Pelican PEP
Caring for Your Employees, Together
Offering a retirement plan is one of the most meaningful ways to support your employees and strengthen your benefits package.
But for many business owners and HR leaders, the rules, regulations and day-to-day responsibilities of sponsoring a 401(k) can feel overwhelming.
Pelican PEP is designed to make retirement plan sponsorship more manageable. Through a pooled employer plan, your business can offer a competitive retirement savings benefit while reducing administrative burden, improving efficiency and giving employees access to guidance that helps them plan for the future.
What Is a Pooled Employer Plan?
A pooled employer plan, or PEP, is a single 401(k) plan that multiple employers can join.
Instead of each business managing its own standalone plan document, annual audit, Form 5500 and many of the related administrative responsibilities, the PEP structure allows those responsibilities to be handled at the pooled-plan level.
For employers, that can mean fewer internal tasks, greater cost efficiency, professional support and a retirement plan experience that is easier to manage.
How Pelican PEP Supports Your Business
Pelican PEP brings together a coordinated team of professionals to support your plan and your employees.
CoSource serves as your independent liaison, helping coordinate providers, benchmark fees, document processes and lead participant education. When engaged, CoSource also serves as the plan’s ERISA 3(38) investment fiduciary.
The recordkeeper provides the participant technology platform, where employees can enroll, view their accounts and track investment activity.
The third-party administrator and pooled plan provider support technical compliance and plan administration, including nondiscrimination testing, plan design, distributions, payroll processing and related plan responsibilities.
The result is a more coordinated retirement plan experience with a team you can reach when questions come up.
What Pelican PEP Helps Simplify
Pelican PEP is built to help employers reduce the time, risk and complexity that often come with sponsoring a retirement plan.
Through the pooled plan structure, employers can benefit from:
- Reduced administrative responsibility
- Outsourced fiduciary support
- One plan document at the PEP level
- One annual audit at the PEP level, when applicable
- One Form 5500 at the PEP level
- Payroll integration
- Fee transparency
- Access to broad investment options
- Participant education and communication
- A coordinated support team
Your core role is to join the plan, fund contributions and send payroll data. From there, the pooled plan structure helps carry much of the ongoing plan responsibility.
Built for Employers Who Care About Their People
A retirement plan is also a statement about how you value your workforce.
When employees have access to a workplace retirement plan, they have a practical way to save, plan and build toward future financial security. That can strengthen your benefits package, support recruiting and retention, and help employees feel more supported beyond the workday.
CoSource brings a boots-on-the-ground approach to employee education. We work to make retirement plan guidance accessible, practical and relevant for the people who rely on your plan, whether they work in the field, at a desk, in a plant or across multiple locations.
Designed for Real Businesses Across South Louisiana
CoSource has spent decades working with business owners, HR leaders and employees across a wide range of industries, including oil and gas, agriculture, medical, engineering and professional teams.
We understand that retirement plans have to work in the real world. Your team needs clear answers, responsive support and a plan structure that fits how your business actually operates.
Pelican PEP gives employers a way to offer a strong retirement plan while relying on a coordinated team to help manage the details.
Pelican PEP vs. a Traditional 401(k)
A traditional 401(k) can offer valuable benefits, but it often requires the employer to manage more of the plan’s administrative, fiduciary and compliance responsibilities.
Pelican PEP is designed to provide many of the benefits of a workplace retirement plan with added support and reduced employer workload. Through the pooled plan structure, employers can access plan governance, plan document maintenance, Form 5500 filing, compliance support, payroll integration, investment fiduciary support and participant education through a more coordinated model.
For many businesses, that means a retirement plan that is easier to run and better supported over time.
Start a Conversation
If you want to offer a competitive retirement plan without taking on the full burden of managing a standalone 401(k), Pelican PEP may be a strong fit for your business.
