If you're not currently offering a retirement plan as part of your employee's benefit package, you may want to reconsider. The benefits to both the employees and your business' bottom line may make the offering worth the effort.

So where is a small business owner to begin? As a start, here are five options:

The Simplified Employee Pension Plan (SEP IRA) - This is a great option for a business with only a handful of employees who wants to provide a low cost, low maintenance plan. The plan is funded with tax-deductible employer contributions, and you must cover all eligible employees. Employee contributions are not allowed. With a SEP, an IRS form is the "plan document" and you don't need to file annual reports with the IRS. Contributions can vary from year to year. So if you hit a lean spell, you aren't locked in.

Savings Incentive Match Plan (SIMPLE IRA) - This is an even better option for employees because they are allowed to make contributions to their own IRA. Of course with every positive comes a negative. The employer must either match 100% of the employee contributions up to 3%, or 2% of each employee's compensation . Also, the employer contribution to his/her own IRA is capped at $10,000 for 2005 ($12,000 if over age 50) with a 3% maximum employer match.

Profit Sharing Plan - This type of plan is a great way to boost morale and encourage employee interest in the organization because they in effect become beneficiaries of the company's success by sharing in the profits. Beware that although an annual contribution is not required, employees will come to 'expect' their annual profit sharing and morale can crash rapidly in a down year when profits are not as good and contributions are not made. Like a SEP, the plan may provide for flexibility in terms of contributions.

401(k)-The 401(k) can provide investment options, levels of vesting that can also help to build loyalty and employee retention, and relatively low management fees for the company.

Defined Benefit Plan-Not as out of fashion as you might think, the Defined Benefit Plan may be a good fit for the older business owner (50+) looking toward retirement. Often established as a Keogh plan, the Defined Benefit Plan can receive substantial owner contributions as a quick way to stash away those retirement dollars in a limited time horizon. There are drawbacks since the plans are expensive to maintain and require annual contributions. If you cannot make a commitment to the requirements, it may be best to look at another option.

So take a deep breath, consider your business vision and talk with your Fiducial advisor about what steps are best for you. To learn more visit www.fiducial.com.

About Fiducial: Fiducial is an international provider of professional business and financial services to small businesses and individuals. Established in Europe in 1970, Fiducial entered the U.S. market in 1999 through a series of strategic acquisitions and now serves clients nationwide through a network of more than 500 company-owned and franchise offices. Privately held with global revenues of more than $1.2 billion, the company is the thirteenth largest accounting firm in the world and the twenty-fifth largest in the country.

For more information, visit www.fiducial.com.