Sensible Financial uses tested techniques and data to do financial planning and investment management:

• For financial planning – ESPlanner software developed by Boston University economist Larry Kotlikoff. Kotlikoff is a nationally recognized expert on Social Security and retirement saving, and has testified before the U.S. Congress on both subjects.
• For asset allocation – New Frontier Advisors software. New Frontier has patented its asset allocation technology, and Nobel Prize winner Harry Markowitz has conceded its superiority to the technique he developed. New Frontier Advisors founder Richard Michaud is a well-known critic of traditional techniques.
• For market and mutual fund data – Ibbotson Associates market data and security classification software and Morningstar Principia for Mutual Funds. Roger Ibbotson is a pioneer in assessing the risk and return performance of asset classes. Morningstar is a pre-eminent provider of mutual fund data. Morningstar recently acquired Ibbotson Associates.