July 5, 2005 – Dalbar, Inc. announced today that The Principal Financial Group�, www.principal.com, has been awarded the Dalbar Seal of Excellence for their defined contribution (DC) plan participant and plan sponsor web sites. The Seal is awarded to outstanding web sites that effectively and efficiently meet the needs of plan participants and plan sponsors. Before awarding the seals, Dalbar conducts a series of tests on web sites� features, usability, support, currency and consistency to establish that it meets the principal objectives of its audience.
The results of these tests indicate that The Principal® DC plan participant web site successfully meets the requirements of plan participants and is outstanding for the following reasons:
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The plan participant web site is very comprehensive and intuitively designed.
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Information that is vital to participants is available immediately upon entering the site.
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Participants can complete numerous activities on the web site, eliminating the need to contact the plan sponsor, or print and submit forms to the company.
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The range of account monitoring is the best in the industry.
An analysis and testing of The Principal web site for DC plan sponsors indicate that the site is successfully meeting plan sponsor requirements and is outstanding for the following reasons:
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Plan sponsors are able to complete a large number of administrative activities through the use of the web site.
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The site provides access to a variety of plan and participant specific data.
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The site offers innovative functionality such as online compliance testing and is an industry leader in streamlining client communication with The Principal Message CenterSM.
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Plan sponsors have the ability to perform a variety of functions on behalf of their participants.
“This prestigious recognition from the DALBAR organization is testimony to our commitment to provide the kind of user-friendly technology that our employer plan clients and their participants need and want,” said Daniel J. Houston, senior vice president�Retirement & Investor Services at The Principal “Our plan sponsor site helps employers save time and money by streamlining retirement plan processes. Our participant site provides easy-to-use tools and education that guide employees to achieve financial security as well as a stronger appreciation for their employer-sponsored benefits.”
Dalbar, Inc., the nation’s leading financial-services market research firm, continues its nearly three-decade commitment to raising the standards of excellence in the industry. With offices in the US and Canada, Dalbar develops standards for, and provides research, ratings, and rankings of intangible factors that influence the overall customer-service experience in the mutual fund, broker/dealer, managed account, retirement plan, life insurance and property and casualty insurance industries. Such factors include print communications, Internet, interactive voice response, call center, and financial-professional touch points. www.dalbar.com
About The Principal Financial Group
The Principal Financial Group(R) (The Principal �)[1] is a leader in offering businesses, individuals and institutional clients a wide range of financial products and services, including retirement and investment services, life and health insurance and banking through its diverse family of financial services companies. A member of the Fortune 500, the Principal Financial Group has $174.7 billion in assets under management[2] and serves some 14.9 million customers worldwide from offices in Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America and the United States. Principal Financial Group, Inc. is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PFG. For more information, visit www.principal.com
