The Retirement Income Industry Association Announces Award for Achievement in Applied Retirement Research

Boston, MA (June 24, 2009) The Retirement Income Industry Association (RIIA) recently named Laurence J. Kotlikoff, Professor of Economics at Boston University, as the winner of the association’s award for Achievement in Applied Retirement Research, announced Francois Gadenne, Chairman and Executive Director of RIIA.

According to Gil Weinreich, editor of Research Magazine and RIIA Award Committee Chair, Kotlikoff was selected as the recipient of this prestigious award in recognition of his scholarly and applied research which has truly influenced the field of retirement income management and financial planning.

"Professor Kotlikoff richly deserves this award. He has not confined his research to the quiet libraries of academe. He has been active in the arenas of public policy and personal planning as they affect financial
professionals and individual investors," said Weinreich.

In addition to consulting with national and international organizations, governments, and companies on economic issues, Kotlikoff is the author or co-author of 13 books and hundreds of articles on topics including deficits, tax accounting, social security, Medicare, pensions, savings, insurance, health reform and personal finance. Most recently, he coauthored a book with Scott Burns entitled Spend ‘Till The End.

Previous winners of the award are Moshe Milevsky (in 2008), Executive Director of The IFID Centre and associate professor at York University, and Boston University Professor Zvi Bodie (in 2007).

Kotlikoff will receive the award at RIIA’s Annual Meeting and Awards Dinner, October 5 – 6, 2009 at the Hyatt Harborside Hotel in Boston. This event is open to RIIA members and non-members alike and the theme for 2009 is: “Traditional Retirement Planning Failed; Why Will a New Approach Work?” Participants will have a one-of-a-kind opportunity to preview, review and discuss the new RIIA Advisory Process, a unique “Across the Silos” advisory approach which offers a broader, more comprehensive process for advisors and companies to follow in helping investors through the “new normal” of today’s retirement income and management challenges. For more information about the Annual Meeting and Awards Dinner, please contact Deborah Burkholder, 617-342-7390, staff@riia-usa.org.

About the Retirement Income Industry Association (www.riia-usa.org)
RIIA’s mission as a national not-for-profit organization is to bring the retirement income industry together with a “View Across Silos” to develop the products, processes and advisory services Americans need to create a secure retirement. Because RIIA members span the entire industry, they create a forum for sharing the freshest outlooks, the most modern thinking, the latest research and the newest product development within the realm of retirement income. This unique view provides investors and advisors with unbiased perspectives on key retirement income issues.

Media Contact: Susan Chanley, sbumsteadchanley@comcast.net, 781-587-0115