Veteran professional David Butcher has just taken on a new dual role as a member of the master trust board and independent governance committee at Scottish Widows, moving from Legal & General’s master trust board.
After a degree in philosophy, politics and economics from Keele University, his first foot on the financial ladder was as a pensions inspector with L&G.
“It was long before we had any regulations on cold calling, I was literally knocking on doors and selling pensions,” he says.
I think there is a bit too much distance between the output of the IGC and the customers themselves. Bridging that gap is going to be a top priority in the next few years
David Butcher, Scottish Widows
Mr Butcher’s LinkedIn profile is a litany of top jobs, stretching over 48 years and including roles at BlackRock, Invesco Perpetual, Credit Lyonnais Asset Management and Save & Prosper. His favourite role was probably at Invesco Perpetual, where he set up a new defined contribution business from scratch.
“I was literally on my own at the beginning and so I set up the life assurance company, and I recruited the board of directors and developed the business, so that was a very exciting time.”
He is also proud of his time on the board of BlackRock and L&G, and also chairing the Optimum Health Clinic Foundation charity for seven years. It specialises in treatment and research for people suffering from chronic fatigue and myalgic encephalomyelitis and related conditions.
It was not his intention to leave L&G, “but to be offered both the master trust board role and become a member of an IGC with Scottish Widows was a great opportunity”. 
He continues: “I see my role as delivering best practice governance, while at the same time helping them grow into becoming a leading master trust player. With the people they have got, the culture they have, the backing of Lloyds Bank, Scottish Widows has a very bright future.”
Mr Butcher believes master trusts of the future need to become much more strategic, much more focused on outcomes, and in order to do that they need to become far more proactive.
He also thinks consolidation is far from finished in the sector. “On a five to 10-year view it could be down to 15 to 20. On a 10-year view it could be down to 10.”
With his other hat on, he is a believer in the role of IGCs, which he considers being “a force for good”. However, he considers these bodies need to focus more on outcomes.
“IGCs need to focus much more on how they access value for money and need to be a bit more precise and specific about that,” he says.
“I think there is a bit too much distance between the output of the IGC and the customers themselves. Bridging that gap is going to be a top priority in the next few years.”
After 48 years, Mr Butcher remains highly motivated: “I enjoy using my skills and experience to help growing businesses. When I am using my mind and skills I feel engaged, so I have no plans to slow down at all.”
However, he harbours the ambition of playing the drums in a blues band again: “I have done it before. I had a few years when I set up a new band — we were in various clubs and bars in central London. I had a huge amount of fun,” he notes.
Nevertheless, his main beat will always be financial.
