Portability that Truly Follows the Worker
Two paths to reduce leakage and increase choice
By: Eric Sondergeld | May 21, 2026
As workers change jobs more frequently, retirement savings are increasingly spread across multiple plans and IRAs. This fragmentation suggests a need for better portability of retirement assets.
This piece lays out two complementary paths. First, how we can work within today’s system to make portability real using what already exists. Second, what a better system could look like if we design around the worker from the start. If you’re a plan sponsor, recordkeeper, or advisor, you can act on the first path now. If you influence standards or policy, you can help the industry build toward the second.
Path 1: Strengthen Today’s System
The first path focuses on practical improvements we can make right now. The aim is to keep savings with the worker as they change jobs and to reduce the friction built into today’s rollover process. This requires modernizing how money and data move across providers, using smart defaults that preserve choice, and giving workers simple comparisons of fees, protections, and features. Roth balances need clearer treatment so they are not stranded, and a national registry can help workers locate missing benefits while supporting automatic roll‑ins.
Industry partners can act immediately. Small‑balance auto portability can reduce plan leakage. A digital rollover network can replace paper checks with electronic consent, validation, and money movement. Real‑time account‑location tools can make auto‑locate possible. Stronger safe harbor rules, easier roll‑ins, and simple one‑page comparisons would improve the experience. Policy updates such as allowing Roth IRA‑to‑plan roll‑ins and including balances under one thousand dollars in portability rules would reinforce these changes.
Rollover activity is large but still inefficient. Manual steps create delays and take workers out of the market. A standardized digital process can shorten cycle times and make the experience more consistent. These are achievable improvements that rely on the system we already have.
Path 2: Design a Better System
The second path starts with a simple idea: workers should not collect new retirement accounts every time they change jobs. Instead, each person would have a single personal account with pretax and Roth buckets. Employers would connect to that account, and contributions, investments, and income features would travel with the worker.
This model avoids constraints found in some universal account proposals. It does not limit investment choice or rely on federal contributions. It provides open, provider‑neutral connectivity so plans, IRAs, and income products can link to the account without forcing savings into a single structure.
Interoperability is central. The personal account would act as an access hub that supports partial, low‑friction transfers into income products when workers choose them. It would allow both pretax and Roth dollars to move independently, keep fees transparent, and let individuals continue participating even when they are not employed or are working for an employer without a plan.
A system like this reshapes how the ecosystem works. Recordkeepers would run the platform and offer optional services. TPAs would provide compliance and data support. Advisors would shift from lineup selection to ongoing guidance. Asset managers would offer scalable investment building blocks. Search and auto-rollover providers would help reunite legacy balances and support a national registry.
Managing the transition requires care. Workers would need clear Roth notices, low‑fee defaults for any interim IRAs, and standardized comparisons before any rollover. With these protections in place, a personal account model could eliminate fragmentation at the source and give workers a simpler, more consistent experience across their careers.
Conclusion: Two Paths, One Goal
Path one is executional: scale auto-portability for small balances, stand up digital rollovers for larger balances, and make auto-locate routine. These steps leverage existing mechanisms to keep savings attached to the worker and reduce leakage now.
Path two is architectural: build toward a single personal account that employers connect to, with open connectivity and choice preserving interoperability, including partial allocations to income products. This design eliminates fragmentation at the source.
We do not need to choose. The industry can make progress now by strengthening today’s system while building toward a personal account model that follows every worker across a career.
To help the industry understand which portability features workers truly value, Greenwald Research could field a comprehensive survey of savers. This research would reveal how consumers weigh today’s portability improvements versus a personal‑account model, and which design elements would most effectively reduce leakage, simplify decisions, and strengthen long‑term outcomes.
[1] Inactive Accounts Callout: DOL, Private Pension Plan Bulletin. Abstract of 2022; Abstract of 2010, Table A1.
[2] Portability Network Momentum Callout: PLANSPONSOR, “Nearly 21,000 Plan Sponsors Have Adopted PSN Auto‑Portability”, October 1, 2025; PR Newswire, “Portability Services Network Jump‑Starts Nationwide Adoption of Auto Portability”, December 3, 2024.
