaining to distributions. It is required that an active Fee Schedule is set up in PensionPro prior to launching a distribution project. Editing the information will ensure any fees your firm charges for distribution work is included with the appropriate project. To build a Fee template, click Maintenance > Preferences > PensionPro and select Fee Schedule. Completed Distributions can be locked for editing once completed by toggling the Lock Completed Distribution field. Once a Distribution project is completed, users cannot edit the distribution. To lock completed distributions, click the Edit icon and select 'Yes' for the Lock Completed Distribution field.

Field Names Menu

The Field Names menu controls the Field Name, Display Name, and Description of all fields available on the distribution menu within the distribution project. PensionPro provides default settings for all the fields displayed. Users can modify these settings by hovering over the item clicking the Edit icon. The Display Name will be what the plan sponsor will see when filling out the Distribution tab of the Distribution project.

Field Setup Menu

Field Setup allows the user to modify system settings for Fields displayed on the Distribution tab for each distribution Reason. Users can modify the field set up by Distribution Reason (ex: Termination, Loan, Hardship, In-Service, etc.) to ensure that only certain fields are displayed and required to be completed by the plan sponsor according to the Distribution Reason used. To modify settings, hover over the Distribution Field and then click the Edit icon.

Note: Distribution Reasons listed in the Distribution Preferences are currently hard-coded and cannot be deleted nor can additional Distribution Reasons be added.

Association Rules Menu

The Association Rules menu enables the user to select Defaults for a Distribution template and fee item by Distribution Reason for ease in project launching. Creating an Association Rule links a Distribution project template, fee, and field list to be used with a selected group of plan types and Distribution Reason in conjunction with one another. To add a new Rule, click the Add icon. This will launch the Add Associations Rule screen, enter a Name for the Rule, the default Template, Fee Name and Field List for Reason(s) and Plan Type(s) combinations selected in the screen below. To edit an existing rule, hover over the rule and then click the Edit icon

Enable Distributions for a Plan

In order to process a Distribution for a plan, Distributions must first be enabled for that plan. To enable Distributions for a plan, follow the steps below.

Browse to the General Plan Information screen for the particular plan. Click the Edit icon. A pop-up window will appear.
At the bottom of the window, select the checkbox for Distributions Enabled.
- Deselecting the checkbox will disable Distributions for the plan.
In the Distributions On PSL dropdown, select Show.
- If 'Hide' is selected, Distributions for the plan will not be visible on PSL.
Click Save.

Next, users must make sure the Internal Plan field on Edit General Plan Information screen is marked as No. Internal Plans will not display the Distributions menu.

Note: At this time, there is not a way to mark a completed distribution so that it doesn't show up on PSL. The only way for the Distribution to not appear would be to delete it or complete it. To complete the distribution, override the tasks in the Distribution project. To delete the distribution, edit the distribution Project Summary and select Mark for Deletion, then access Maintenance > Data Deletion to permanently delete the distribution. Once the distribution has been permanently deleted, there is no way to recover it.

Add a Distribution

Users can add a distribution by clicking Add Data > Distribution. Similarly, distributions can be added by browsing to the Distributions screen for the plan and clicking the Add icon. When the Add Distribution pop-up appears, the user should enter the following items in order to begin processing the distribution.

Plan: Enter the Plan Name the distribution is being created for.
Reason: Select the reason for the distribution.

Only one Distribution Reason can be selected.
Reasons cannot be added and edited.
The Distribution Fields and Field Names displayed based on the Reason chosen can be edited in Distribution Preferences as described in Maintaining Distribution Preferences.
- Users can choose which fields are displayed and edit the field display names that appear on the Distribution > Information menu of the launched distribution project.

SSN: Enter the Social Security Number of the individual the distribution is for.

If the participant's SSN is already entered in PensionPro, click the Magnifying Glass icon to find the Participant's name. The First Name and Last Name fields will auto-populate.

