Karin Brodbeck, leader of retirement investments in North America at Nestle USA Inc., was named the winner of the annual Lillywhite Award, presented by the Employee Benefit Research Institute. "The Lillywhite Award truly represents EBRI's mission by honoring those that devote their careers to improving employee benefits, which we believe makes for a stronger American workforce and a more secure U.S. economy," Lori Lucas, president and CEO of EBRI, said in a news release Monday.
"Karin exemplifies everything the Lillywhite Award stands for," added Stacy Schaus, chairwoman of EBRI, in the release. "She has dedicated her career not only to creating cost-efficient, best-in-class investment solutions designed for employees, but also she has generously shared her knowledge and experience throughout her career in order to help others in the benefits field do the same."
Named after Ray Lillywhite, a pioneer in the pension field, the award is presented to employee benefits professionals for lifetime contributions to Americans' economic security.
Ms. Brodbeck started her career at Union Carbide in the pension fund investment and internal audit group. At Nestle, "she has dedicated herself to working with 401(k) plan default investment fund managers to provide participants with the best chance to accumulate retirement funds while managing risk as they approach retirement," the news release said.
The Nestle In The USA Savings Trust, Solon, Ohio, had $4.3 billion in defined contribution assets as of Dec. 31, 2016, according to its latest Form 5500. Ms. Brodbeck attributed her history of sharing knowledge with her peers because she always dreamed of being a teacher. "It was a way to share some of my learnings," she said in the news release.
Joshua Morton, a Nestle spokesman, wrote in an email that Ms. Brodbeck would not be available for an interview.
EBRI spokeswoman Sara Bridwell said in an email that Ms. Brodbeck, who will retire July 5, will be honored at EBRI's board dinner in Washington on Wednesday, and also at the Pensions & Investments West Coast Defined Contribution Conference in San Diego in October.