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The U.S. retirement industry is undergoing a fundamental evolution in how recordkeepers operate, deliver value and scale their services. This transformation is largely driven by the increasing need for modern technology, seamless integration and agile operations to meet the evolving expectations of plan sponsors and participants. Consequently, success increasingly depends on modernizing the entire technology stack—spanning onboarding, processing, data management, compliance and client experience.

At the same time, rising regulatory demands and heightened data security scrutiny mean recordkeepers must innovate without increasing risk, cost or compromising governance. This challenging landscape is where strategic outsourcing can offer significant value.

Outsourcing—whether through Software as a Service (SaaS), full service or a hybrid model—has moved beyond simple cost control. Today, it's a strategic lever for transformation, offering:

• Scalable, integrated platforms for rapid deployment of new capabilities
• Advanced tools (AI, analytics, automation) to deliver personalized experiences at scale
• Regulatory-ready infrastructure keeping pace with evolving compliance demands
• Access to external talent and specialized expertise for boosting agility without overburdening internal teams

In fact, our Global Retirement Outlook reports that 85% of providers are modernizing through a mix of internal investment and outsourced partnerships. However, not all outsourcing relationships yield the same value. Some can even hinder progress by limiting flexibility, increasing manual work, delaying innovation or driving up costs.

Is Your Provider Enabling Growth? Key Questions to Ask

If you're questioning whether your provider is truly driving growth, consider these questions:

• Is our current technology platform enabling or limiting scalability?
• How quickly can we launch new services or respond to regulatory change?
• Are we getting the innovation, automation and integration capabilities we need?
• Does our provider support flexibility and scale, or are we stuck with rigid, outdated processes?
• Are we spending more time managing vendor and service issues than focusing on strategic growth?

If the answers raise red flags, it may be time to rethink your outsourcing strategy—and your provider.

The right partner should do more than meet your current needs. They should help future-proof your business. Key attributes to look for include:

• A scalable, integrated platform.
• Proven investment in technology modernization.
• Flexible service model backed by operational depth.
• Strong governance, security and compliance frameworks.
• Dedicated service and relationship support.

How SS&C TRAC® Delivers on These Priorities

At SS&C, we own and operate the entire technology stack—enabling faster delivery of new features, streamlined testing and deployment, and greater agility and control. Our TRAC recordkeeping platform supports a wide range of investment types and plan sizes, enabling scalable growth.

TRAC is delivered through an SS&C-hosted Software as a Service (SaaS) model, as well as full service and hybrid outsourcing options. With SaaS, SS&C manages all data processing, system support, hardware and software, including continuous development and enhancements. This allows clients to focus on their core business and achieve significant cost efficiencies.

Unlike providers who view retirement servicing as secondary, SS&C is fully committed. Our annual investment of over $400 million in technology modernization ensures our systems remain smart, secure and responsive—keeping our clients ahead of the curve.

Innovation Without Disruption

Innovation should enhance, not disrupt, your operations. Unlike vendors that mandate costly and time-consuming upgrades, SS&C delivers continuous enhancements at no extra charge, all while ensuring you remain current with regulatory updates. Our approach drives ongoing innovation without compromising the safety, security and reliability you expect.

Our open architecture features:

• Multi-tenant design with a true single-code base.
• Secure infrastructure tested in live production.
• Faster rollout of regulatory and service changes.
• Reduced risk and lower total cost of ownership.

Our acquisition of Blue Prism, a global RPA leader, underscores our commitment to intelligent operations. As the only outsourcing provider owning a top-tier automation platform, SS&C has a unique advantage: we don't just implement automation, we live it. We are our own best client, driven by the principle of identifying pain points and solving inefficiencies from manual processes.

This firsthand experience fuels our success and provides invaluable insights. This "living lab" approach directly benefits clients. Our proactive consulting approach is rooted in firsthand experience—overcoming real operational challenges with automation and innovation. We share proven best practices through real examples of how we’ve streamlined processes to drive standardization and efficiency. Consider these tangible examples of our automation in action:

• Auto Indexing–Wires/ACH Credits: Reduced manual processing by deploying digital workers to automatically index incoming funding items using intelligent automation.
• Auto-Match/Auto-Release: Minimized manual intervention in payroll processing by implementing automation logic that leverages APIs to match and release funding methods to payroll files in our recordkeeping system.
• Transactions: Developed structured form templates that allow digital workers to extract data and process transactions through APIs within our recordkeeping platform.
• Trust Reports: Automated the retrieval, storage and posting of trust reports and audit packages using digital workers, ensuring consistent archiving for service organizations.
• Plan Onboarding: Streamlined new plan setup by deploying Gen AI and digital workers to extract data from various forms, creating standardized files for systematic onboarding in the recordkeeping system.

These are just a few examples of how our commitment to being a "product of our own automation" empowers us to deliver smarter, more efficient and ultimately more valuable solutions for our clients.

The Future of Retirement Servicing

Partnering with a modern service provider offering integrated technology, automation and client-focused service enables recordkeepers to:

• Accelerate time-to-market for new services.
• Tap into emerging technologies and digital capabilities.
• Enhance scalability and operational efficiency.
• Better serve a dynamic and demanding client base.

You don’t need to build everything from scratch—but you also shouldn’t settle for a partner that slows you down. If your current service provider isn't keeping pace, it's time to explore alternatives. The right partner is a catalyst for faster progress, smarter adaptation and stronger growth.

Want to learn how TRAC can drive real results for your business? .