Federal Agency Services

Federal agencies are required by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to provide retirement financial education for their employees. A Benefits Administration Letter 11-104 dated March 25, 2011, identifies the roles of OPM, employing agencies and employees in implementing retirement financial education programs. The letter states, the “implementation of the strategy must educate Federal employees on the need for retirement savings and investment, must provide information on how to plan for retirement, and how to calculate the retirement investment needed to meet their retirement goals.” This must be offered to early-, mid-, and late-career employees.

Agencies that desire assistance in fulfilling their responsibility to employees by providing benefits and retirement financial education programs can rely on us to help satisfy those requirements.

Our programs focus on providing participants with information on the following Federal employee benefits:

CSRS or FERS Retirement Annuity
Thrift Savings Plan (TSP)
Voluntary Contribution Plan (VCP) – CSRS and CSRS Offsets only
Federal Employees Group Life Insurance (FEGLI)
Social Security
Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB)
Dental and Vision
Medicare
Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP)
Disability – Federal employee Compensation Act (FECA), CSRS and FERS Disability annuity, and Social Security Disability

What Content is Provided in Your Briefings?

Our briefings can be provided to CSRS and FERS employees, and may be offered in full- or half-day sessions. Presentations include graphics that help explain difficult concepts in a manner that’s easy to understand and remember. The information is generally divided into six areas – Pension, Savings, Life Insurance, Health Insurance, and Disability. We also encourage questions and discussion.

Here is a Sample FERS Full-Day agenda.

Materials

Employees who attend a briefing will receive a high-quality workbook with all of the information presented during the session. The ‘Understanding Your Federal Benefits’ Agency Workbook Page has more detailed information.

A valuable reference source for participants, the workbook includes the FEBA Seminars Benefits Worksheet, which can be used to gather the participant’s benefits information into one convenient location. This can be of tremendous value to employees who often have information scattered in several locations and in many formats.

Who Are the Instructors?

Engaging, professional speakers with years of experience working with Federal employees and Federal benefits programs will lead our briefings. Instructors interact with participants by posing questions and discussing options. We use examples, stories and humor to help make the materials more interesting and enjoyable. Although the instructors have a thorough understanding of personal finance, they will not provide financial advice or product recommendations. They will answer general questions on employee benefits and retirement issues.

We’ve trained thousands of Federal employees on how to use their benefits programs to save for retirement and to protect themselves and their families. We would welcome the opportunity to speak at your benefits briefings.

How Can I Get the Word Out About Our Briefing?

Human resources professionals appreciate our briefing announcements, which can be customized with dates, times, location and point of contact. The announcement can be forwarded to employees, which lessens the burden on the sponsor because it answers questions about the content of the program and why employees should attend. The announcement can ask employees to register in advance to plan for adequate meeting space and materials. After scheduling a benefits briefing, we’ll offer to produce a customized announcement for your program. Here is a Sample Benefits Briefing Agency Announcement.

What Is Found in the Program Summary Report and Evaluation?

When your briefing is complete, participants complete a Course and Instructor Evaluation Form, which allows them to offer scores in 10 areas. These evaluations are collected and a management report, which includes a summary of scores and copies of all evaluations, is produced. This report can be shared with your colleagues or managers, allowing you to easily gauge the success of your briefing.

Do You Provide Customized Programs?

We’ve also worked with agencies and human resources personnel to produce specialized content to address issues affecting their agencies. These services are delivered on an as-needed basis and generally centered around timely topics such as Sequestration, Voluntary Retirement Authority (VERA), and Voluntary Incentive Separation Payments (VSIPs).

Want More Information?

Download our FEBA Benefits Briefing Flyer. If you’d like more information on how we can assist you and your agency in satisfying your retirement education responsibilities for employees, please contact us to design a program to meet your needs. We’ll produce a customized proposal for you with pricing details.

More information about our programs can also be found on our Agency Frequently Asked Questions page. Questions page. Or, even better, call us at (720) 432-3331 with your questions, complete the form below, or email us at info@febadvocates.com.

Useful Links

Federal Employee Benefits Advocates is proud to partner with the Federal Employee Education and Assistance Fund. This organization is devoted solely to providing emergency ﬁnancial assistance and scholarships to our dedicated civilian federal and postal public servants and their families.