2025 Financial Wellbeing Symposium

Thursday, December 11, 2025
Washington, D.C.

Agenda:

7:45 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. — Breakfast & Networking

8:00 a.m. – 8:45 a.m. — HSA Policy Discussion

This timely session will explore the latest legislative and regulatory developments and their implications for employers, sponsors, and consumers.

This special session is optional and for in-person attendees only.

Josselin Castillo (R), Professional Staff Member, Ways and Means Health Subcommittee
Caitlin Wilson (R), Senior Counsel, U.S. Senate
Roy Ramthun, HSA Consulting Services, LLC
Joel White, President, Horizon Government Affairs
John Desser, HealthEquity (moderator)

9:00 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. — Welcoming Remarks

Setting the stage for today’s themes through outlining recent policy developments and what lies ahead for financial wellbeing and benefits policy.

Panelists:

Sara Vipond, Chair of the EBRI Financial Wellbeing Research Center and Senior Associate at Mercer
Craig Copeland, Director of Wealth Benefits Research, EBRI

9:15 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. — With the SECURE Act Just Beginning, What Have We Seen and Where Are We Going? Is Flexibility the Future?

With the SECURE 2.0 Act now partially implemented, many new benefit options have become available. From student loan matching contributions to emergency savings options, SECURE 2.0 has introduced innovative provisions that allow plan sponsors to tailor benefits to meet diverse employee needs. This panel will explore the early effects of these changes, the considerations plan sponsors face when deciding whether to adopt them, and what might be on the horizon. The next iteration of benefits legislation is pointing to a new era of flexibility; how much flexible choice is desired in benefit design, how can it be added, and how are employees responding?

Panelists:

Priya Punatar, Director, Workplace Research, Fidelity Investments
Holly Tardif, Director, Retirement, WTW
Bridget Bearden, Research and Development Strategist, EBRI (moderator)

10:00 a.m. – 10:25 a.m. — Networking Break

10:25 a.m. – 10:50 a.m. — Motivations Behind the Money: Understanding FSA and HSA Behavior

This session reveals how new research on FSAs and HSAs, along with evolving consumer behaviors and digital payment trends, can empower employees’ financial decisions and help benefit leaders drive engagement and measurable value.

Presentation by Heather Ruff, Sr. Account Executive, Healthcare & Employee Benefits, VISA

10:50 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. — Designing Benefits for Meaningful Engagement

Hear insights from new research on barriers to engagement, the impact of financial stress on employee and employer outcomes, and ways to align benefits with what employees value most. Panelists will discuss the importance of “where and when” for employee engagement, with specific attention to field, frontline, and other non-desk workers compared with those in traditional office settings.

Panelists:

Kathleen Slovin, Vice President, Strategic Research, Workplace Investing, Fidelity Investments
David John, Senior Strategic Policy Advisor, AARP Public Policy Institute
Craig Copeland, Director of Wealth Benefits Research, EBRI (moderator)

11:30 a.m. – 11:55 a.m. — Financial Wellbeing Employer Survey

This presentation will review the 2025 results and compare large and small employers.

Panelists:

Jake Spiegel, Senior Research Associate, Health and Wealth, EBRI
Sarah Faye Pierce, Paychex

11:55 a.m. – 12:40 p.m. — Networking Lunch

12:40 p.m. – 1:10 p.m. — Fireside Chat: Retirement Bites — A Gen X Guide to Securing Your Financial Future

A conversation exploring Retirement Bites, the new book by personal finance expert Kerry Hannon, and the unique challenges and opportunities facing Generation X in planning for retirement and long-term financial security.

Conversation Between:

Kerry Hannon, Personal Finance Expert and Author, Retirement Bites
Barb Marder, President and CEO, Employee Benefit Research Institute

1:10 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. — From Child Care to Elder Care: Designing Caregiving Benefits Across Life Stages

This session explores how employers are supporting employees as caregivers across life stages — from raising young children to caring for aging parents and relatives. Panelists will discuss benefits for young families, including early wealth-building supports, employer-subsidized child care, and flexible schedules that help working parents balance career and family responsibilities. The session will also examine programs and policies that address long-term care, such as caregiver leave, elder care referral services, and innovative approaches to life and critical illness benefits.

Panelists:

Elizabeth Myers, Senior Director, Thought Leadership, Bright Horizons
John Bowe, Director of Benefits, Johns Hopkins Health Systems
Brandon Massie, Director, Workforce Health Consulting, Kaiser Permanente
Rodney Bolden, Executive Director, Head of Industry Engagement Morgan Stanley (moderator)

2:00 p.m. – 2:50 p.m. — Financial Wellbeing Demands, Outcomes, and Outlook

This session will review gaps between employee demand for benefits and access to them, and the positive economic impact that providing access can have for both employees and employers. The critical role of technology in delivering an integrated experience to optimize outcomes will also be discussed.

Panelists:

Manita Rao, Senior Strategic Policy Advisor, AARP Public Policy Institute
Lisa Margeson, Managing Director, Retirement Research & Insights, Bank of America
Zainab Noorali, Head of Retirement, Infosys Retirement Center of Excellence, Infosys
Alana Baray, Director, Commonwealth (moderator)

2:50 p.m. – 3:10 p.m. — Networking Break

3:10 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. — Putting AI to Work: The Opportunities and Risks of AI in Workplace Benefits

AI is everywhere. For HR leaders, it can offer a more customized, engaging workplace benefits experience for employees. In this session, panelists will discuss the current landscape of AI in workplace benefits, business use cases of this evolving technology, steps that can be taken to identify and mitigate machine learning biases, current workplace benefit applications of AI, and the role of AI in financial exploitation.

Panelists:

Edwin Jongsma, Vice President of AI and Integrations, Financial Finesse
Deirdre Bertrand, Chief Operating Officer, Candidly
Vidhi Sanders, Head of Participant Outcomes, Capital Group
Greg Ward, Director of the Financial Wellness Think Tank, Financial Finesse (moderator)

4:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. — Afternoon Keynote: The 8 Biggies

The 8 biggest threats, fears, mistakes, and opportunities for you and your employees — and your families.

Ric Edelman, 3 Times Ranked the #1 Financial Advisor in the Nation by Barron’s

4:45 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. — Cocktail