What does a plan administrator do?
A plan administrator's duties depend on their line of work or place of employment. Still, they typically include understanding the client or the project's needs, developing plans, performing research and analysis, liaising with internal and external parties, setting goals, establishing guidelines and timelines, and developing strategies to optimize procedures. They must also respond to issues and concerns, resolving them efficiently. Moreover, as a plan administrator, it is essential to monitor the daily operations and manage staff, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Plan administrator responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real plan administrator resumes:
- Create custom macro to expedite data transfer of manage ESOP.
- Participate in establishing and testing pension plans on PeopleSoft to automate applicable calculations.
- Establish and maintain IRA, SEP, SARSEP and Keogh plans.
- Gather plan date (census, assets) from clients, CPA's, attorneys, and investment brokers.
- Process monthly stock option and RSU grants.
- Prepare RSU tax withholding calculations for mobility employees on a monthly basis.
- Utilize Relius Quantec pension software for preparation of report exhibits and government forms.
- Load the exported data in the system9 on AIX 5.1 and windows 2000 server.
- Extract monthly data from SQl server and FTP the extracted files to essbase servers.
- Represent the company in several cases of discrimination at DOL, all cases are dismissed.
- Partner with ERISA attorney to analyze plan documents and to ensure operational compliance with the document.
- Create new databases for the application in SQL server to hold the artifacts for the applications.
- Scrub data prepare by clients to perform various annual compliance tests, using the Relius system.
- Assist in the preparation on documentation require in IRS & DOL audits of employer sponsor retirement programs.
- Lead junior team members in PBGC pension plan benefit administration tasks for complete defined benefit pension plans.
Plan administrator skills and personality traits
We calculated that 9% of Plan Administrators are proficient in Payroll, HR, and Plan Administration. They’re also known for soft skills such as Leadership skills, Analytical skills, and Business skills.
We break down the percentage of Plan Administrators that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Payroll, 9%
Facilitated requirements gathering sessions between vendor, business users, and Payroll Department and developed business and functional requirements documents.
- HR, 7%
Managed administration of qualified and non-qualified defined benefit plans and liaised with Retirement Committee, HR management, and General Counsel.
- Plan Administration, 6%
Supervised all facets of pension plan administration for corporate clients including details of defined benefit and defined contribution retirement plans.
- Database, 5%
Worked with general supervision, administer, and maintain the installation process for broker/agent business including updates and database maintenance.
- PowerPoint, 4%
Company Trainer for Outlook, Microsoft Excel, Powerpoint and Word.
- SOX, 4%
Coordinated semi-annual SOX narrative update process across enterprise.
"payroll," "hr," and "plan administration" are among the most common skills that plan administrators use at work. You can find even more plan administrator responsibilities below, including:
Leadership skills. One of the key soft skills for a plan administrator to have is leadership skills. You can see how this relates to what plan administrators do because "compensation and benefits managers coordinate the activities of their staff and administer compensation and benefits programs, ensuring that the work is completed accurately and on schedule." Additionally, a plan administrator resume shows how plan administrators use leadership skills: "consult with hr business partners, key stakeholders, and executive leadership on issues related to benefits and employee relations. "
Analytical skills. Another essential skill to perform plan administrator duties is analytical skills. Plan administrators responsibilities require that "compensation and benefits managers analyze data on wages and salaries and the cost of benefits, and they assess and devise programs that best fit an organization and its employees." Plan administrators also use analytical skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "perform annual non-discrimination adp/acp & irc testing to ensure plans are in compliance with datair. "
Business skills. This is an important skill for plan administrators to perform their duties. For an example of how plan administrator responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "these managers oversee a budget, build a case for their recommendations, and understand how compensation and benefits plans affect an organization’s finances." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a plan administrator: "analyzed employee and business data for all compensation plans, including executive incentive plans, and stock option programs. ".
Communication skills. A big part of what plan administrators do relies on "communication skills." You can see how essential it is to plan administrator responsibilities because "compensation and benefits managers direct staff, give presentations, and work with colleagues." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical plan administrator tasks: "manage vendor relationships and develops employee communication and education programs in partnership with the hr department. "
The three companies that hire the most plan administrators are:
- Wells Fargo12 plan administrators jobs
- The PNC Financial Services Group11 plan administrators jobs
- Palantir7 plan administrators jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable plan administrator resume templates
Build a professional plan administrator resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your plan administrator resume.
Compare different plan administrators
Plan administrator vs. Compensation manager
A compensation manager is primarily responsible for developing and establishing a company's payment scale and system, ensuring all employees are well-compensated while putting the company's welfare into consideration. Moreover, a compensation manager must ensure to distribute benefits and pay rate in adherence to the laws and regulations, identify the wage rate of competitor companies, monitor the budget, and oversee the payroll and payment processes, ensuring accuracy and timeliness. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead the team, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between plan administrators and compensation manager. For instance, plan administrator responsibilities require skills such as "payroll," "hr," "plan administration," and "database." Whereas a compensation manager is skilled in "human resources," "compensation policies," "compensation practices," and "customer service." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Compensation managers really shine in the technology industry with an average salary of $98,035. Comparatively, plan administrators tend to make the most money in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $81,211.On average, compensation managers reach higher levels of education than plan administrators. Compensation managers are 10.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.4% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Plan administrator vs. Benefits counselor
A benefits counselor manages the company or organization's employee benefits programs. Job responsibilities may include designing and administering the benefits program to ensure company and employee needs are met, as well as assisting and educating employees in benefits enrollment activities. This job requires a full understanding of health care benefits, comprising medical, dental, and life insurance, including knowledge of pertinent regulations and legislation. In addition, benefits counselors may also need to be knowledgeable and updated with other incentives such as pensions and stock ownership.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, plan administrator responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "plan administration," "database," "excellent organizational," and "powerpoint." Meanwhile, a benefits counselor has duties that require skills in areas such as "veterans," "customer service," "term disability," and "inbound calls." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Benefits counselors earn similar levels of education than plan administrators in general. They're 1.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.4% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Plan administrator vs. Benefits manager
A benefits manager is primarily in charge of overseeing and handling a company's benefits programs and projects for employees. Their responsibilities revolve around coordinating with human resources to gather accurate data, improve existing benefits programs, and creating new ones in adherence to the company's policies and regulations. A benefits manager may also liaise with external agencies, develop activities for employee welfare, and resolve any issues regarding the benefits programs. Furthermore, they may perform clerical tasks such as producing progress reports and presentations, manage budgets, and maintain records of all transactions.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, plan administrators are more likely to have skills like "payroll," "plan administration," "database," and "excellent organizational." But a benefits manager is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "hipaa," "long-term disability," and "benefits administration."
Benefits managers earn the best pay in the technology industry, where they command an average salary of $71,971. Plan administrators earn the highest pay from the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $81,211.When it comes to education, benefits managers tend to earn similar degree levels compared to plan administrators. In fact, they're 1.3% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Plan administrator vs. Employee benefits manager
An employee benefits manager is responsible for leading the human resources department in establishing the appropriate benefits package and compensation for the employees according to industry regulations and business requirements. Employee benefits managers facilitate the programs and orientations in sharing retirement plans, insurance policies, and other related packages across the organization. They also assist the employee benefits staff in resolving issues and handling disputes from employees' concerns. An employee benefits manager must have excellent communication and leadership skills, as well as extensive knowledge of the human resources practices to build recommendations that would support the employees' needs and welfare.
Types of plan administrator
Updated January 8, 2025
