Any other business: In the technology world, a recently unearthed speech by Steve Jobs in 1983 predicting the world dominance of the personal computer is clear evidence of the Apple co-founder’s vision.
He predicted a computer that could be put in a book that could be carried around and would take only 20 minutes to learn how to use – and this was before the release of the first Macintosh desktop the following year.
One downside [with tablet] is you can only look at one document at a time. With paper you can shuffle between one page and the next.
Nita Tinn, ITS
The dominance of the tablet as a boardroom tool now seems an obvious successor to the arduous meeting pack, but the speed of its take-up has been surprisingly fast.
Many pension scheme trustees have taken to them as an alternative to carrying a stack of papers, while management have rubbed their hands at the cost savings to be made after the initial outlay.
But balancing out the utility of an entire scheme document library at your fingertips are the limitations of the medium, and the fact that it will take some trustees longer than 20 minutes to work them out.
Steven Robson, head of pensions at United Utilities, said it did not make the use of iPads compulsory, but about three-quarters of its trustees currently use them.
A particular advantage was being able to refer to previous decisions and materials during the course of discussion, he said, adding: “You are not going to carry around the last five meeting packs in paper but you can easily have them on the iPad.”
At the utility company scheme’s board meetings Robson still prints out the agenda, as it is constantly referred back to. Trustees can chose to print or download the meeting pack prior to a session.
Weighing up a shift
John Paradise, member-nominated trustee at St Andrew’s Healthcare Pension Scheme, said its trustee board was still paper-based, though he has previously suggested becoming paperless.
“There is a cost issue; someone has to print all the stuff and it has to be posted to everyone’s home as well. Then you have the problem [about] what do you do with it afterwards.”
But he added it was a challenge for the scheme given its elder members are less familiar with tablet devices.
Nita Tinn, director at independent trustee company ITS, said tablets were a “wonderful” alternative to having to “cart around” swathes of papers, and more of the boards on which she sits are going paper-free.
But she added: “One downside is you can only look at one document at a time. With paper you can shuffle between one page and the next.” There are, though, apps that allow you to scroll between files.
Those worried about security can also buy covers for their screens to keep sensitive information away from prying eyes. “People can leave them on trains but then people can leave meeting packs on trains as well,” Tinn said.
Avgi Gregory, director at governance consultancy Muse Advisory, said tablets provided efficient access to historic and current information, but needed certain security safeguards.
“If they lose an iPad the board should have the capability of deleting completely whatever is on the iPad for security purposes,” she said.
