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Ford SSIP and TESPHE
Plans
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ABC News Video:
"Automotive workers seek advice on buyouts" New Ford 401 (k) Plan Administrator Interest Income Fund Update Change in Credit Rate Process Funding Health Care costs After Age 65 For Your Interest The Wall Street Journal The Wall Street Journal Chicago Tribune Wall Street Journal |
Ford Plan Review as of November 1, 2009
Introduction
With over 30 investment options available, the Savings
Stock Investment Plan (SSIP) for salaried employees and Tax
Efficient Savings Plan For Hourly Employees (TESPHE) are
among the best in the country. With this large number of
funds, there is ample opportunity to build a well-diversified portfolio
for your 401(k) savings.
In this page of the website we include some “Featured Funds”
within the Ford 401(k) plans. At the bottom of this page, we provide a table containing
many of the funds available within the SSIP and TESPHE plans
with critical data on each fund including style, risk, and
past performance. Throughout this
page we provide other pertinent information concerning the
plan and links to other areas of our website that may be of
interest.
Check this page for future updates to the SSIP and TESPHE
plans as well as news that affects Ford Motor Company.
Affiliated Computer Services Replaced Fidelity –
January 5, 2010
Effective January 5, 2010, Affiliated Computer Services (ACS) has taken over
administration of the Ford SSIP, FRP, DCP and BEP for salaried employees, as
well as the TESPHE for hourly employees, from Fidelity Investments. The
investment options that are currently available in these plans are not expected
to change initially, but may change over time as part of the regular monitoring
process. There is a new website for SSIP and TESPHE participants to view and
make changes to their plan effective January 5, 2010. For more details, read the
article on the right “New Ford 401(k) Plan Administrator”.
BlackRock LifePath Index Funds
The BlackRock LifePath Index Fund family is designed for those participants
who wish to base their asset allocation decision on a specific target
year. The account is typically aligned with the LifePath fund that most
closely matches the year you anticipate that you might begin to withdraw
your savings for your retirement.
Nine of these funds are included in the Ford plan, with 5-year incremental targets from 2015 to 2050, along with a fund targeted as a Retirement Fund. The way the LifePath funds are designed, the further away the target date, the more aggressive the asset allocation, conversely, the closer the date, the greater the emphasis on preservation of capital in the asset allocation.
LifePath funds hold some appeal in that they are simple to explain and administer. While this approach is unique, we believe the asset allocation decisions provided by these funds are crude at best. LifePath funds attempt to make decisions about asset allocation based solely on a target date. An investor’s tolerance for risk and financial goals are other key factors that should largely play a roll in determining the investment strategy and asset allocation. Additionally, they leave no room for the fund manager to tactically adjust the allocation strategy based on specific opportunities within the financial markets or in response to prevailing market conditions.
The returns realized in these commingled vehicles are diluted by a rigid adherence to mechanical allocation parameters. These parameters may prove to be shortsighted and inappropriate for everyone participating in the pool. The real world changes every day, yet proponents of LifePath funds, or similar funds, expect someone to stick to a single game plan for as much as 40 years, whether interest rates are rising or falling, or whether the economy is in expansion or recession. While LifePath funds offer a simple one-stop-solution, we continue to advise participants to avoid these funds and retain the flexibility to proactively adjust their portfolios as needed.
Please reference "Target-Date Funds Face Regulation", published in The Wall Street Journal.
Company Stock
As a general rule of diversification, no single stock should represent
more than 10% of your total investment portfolio. We believe this is a
good guideline for ownership of company stock in your 401(k). Most
individual stocks are much more volatile than mutual funds. To the
extent you invest more in your company 's stock, your overall portfolio
will exhibit more volatility (risk), and retirement investing is not
about hitting home runs, but about consistently hitting singles and
doubles.
That being said, many corporations often match a portion of employee
retirement plan contributions with company stock, offer employees
attractive incentives to purchase company stock either within or outside
of retirement accounts, or include stock or stock options as part of
employee compensation. We recommend that employees take full advantage
of these opportunities, but remember to keep their total company
stockholdings within reasonable levels.
Fund Table
The Ford SSIP and TESPHE fund table provides critical data on investment
options within the plan.
Ford SSIP and TESPHE
- Fund Table

If you have any questions concerning our website or your Ford 401(k) account contact us using the following e-mail link: Mainstay@mainstaycapital.com or call us toll-free 1-866-444-6246.
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