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If you view annual open enrollment as a simple box-checking exercise, you're likely missing out on helping your staff get the most out of the benefits you provide.

Instead, if you approach open enrollment as a chance to strengthen employee engagement, control costs and help your workforce understand the full value of your benefits program, you'll likely boost participation and satisfaction among your staff. Here are seven steps to getting open enrollment right.

Some see retirement as a time to start a new career. Others see it as a time to travel. Still others plan to spend more time with family and friends.

If you have thought about it, good for you. If you haven't, you should. It's a worthwhile exercise that can help you make plans so you can live out your years doing what you want. With that in mind, here are some things to consider.

One of the most important acts you can pursue to make sure your family is taken care of after your passing is having an estate plan.

But there are many moving parts in a plan, and you'll want to pay attention to all of them so you don't miss anything important that could get in the way of a smooth transition from you to your loved ones. With that in mind, we created this estate planning checklist to help ensure you have all your ducks in a row.

Looking for guaranteed income? It's not easy — and you're not likely to get rich on guaranteed income generators alone. One of the fundamental rules of investment is that rewards over and above what investment theorists call the "risk free rate of return" are only available to those who take some risk with their money.

That said, as you get closer to retirement age, you are going to want some guarantees in place. Here are some of the most popular options. 

Under a final rule issued by the IRS, beginning in 2026, employees aged 60 to 63 can make a "super catch-up" contribution equal to 150% of the standard catch-up amount to their employer-sponsored 401(k) plan.

Alongside the higher limits, the rule requires employees aged 50 years or older and earning more than $145,000 in wages to make all their catch-up contributions, including the new super catch-up, into a Roth 401(k).

Under a final rule issued by the IRS, beginning in 2026, employees aged 60 to 63 can make a "super catch-up" contribution equal to 150% of the standard catch-up amount to their employer-sponsored 401(k) plan.

Alongside the higher limits, the rule requires employees aged 50 years or older and earning more than $145,000 in wages to make all their catch-up contributions, including the new super catch-up, into a Roth 401(k).

If you're selling a home in a high-risk wildfire area of California built before 2010, you now face stricter disclosure requirements under new rules that took effect this summer.

The new rule requires sellers to tell buyers not only that the property is in a fire-prone zone but also what steps they have taken to make the home more resistant to fire. It's another effort by regulators and lawmakers to attract more insurers back into California's homeowner's insurance market.

Commercial auto insurance companies continue to post steep losses for liabilities like third-party injuries and property damage, which is driving continued rate hikes for businesses, particularly fleet operators, according to a new report.

The line posted its 14th consecutive year of underwriting losses in 2024, with liability coverage alone accounting for $4.5 billion in red ink. As losses mount, some commercial auto insurers have left the market and those that remain have tightened underwriting standards.

Starting in 2027, cars will need anti-speeding technology to qualify for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's (IIHS) coveted Top Safety Pick+ award, an honor given to the safest cars on the road. And by 2030, they'll also need built-in systems that detect impaired driving to be eligible for the award.

Here's a look at these new standards and how they could go a long way towards reducing roadway deaths.

American workplaces are facing a growing civility crisis that is costing companies dearly.

According to new research from the Society for Human Resource Management, rudeness and discourteous behavior are costing U.S. businesses an estimated $2.1 billion every day in lost productivity, absenteeism and disengagement. The problem doesn't stop at rudeness: a separate study shows a sharp rise in workplace violence, suggesting that incivility and more serious misconduct are increasingly intertwined.

Many people think life insurance is only for the young. They believe that life insurance is a tool best used by newlyweds with mortgages, parents of young children, and spouses who are both employed. 

But what does that mean for seniors? Does that mean retirees have no need for life insurance? The answer to that question depends on your family's needs as well as your financial picture upon retirement.

Medicare can be complex, and one of the rules that often surprises seniors is a rule that determines whether your care in a skilled nursing facility will be covered by Medicare or left for you to pay.

This rule is crucial if you need skilled nursing care after a medical event. Here's what you need to know.