Teaching Note Which Retirement Plan Is Best for Ann Smith?(Case Study‪)‬

BACKGROUND Ann Smith had just started a new position as a junior executive at Fowler Inc. five weeks ago. She was finally well settled into her new job and was now focused on sifting through all the details of the retirement plan options available to her through her employer. The plan choices available differed considerably in their characteristics and the variables that affected possible retirement income. Complicating the decision was the fact that the retirement income under the available choices was a function of how many years Ann will work with her current employer, at what age she decides to retire, how many years she spends in retirement, how risk averse she is, and what the expected return of investment is. Answers for these issues would result in big differences in the retirement benefits. Time was of the essence since a retirement plan had to be chosen within the first 60 days of employment. Otherwise it would result in a default selection of the ERS. Moreover, once a retirement plan was chosen it would be irrevocable.