First Name: Enter the first name of the individual the distribution is for.
Last Name: Enter the last name of the individual the distribution is for.
Template: The Distribution Project template to be used to complete the distribution processing will automatically populate depending on the Reason that was entered previously.
Fee Item: The appropriate Fee automatically fills in depending on the Reason that was previously entered.
Click Save when complete.

Once the Distribution is saved, the Distribution Project is launched and the first Project Task is now active.

Incorporating Investment Providers: It is important to know that Investment Provider information is no longer required for the Distribution Module to operate. If users have Investment Providers listed on the Plan Investment Providers menu, those providers will appear in the Providers dropdown menu when adding a Distribution. Should users mark Investment Provider as a required field when organizing their Field Setup, a provider must be selected in the Provider dropdown.

Contact Website Rights: Contacts can be granted the Distribution Website Right. Although optional, this right should be enabled if a distribution contact should have the ability to view the status of a distribution and any files or notes that have been posted to it on PlanSponsorLink. Users can utilize the Website Rights Power Tool to add the Distribution Website Right to multiple Plan Contacts at once.

Distribution Files: Distribution Files can be sent to a contact by navigating to the Files menu of the launched Distribution template and clicking the Add icon. A pop-up window will appear. Clicking Show On PSL will post the file on PlanSponsorLink where a contact with the Distribution website right can see it.

Distribution Emails: On a Distribution Project, users can click Distribution > Information and click the Mail icon located to the right of the grid to send a Distribution Email to a designated Distribution Contact. Clicking the button will open a Send Interaction window. Users can edit the subject and body of the email and click send. This will send the email to the designated distribution contact and create an interaction record on the Plan > Interactions screen as well as the Interactions screen at the contact level for the contact the email was sent to.

Users can control the designated Distribution Contact as well as the default subject and body by clicking Maintenance > Preferences > Distribution and updating the General Distribution Preferences. For more information, please review Maintaining Distribution Preferences.

Add a Distribution Using Power Tools

Users have the ability to launch distributions for multiple participants using the Distributions Power Tool. In order to do so, users must have the Access Power Tools Security Right. For detailed steps on how to use this function, review the Using Power Tools article.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I add more Distribution Reasons to the system? Distribution Reasons listed in the Distribution Preferences and chosen when launching a distribution are currently hard-coded and cannot be deleted nor can new Distribution Reasons be added.
I Launched a Distribution with the Participant's name entered incorrectly. Can I update their Name? Users can open the Distribution > Information menu and click the Edit icon to update the Participant's name. If the Distribution Project is a Non-Recurring frequency, the user can click the Summary menu and click the Edit icon to change the Project Description to correct how the user's name appears there.
Can I search for completed Distributions in PensionPro? When searching for Distributions using the Search function, users can toggle whether to include inactive plans or completed distributions. To include completed distributions in the search results, click the Gear icon in the search results screen and toggle the field Show Deactivated/Closed next to Distributions.
Is there a way to abort a Distribution Project? Users can mark the Distribution Project for deletion and then delete it in the Data Deletion menu. The other option is to override the remaining project tasks to mark the project as completed. Users will need the Task Override security right to do so. Users can also click on the Distribution > Information menu and change the Distribution Status field to Aborted. Please note that if changing the Distribution Status, users may need to update fields that are required under the Field Setup in Distribution Preferences. Users may need to complete these fields or change the Distribution Preferences.
Why isn't the correct project launching when I select the distribution reason when adding a distribution project? First, check the distribution Association Rules in Maintenance > Preferences > Distribution and confirm the plan type, template and distribution reasons expected in the launched project match an Association Rule. The system will use the template referenced in the Association Rule which specifically lists the plan type in that rule should multiple Association Rules exist, referencing the same distribution Reason.
Can Distributions be imported into PensionPro? Distributions cannot be imported at this time.
Is there a way to display the participant name for Distributions on the Dashboard? On the My Tasks Dashboard users can click the Columns icon and include the Project Description in the Selected Columns. Click Apply at the bottom of the pop-up window. The Project Description field will display the Participant Name for Distribution Projects on the Dashboard.

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