Why Partner with Retirement Plan Administrators

Matt is recognized for his strategic focus, vision and judgment gained during 20 years of progressively responsible experience in the retirement plan industry. He is a graduate of Western Illinois University and holds a Bachelor of Business degree in Marketing and is a member of several professional organizations including the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA), National Institute of Pension Administrators (NIPA), and National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (NAPEO).

As the old saying goes, “Love what you do and do what you love.” These words hold true for Michelle. Since entering the retirement service industry in 2000, Michelle has happily laid down deep roots and grown her career with The Retirement Advantage (TRA) for nearly 17 years. She is passionate about and dedicated to finding the most efficient workflow to guarantee client needs are met with full satisfaction.

In her role as Vice President of Operations, Michelle is responsible for directing and controlling activities for various departments to ensure effective policies and procedures are in place and contribute to TRA’s, and their client’s, success, profitability and retention goals.

Chad is a seasoned accountant with more than 18 years of experience and is a licensed CPA in the state of Wisconsin. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with several different degrees, including a Bachelors of Business Administration in Accounting in 2003, a Masters of Accountancy in 2004 and a Masters of Business Administration in 2014. Prior to joining TRA in 2021, he was a director of accounting and reporting for a global manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, WI, a manager of external and internal reporting for a retailer headquartered in Menomonee Falls, WI and was a senior accountant at PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Milwaukee location.

At TRA, Chad oversees all aspects of accounting, billing and collections, budgeting, reporting and financial analysis. Passionate about providing clear and accurate billings for TRA’s services, Chad and his team are always available to answer any questions our plan sponsors may have regarding their fee schedules or invoices and assisting to resolve any issues they may have.

Outside of the Office:

Outside of work, Chad can be found at one of the many great microbreweries around Wisconsin, playing golf and basketball, spending time with family and friends and going to as many Badgers, Packers, Brewers and Bucks games as he can.

As TRA’s Director of Sales and Distribution, Erdmann leads a dynamic team of Regional Plan Consultants (RPC’s), Internal Plan Consultants (IPC’s), Business Development and Marketing professionals. Their primary focus is on expanding TRA’s client base by providing exceptional consulting services to our valued record keeping partners’ wholesalers, retirement plan advisors, and their plan sponsor clients and prospects.

Prior to this role, Erdmann has been in the industry the past twenty-three years, eleven of them with TRA as an RSC covering Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and S. California.  An exceptionally skilled Plan Design Consultant, Erdmann has honed his craft in both sales and support roles.  He currently holds his Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist (CRPS) and Cash Balance Consultant (CBC) designations and resides in Las Vegas, NV with his wife Deb for the past 20 years.

Annie’s career in Human Resources started in Chicago with Morningstar, Inc., after graduating from the University of Dayton with a Bachelors of Arts Degree in Communications Management, and a double minor in Marketing and English. With a desire to experience multiple aspects of the Human Resources field she accepted a Benefits Administrator and then Manager position with UPSHOT, a marketing agency in Chicago, focusing mainly on benefit administration, management of on boarding of new employees, payroll, and management of the facilities and office administration staff. From there, she held an Associate Manager position with a media agency, Mindshare, where her responsibilities focused on recruiting, benefit administration, management of the internship program and creation of a corporate work life balance program.

After that Annie decided to take her show on the road, move to Wisconsin, and joined TRA in 2004 where she is currently our Director of Human Resources. She is a responsible for all things Human Resources related, including benefits administration, employee relations, recruiting and hiring, and strategically supporting TRA in any way possible.

Career Achievements and credentials:

• Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) from HR Certification Institute
• SHRM Certified Professional (SHRM-CP) from Society for Human Resources Management

Outside of the Office:

Annie loves spending time with friends and family, traveling, skiing and reading. She is also enjoys spending time volunteering with Special Olympics.

Carrie began her career in the retirement industry straight out of college.  She got her feet wet by servicing some of the largest Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) with Principal Financial Group for just shy of 8 years.  In 2014, Carrie decided to make a change and move into the 401(k) side of things and came aboard with TRA.  Carrie’s experience has exposed her to many different types of plans and she is passionate about helping companies and individuals be successful in their retirement.

Carrie is currently our Director of Plan Services.  In this role, Carrie is responsible for overseeing our Plan Implementation, Document Services and Processing Departments.  Carrie is responsible for ensuring seamless on-boarding and delivering an exceptional customer service experience.

Career achievements and credentials:

• QKA^® designation from ASPPA
• Series 7 (not active)

Outside of the Office:

When Carrie is not in the office she enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading and going “up north” to enjoy the outdoors.

