How do you bring AI into retirement services without sacrificing accuracy, trust, or compliance?

In this episode of Decoding Growth, host Will Press sits down with David Levine, founder of Plan Port and principal at Groom Law Group, to explore how AI can support—not replace—human expertise in the retirement and financial services industry.

David shares his journey from tech enthusiast to legal expert to FinTech founder and breaks down how Plan Port acts as middleware, integrating with existing systems instead of disrupting them. Together, they discuss the real challenges facing TPAs, recordkeepers, and advisors, including staffing constraints, rising complexity, and the pressure to modernize responsibly.

If you’re navigating AI adoption in a regulated industry—or building technology for professionals who demand accuracy—this conversation is packed with practical insights and hard‑earned lessons.

🔑 What You’ll Learn:

Why accuracy matters more than speed in AI‑driven financial tools

How AI can close staffing and knowledge gaps without replacing people

What TPAs should ask before buying new retirement technology

The role of middleware in modern FinTech ecosystems

How founders can integrate into established infrastructure

Where AI fits—and where humans must stay in control

📌 Who this episode is for:

TPAs, recordkeepers, advisors, FinTech builders, founders, and anyone interested in the future of AI in retirement services.

👉 Subscribe for more conversations on growth, technology, and building durable businesses.

#AI #FinTech #RetirementServices #RetirementTech

#ArtificialIntelligence #FinancialServices #B2BFinTech

#SaaS #WealthTech #TPA #Recordkeepers

#HumanInTheLoop #DigitalTransformation

#PlanPort #DecodingGrowth #Podcast

The retirement industry keeps talking about convergence.

Lori Hardwick breaks down what it actually takes to make it real.

This conversation cuts straight into the structural issues—America’s savings gap, advisor confidence, platform integrations, valuation pressures, and the technology finally capable of scaling access. Lori brings decades of experience as an operator, board member, and founder to explain why this moment is different, what’s newly possible, and where firms are still holding themselves back.

You will hear what most leaders learn only after expensive trial and error:

• 00:00 — The real retirement access crisis in America
• 04:20 — The savings gap, Social Security challenges & bipartisan urgency
• 08:45 — Why wealth advisors hesitate: risk, regulation & confidence
• 12:30 — The time-management dilemma: 25 employees, one advisor
• 15:50 — The Sater model: specialists, referrals & shared revenue
• 20:55 — Swell’s turnkey infrastructure & chatbot-powered onboarding
• 25:10 — Tech rails: the new path from payroll → recordkeeper → asset mgmt
• 29:35 — Emergency savings, student-loan matching & plan design innovation
• 34:18 — What retirement can learn from wealth—and vice versa
• 37:45 — Where retire-tech platforms can plug in
• 41:20 — Early-stage founders vs. enterprise due diligence reality
• 45:12 — Riding the rails: integrations with Orion, InvestNet, Pershing
• 49:05 — Founder traits: execution vs. ideas
• 53:25 — Build, buy, or partner? Lori’s framework from inside the big firms
• 56:12 — The legacy tech debt problem nobody wants to talk about
• 01:00:40 — How firms can modernize without breaking the enterprise
• 01:03:50 — Final challenge: who will actually bridge the gap?
• 
  

This isn’t industry commentary.

It’s a strategic field guide for enterprises, advisors, founders, and retirement innovators who want to bridge the gap without burning years—or budgets—doing it the hard way.

If this episode gave you a new lens on convergence and growth:

👍 Hit like

🔔 Subscribe for more conversations that cut through the noise

💬 Tell us the insight that hit home for you

🔗 Share this with someone who needs a clearer view of where the industry is headed

#RetirementTech #WealthManagement #Fintech #FinancialInnovation #AdvisorGrowth #DigitalTransformation #FutureOfFinance #401k #RetirementPlans #SaaS

Welcome to Decoding Growth, where unfiltered conversations and bold ideas are reshaping retirement. In this episode, hosts Lisa Kottler and Will Press sit down with Dan Beck, co-founder and CEO of 401GO, to explore how innovation, empathy, and a customer-first mindset are transforming the small business retirement market.

While others talk about serving small employers, Dan and his team are actually doing it. From tackling legacy systems to designing technology that reduces friction and humanizes finance, this episode breaks down what it truly means to modernize an industry that’s been slow to evolve.

If you’ve ever wondered why so many small businesses still struggle to offer 401(k) plans — and what it takes to fix that — this conversation is your roadmap.

⏱ Timestamps

00:00 – Welcome to Decoding Growth: The new playbook for retirement innovation

00:33 – Introducing Dan Beck, co-founder and CEO of 401GO

01:40 – From e-commerce to fintech: Dan’s journey into retirement innovation

03:08 – The origin story: when solving his own 401(k) problem sparked a startup

05:20 – Why curiosity drives entrepreneurship and change

07:14 – Lessons from e-commerce: reducing friction and building better experiences

10:08 – Understanding the small business pain point — why complexity kills adoption

13:22 – How 401GO’s “own the friction” philosophy reshapes advisor relationships

16:18 – Building for small businesses: empathy over industry jargon

18:45 – Real-life impact: helping employees save their first dollar

21:10 – Human design + tech innovation: the secret to long-term engagement

25:04 – Redefining advisor partnerships and distribution models

29:28 – Why automation and relationships must coexist

32:00 – The danger of legacy thinking and the power of outside perspective

35:46 – Bootstrapping vs. venture capital: building for growth with integrity

38:25 – Lessons on innovation from startups and legacy firms

42:14 – How big companies and fintechs can collaborate instead of compete

46:00 – Innovation inside risk-averse industries: how to make it work

50:27 – The mindset shift: experimentation, autonomy, and innovation

55:19 – What incumbents can learn from startups — and vice versa

59:00 – The surprising truth: this industry wants to change

1:02:00 – Closing reflections: curiosity, empathy, and the future of 401(k)s

💡 Key Takeaways

• “Own the friction” — make complexity your responsibility, not your client’s.

• Real innovation starts with solving real problems, not chasing shiny tech.

• Empathy + automation = sustainable business transformation.

• Small businesses deserve better access, clarity, and care in financial services.

• The retirement industry is ready to evolve — it just needs better tools.

🔔 Join the Movement

If this episode inspired you:

✅ Subscribe to Decoding Growth for more unfiltered conversations on innovation.

💬 Comment your biggest takeaway — how do you “own the friction” in your business?

📢 Share this episode with a colleague ready to rethink how retirement works.

Because innovation isn’t about technology — it’s about courage, curiosity, and care. 💬🚀