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As defined contribution (DC) plans become more popular than defined benefit (DB) plans, American workers are increasingly responsible for their retirement savings. Because retirement plan participants' portfolio allocation is constrained by the available funds in the plan, the construction of a plan's investment menu has become extremely important. No research has evaluated fund selection in retirement plans or compared plans involving an advisor with self-directed plans. To fill this research gap, this study employs cross-sectional, nationwide data that include 5,570 retirement plans with 100 or more participants in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Results show that in most cases, using advisors is not related to plan performance. Plan sponsors should require advisors to periodically evaluate the performance of plans under their management using objective measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using data from the 2013 Survey of Consumer Finances, this study evaluates the potential effect of using financial planners on household portfolio performance, which was measured by Sharpe Ratio. Results revealed that households that reported using financial planners demonstrated better portfolio performance than those that did not. This lends empirical support to claims that professional financial planning services provide value to clients. Implications for investors, financial planning professionals, and researchers are discussed. Considering the direct relation between wealth accumulation and portfolio performance, financial planners should explore ways in which to work with those with limited resources to help them realize the benefits of using financial planners and improve their portfolio performance as a result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]