Charlie has 21 years of experience within the retirement plan industry. He is passionate about making sure the client’s needs to have a successful retirement plan are met and that all involved in the plan can plan a solid retirement future.

In his role as the Director of Plan Administration, Charlie is responsible for overseeing the entire Plan Administration area. Both the Plan Administration Manager, Client Relations and the Plan Administration Manager, Production will be reporting directly to Charlie. Charlie will be tasked with forging stronger relationships and communication between the two areas, ensuring we are functioning as one team with one goal. He will also be dedicating his time to bringing higher degrees of efficiencies to the areas, taking TRA to that next level of servicing.

When Charlie is not at work he can be found using his analytical skills determining the correct angle to place a 9-iron shot on the green at a local golf course or determining what angles to use in setting up his tent while out camping and enjoying nature whenever possible.

Mark has been working in the IT field since the Y2K bug and has always had a passion for technology since first honing in his baby rattle skills. He has a well-rounded background with experience in help desk, servers, storage, networking, IT consulting, and management. He is always looking for ways that IT can better serve TRA and our clients. Outside of work Mark can often be found contemplating what came first, the power on button or the power off button.

Mary has held a variety of roles within management for over thirty years. Her career began in the Mortgage Banking industry and transitioned to the insurance industry. Mary’s passion for people and drive to provide excellent customer service is what motivates her every day.  In her role as the Director of Client Services, Mary is responsible for the successful relationships and delivery of exceptional service to all of our plan sponsors and advisors.

Career achievements & Credentials:

• Series 6 & 26 registered (not active)

When Mary is not in the office she enjoys spending time with her eight grandkids!  She lives in the country in the state of Indiana with her husband of 37 years, two spoiled dogs and chickens.  She loves the outdoors and has a passion for camping, fishing, hunting, gardening, cooking, baking and decorating cakes.

Amy is the Assistant Director of Onboarding and Plan Design at The Retirement Advantage, Inc (TRA). In her role, she is responsible for leading both the Plan Implementation and Plan Documents team.  The specialists on her teams are responsible for guiding plan sponsors and advisors in setting up or transitioning qualified retirement plans over to TRA Administration through focused onboarding and plan design services.  Amy focuses her time between coaching and developing her team members and continually improving processes and collaboration between her teams, and both internal and external partners, to provide an exceptional client experience for all TRA clients.

With over 20 years of experience in the retirement plan industry, Amy began her career with TRA in 2013. Amy quickly advanced and has worked as a Team Leader for both the Client Service and Production Teams, Plan Administration Manager, Client Services, and served as Plan Implementation Manager prior to transitioning to her current role of Assistant Director of Onboarding and Plan Design.

Since earning her Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance and Business Administration from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania in 1996, as well as obtaining her QKA designation from ASPPA, Amy has provided a variety of retirement plan services for both Defined Contribution and Defined Benefit Plans.

Jenny has more than 10 years of experience within the retirement plan industry. She is dedicated in making sure the client’s needs to have a successful retirement plan are met so that all involved can plan for the retirement they strive for.

In her role as the Plan Administration Manager, Jenny is responsible for making sure the team provides timely and accurate reporting as efficiently as possible. Jenny is always looking for ways to improve our processes to achieve these goals.

When Jenny is not at work she is spending time with her family and friends along with traveling whenever possible.

Corey joined TRA in 2024, bringing with him 17 years of experience working in the Retirement Services industry.  He has a well-rounded background as he has worked in various capacities and had led teams within Contact Center and Back Office Operations, Training & Development, and Onboarding & Hiring.  Prior to joining TRA, Corey was most recently an Operations Manager with Prudential Financial.  As the Manager of the Processing and Fiduciary Services teams at TRA, Corey is responsible for delivering an exceptional customer experience through the timely delivery of customer requests.

Corey graduated from Marywood University with a Bachelors Degree in Business Management and a Masters Degree in Business Administration.

Career Achievements and Credentials:

FINRA Series 6, 63 & 26 licenses (Inactive)

Corey currently lives in Pennsylvania with his wife, 3 kids and 2 dogs.  When he’s not at work, he enjoys spending time with his family and rooting for the New York Yankees and New York Giants.

As TRA’s Integration & Organization Development Manager, Chris is responsible for the alignment and integration of new clients, people and data into our organization that come to TRA through our disciplined acquisition strategy.  Chris is also responsible for the training and development programs designed to consistently on-board our new employees and develop them to a mastery level within their respective roles.

