Automatic features such as target date funds leave some of the largest decisions in retirement unresolved, according to new research from Allspring Global Investments. InvestmentNews reported on Oct. 13 that participants want guidance on income and rollovers, and not only automated portfolio construction.
Allspring released the study, titled The Retirement Decisions Defaults Can't Address, on Oct. 12, according to the firm's announcement on PR Newswire. The announcement said DCIIA's Retirement Research Center fielded the survey from June 25 through July 6, 2026, and that it reached 1,510 U.S. adults.
Respondents were split nearly evenly between two groups: 752 near-retirees averaging 62 years old and 758 retirees averaging 71. Per the announcement, each household had at least $200,000 in investable assets.
The income findings pull in two directions. Allspring said close to a third of participants want guaranteed retirement income, yet 70% of respondents said access and control are just as important to them as protection of income. For a working advisor, that suggests clients may not simply accept a product that gives up flexibility for certainty, and that the trade-off needs to be talked through.
On target date funds, Allspring reported that over half of the near-retirees surveyed hold at least part of their assets in them, while use falls sharply among respondents who are already retired. That pattern suggests defaults do their job while people save, then lose ground once drawdown begins.
The research also sorted respondents into three retirement success personas. According to Allspring, 45% prioritize safety, predictability and access, 35% focus on real return, and 20% lean toward tax efficiency. Those splits point away from a single default approach to income that would suit most participants.
A report on the study carried by Middletown Life Magazine said participants who work with a professional adviser are more likely to move their savings out of the plan. That leaves sponsors with a choice between keeping participants in the plan through retirement and helping them move out.
Allspring is a global asset manager headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The firm describes itself as having $642 billion in assets under advisement, according to its announcement.