Is this the year you set up or overhaul your company retirement plan? Have you considered where to get qualified advice and assistance with managing the investment options in your plan?

Many professional advisors — from insurance specialists to stockbrokers to CPAs and more — offer assistance setting up retirement plans. They have all the right licenses, but do they have the most suitable credentials beyond those licenses?

Financial advisors are supposed to put your interests ahead of their interests, but obstacles can interfere with this lofty and securities industry mandated objective. 

One of the biggest obstacles to advisors providing unbiased advice comes in the ways in which they’re compensated. Advisors usually are compensated through commissions, fees or a combination of the two. For mutual funds-based investments, advisors often receive an ongoing percentage of the assets they manage — a payment called a trailer. While only a quarter of a percent or so total investments, this can become significant as assets accumulate and grow in your company retirement plan.

Here are some things to consider in selecting an advisor:

Make sure the advisor is properly licensed and doesn’t have a disciplinary history. Check out the licensing and disciplinary history of advisors on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) website at https://adviserinfo.sec.gov. Some so-called advisors send out credible emails and make urgent telephone calls. It’s a good idea to check their status on an official website.

Make sure an advisor has the proper credentials for the advice they dispense or investments they recommend. Some examples: Registered Investment Advisor (RIA), securities licenses, certified public accountant (CPA), Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) and Certified Financial Planner® (CFP).

Make sure the advisor focuses on businesses of your size and growth potential and also has some experience with your industry or similar industries. Request and check references.

Here are some questions to ask a potential advisor:

How many retirement plan clients do you manage? More isn’t necessarily better. Advisors with large client bases often hand over much of the advisory work to staff. You might have little contact with the advisor once your retirement plan is in place.

Do you have a regular meeting and review cycle to keep clients appraised of trends in the investment industry, changes in recommended investments and other information? At these meetings, do you present a detailed report explaining the returns on my plan; the characteristics of the investments in the portfolio; why the performance met, exceeded or lagged expectations; and a proposed way ahead?

How are you compensated? If you receive commissions, how do you avoid apparent and actual conflicts of interest? If you are fee-based, what is the fee, does it adjust as the value of my retirement plan assets cross significant milestones and does it decrease when investment performance lags what’s projected? If you use a hybrid approach, do you have something in writing that explains how each aspect applies to my retirement plan?

Do you tailor investments to my needs or use standard options as the basis of a retirement plan?

Do you have a resume that details your experience and investment philosophy?

Always talk to several advisors. Before you make a final decision, read through the information at www.investor.gov.