OREANDA-NEWS. April 06, 2016. Simpler solutions for your company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) are within reach. Last month, Principal Financial Group® rolled out My PERLS® 2.0 (short for My Principal ESOP Repurchase Liability Solution). This new platform helps ESOP plan sponsors better plan for the future with market-leading analytics and an easy-to-use interface.

My PERLS 2.0 is available to Principal® ESOP clients as part of their current plan. The goal is to make sure clients have no surprises when it comes to managing their ESOP repurchase liability. “Repurchase liability” is a fancy way of saying “making sure they have enough liquid cash for major events,” – like when an employee retires and needs to cash out of their ESOP.

“The difference with My PERLS 2.0 is like going from analog to HD,” said Jerry Ripperger, vice president of consulting at Principal. “What we had was really good; it was ahead of the curve. Now, My PERLS 2.0 is the new standard, and it sets the bar going forward.”

What’s an ESOP?

Great question. An ESOP is a qualified retirement plan that gives employees some stock ownership in the company. Research shows that ESOP companies may be more productive, faster-growing and more profitable because of the ownership culture among employees1. When employees share in the growth of a company, they’re more likely to be higher-performing.

For more information about ESOPs, please visit principal.com/esop-edge.