Pontiac (Mich.) General Employees Retirement System trustees are evaluating whether to move to a third-party administrator for the city's $490 million defined benefit plan or to hire a new executive director and maintain the current internal administrative system.
The two searches were prompted to some extent by the unexpected death on Jan. 5 of Ellen Zimmermann, the pension fund's executive director and retirement plan administrator, said Deborah Munson, interim executive director and GERS' finance director, in an interview.
Ms. Munson said staffing within the GERS office is limited. The pension fund's board of trustees agreed that a third-party administrator might ease the administrative burden.
The board chose “a two-pronged strategy in order to compare the two (approaches) and determine which would yield the best result over the long-term,” Ms. Munson added in an e-mail message.
For the TPA search, signed copies of the pension fund's Intent to Bid form are due by 4 p.m. EDT on March 28. Responses to the RFP are due by 4 p.m. EDT on April 17.
Both forms are available on the pension fund's website.
GERS is searching for a permanent executive director to replace Ms. Zimmermann, who started working in the city's finance department in 1997.
Charlie Harrison III, chairman of the GERS board of trustees, said “it was an honor to work with Ms. Zimmermann” and that the board had “lost a warrior and leader in the retirement office,” according to minutes of a special meeting on Jan. 15.
Information about the job vacancy is available on the pension fund's website.
The board of trustees intends to decide which pension administrative approach to follow as soon as possible and likely not later than the end of May, Ms. Munson said.