Chris has been in the retirement plan industry since 2000. Over the years, his responsibilities have included, product development, process management, managing service delivery, on-boarding/educating employees, and achieving aggressive business development goals. With all his diverse experience, Chris is highly focused with aligning his activities to ensure we have the appropriate processes and infrastructure in place to drive successful outcomes for our clients, advisors and employees.

When Chris is not at work, he is likely spending time with his two beautiful granddaughters, travelling and trying to pick up a new leisure activity, like golf; but, realizes quickly some things are left to people with athletic ability.

Bio and picture coming soon.

India has more than 13 years of experience in managerial accounting and finance. She graduated from Lakeland College with a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting and a Master of Business Administration. She holds a Certified Management Accountant (CMA®) designation from the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) and is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Green Belt (with statistics) through Juran Institute. Prior to joining TRA in 2016, she worked for a global business process outsourcer in a variety of accounting and finance roles supporting a Fortune 100 client. India has extensive experience with budgeting, forecasting, financial analysis, process improvement, and financial system setup and integration.

At TRA, India oversees accounts receivable and financial planning and analysis functions. She enjoys working with a team of dedicated and enthusiastic people who believe in consistently providing great customer service to both internal and external customers.

Outside of the office, India enjoys reading, genealogical pursuits, strategy games, spending time with her husband and friends, and watching hockey.

Jennette started her leadership career serving as a non-commissioned officer in the US Army Reserves. In the last 14 years, she has held a variety of service industry management roles. Jennette worked in telecommunications then transitioned to the insurance industry.

There are two things that Jennette is passionate about: people and process/performance improvement. In her role as Client Service Manager, Jennette is responsible for driving outstanding client service and performance improvement by managing the change process to achieve intended organizational and cultural outcomes.

When Jennette is not at work she enjoys spending time with friends and family (especially her young son and dog), traveling and dancing.

Kelli began her career in retirement plan administration in 2003.    She is currently a Manager of Client Services at The Retirement Advantage, Inc (TRA). During her tenure at TRA, she has previously served as a Client Relationship Manager (CRM) and a Client Services Team Lead. In her current role as Manager of Client Services, Kelli is responsible for leading and developing a team of Client Relationship Managers.  The team strives for providing excellent customer service and constant improvement in the client experience.

Kelli’s career achievements and credentials include:

• Bachelor of Business Administration from Mississippi State University
• QKA^® designation from ASPPA
• CompTIA Project Manager Certification

Kelli currently lives in West Tennessee with her husband, two children and two Labrador Retrievers.  When she’s not carting her son to and from the baseball field, she enjoys reading, listening to music, and following all modes of Mississippi State University sports.

Michelle obtained her Bachelor in Business Administration with a major in Accounting from San Diego State University and has over 25 years of accounting experience.  Prior to joining TRA in 2019, she worked for a local CPA firm for seventeen years after acquiring seven years of accounting experience in the newspaper industry.  Michelle has a strong background in budgeting and financial statement preparation, inter-company transactions, conversion to cash basis, tax return preparation and financial analysis.

At TRA, Michelle oversees a team of five employees performing accounting functions including accounts payable, general ledger, payroll, billing, accounts receivable and collections.  She is excited and privileged to work with such a dedicated and cohesive group of team members.

Outside of work Michelle enjoys many hobbies and active outdoor pursuits, with traveling, golf, hiking, and watersports at the top of her list.  She is a proud mother of three daughters, and is also now loving being a grandmother to two girls and a boy.

As Marketing and Communications Director, Bill Sunagel is responsible for developing and executing all of TRA’s communication and marketing initiatives. Bill plays a vital role in the development of TRA’s short and long term marketing strategies, aligned across all departments and phases of the business. Bill is also accountable for positioning TRA’s growth strategy, cultivating opportunities in new and existing customer markets, and growing demand for TRA’s products/services. In addition, Bill oversees TRA’s multi-channel marketing plan for sales support, customer acquisition, customer retention, customer loyalty, PR, web management and lead generation. Furthermore, he will ensure the TRA brand is communicated clearly and consistently by TRA associates to our clients and partners.

Bill has 19 plus years of B-2-B and B-2-C marketing experience; with various positions including Marketing Director, Internet Marketing (SEM), Graphic Design and Public Relations. Bill has unique combination of creativity and analytical skills with the ability to assess both vantage points to create desirable solutions. Bill holds a Bachelor’s degree in Communication with emphasis in Public Relations from Marian University in Fond du Lac, WI.

Outside of the Office:

Bill enjoys spending time with family and friends, coaching/playing hockey, skiing, fishing, snorkeling, mountain biking and pretty much anything outdoors.