Meet the Team

About

A financial services professional with a broad background in retirement plan compliance, design, and administration solutions, Paul Kociuruba brings more than 25 years of retirement plan experience to PenChecks Trust®. Having previously served in positions involving sales and consulting, direct investment advisory services, and back-office operational and administrative responsibilities, Paul is expertly positioned to help employers devise qualified and non-qualified solutions for today’s complex fiduciary and retirement plan liabilities. Prior to joining PenChecks Trust, Paul served in Vice President and Regional Director capacities for two national TPA firms, providing progressive sales and consulting ideas and working with plan sponsors, advisors, and financial intermediaries to maximize benefits and minimize costs.

A former owner of his own financial advisory firm, Paul graduated from Baldwin Wallace University with a BA in Business Administration. He is married with two adult daughters, and enjoys sports, outdoor activities, and spending time with family and friends.

Executive Profile

In today’s high-tech world, it seems that more and more people are becoming specialists who focus on a narrow area of expertise. Not so with Paul, who brings a well-rounded background to his position as Regional Director, having worked in many different areas of the retirement plan industry. Given the different needs of PenChecks Trust’s diverse client base, Paul’s broad-based experience is proving to be a real asset when devising appropriate solutions to meet those needs.

Paul started his career in the retirement plan industry as an advisor, assisting plan participants with their retirement plan decisions. From there he transitioned to helping plan sponsors and business owners resolve issues with their company-sponsored plans. During the next phase of his career, Paul worked with large institutions in the areas of plan administration and regulatory compliance, helping them provide better service to their clients. Since joining PenChecks Trust in April 2018, his broad background and experience are proving to be a real asset in working with the firm’s diverse client base.

“I joined PenChecks Trust for several reasons,” says Paul. “I liked their focus on the distribution side of the industry. Most companies in the retirement plan space focus primarily on accumulating and growing the assets. PenChecks is all about distributing the assets, which a lot of companies don’t do very efficiently or cost-effectively. We provide much-needed relief to many of the problems surrounding distributions, such as uncashed checks and unresponsive participants. I also like the fact that we help reunite people with their retirement money.”

Helping Clients Offload Unproductive Work

As Regional Director, Paul sees his primary responsibilities as helping PenChecks Trust’s clients solve problems, particularly those related to improving workforce efficiencies, productivity and margins. His consultative approach, combined with his holistic background, enable him to understand the unique challenges of each client so he can personalize the services and solutions he recommends to meet their needs.

What Does Paul See as an Emerging Trend in the Industry?

“These days, you see a lot more plans terminating as a generation of business owners gets ready to retire or sell their companies,” he says. “Many of the administration firms servicing them are glad to learn they can turn the entire termination distribution process over to PenChecks Trust and take a lot of time-consuming work that doesn’t generate any revenue off their plates. I find it very rewarding to be able to help clients free up more time to work on serving their clients and growing their companies.”

Born and raised in the Midwest, Paul loves the outdoors. His current home on the outskirts of Canton, Ohio has an expansive rear view that overlooks cornfields and stately pine trees. With plenty of hiking trails nearby, he regularly sets out on them for a moderate jog and hopes to find more time for fishing in nearby freshwaters.

Active in his church and local community, Paul has two adult daughters but no grandkids yet. He enjoys studying the World War II era, and occasionally unwinds with an old Robert Ludlum (creator of the Jason Bourne series) spy novel. The best advice Paul ever received? “Character is doing the right thing even when no one is looking.” Anyone who knows Paul would agree that he uses the adage as a guiding principle for his business career and his life.

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