A target-date option in Yale University's defined-contribution retirement plans now has an annuity inside the qualified default investment alternative. Hugh Penney, senior advisor for benefits planning, and Kate Castello, associate director for retirement planning, received a Pensions & Investments Innovation Award for their work on the project.

Required minimum distributions can serve as a timely prompt for clients to shore up their retirement portfolios, writes Morningstar's Christine Benz. She discusses four key steps: determining the RMD amount, considering asset allocation, choosing which holdings to reduce and deciding how to deploy the assets.

Some younger workers -- millennials, GenZers and GenXers -- say they are struggling to advance because baby boomers are putting off retirement, writes executive recruiter Jack Kelly, citing data from a USA TODAY/LinkedIn survey. Kelly calls the argument flawed, saying it does not acknowledge the impact of the financial crises that wiped out many boomers' savings, leaving them unable to retire.

The Treasury yield curve, which had shown some degree of inversion during the past year, has uninverted. Normalization of yields indicates investors are becoming comfortable again with risk-taking.

The IRS issued nine private letter rulings authorizing insurers to pay fees for annuities held outside retirement plans directly to the advisor who sold them without having the payment included in clients' taxable income. The procedure was already authorized for annuities held within "tax qualified plans."

The holidays can be a good time for financial advisors to discuss charitable planning with clients and their families, writes Ken Nopar of the American Endowment Foundation. He lists 20 questions advisors should ask clients that cover topics such as their motivation for giving and charitable legacies.

Consultant Angie Herbers discusses how disrespect manifests in the financial-services industry and what steps can be taken to correct the issue. She notes that disrespect occurs "when something or someone needs attention."

When talking to technology vendors at conferences, advisors need to take the right approach to find the best tools and avoid information overload, writes Wes Stillman, CEO of RightSize Solutions. He offers four rules for talking to tech vendors, including getting a clear picture of how they work with clients and asking specific questions.

The Insured Retirement Institute recently released the IRI Retirement Fact Book 2019, a definitive guide for the retirement income industry and go-to resource for financial advisors, professionals, public policymakers, and financial and insurance regulators. The new edition updates research findings on generational retirement readiness, explores product development and market trends in the retirement income space, and offers data and research-based insights into advisors practices and consumer retirement planning success factors. Free to IRI members, the Retirement Fact Book can be downloaded here.

Retirement anxiety is growing among baby boomers, many of whom have little to no retirement savings, forcing more boomers to postpone retirement. IRI's annual survey of boomers found that 45% have zero savings for their golden years, and even those with savings are lacking in a number of retirement preparedness factors. Read the report.