Morgan Stanley survey: 69% of plan sponsors rank advisor a top lineup resource

Sixty-nine percent of plan sponsors rank their investment advisor or consultant among the three most valuable resources for assessing the plan's investment lineup, according to the 2026 Morgan Stanley Retirement Plan Survey. The question was limited to lineup evaluation, not participant-facing work.

8 Acre Perspective, an independent research firm, conducted the poll between July and August 2026 among 200 retirement plan sponsors at organizations with at least $50 million in defined contribution plan assets. Respondents were the investment decision-makers responsible for plan design, investment lineups and participant engagement.

Forty-five percent of sponsors cited helping employees understand their DC plan as a top concern. The survey reports that 34% of sponsors now call the DC plan employees' most valued workplace benefit, up from 15% in 2024, and 93% rank DC plans among employees' top five benefits, level with healthcare for the first time. This publication covered that top-five finding when the survey was released.

A separate Fidelity Investments survey of 1,311 plan sponsors found that 93% work with an advisor on plan design and investment decisions, market complexity and long-term strategy. Employee education and advisor-managed accounts tied as the third most frequently added service among sponsors.