All Trustees articles – Page 31
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Opinion
Why trustees should pull together to focus on what matters
The Pareto principle states that 80 per cent of effects come from 20 per cent of the causes. In management terms this means a fraction of your efforts could have disproportionate outcomes.
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Opinion
Buchanan: Lay trustees play an often unenviable but critical role
Since I first became a pensions lawyer more than 23 years ago, the level of complexity of pensions has increased both in terms of legislation but also the case law set by judges – a recent IBM judgment exceeded 600 pages in length.
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Opinion
Regulator: Scammers continue to evolve, we will too
As we highlighted in last summer's cross-government campaign, scheme members are being ripped off and face losing all or most of their savings as a result of scams that promise instant cash and high returns on investments.
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Opinion
Does Saudi Arabia's succession planning put your scheme to shame?
Industry experts have warned that schemes are not putting enough thought into what would happen should they need to replace their trustee chair or pension director, leaving themselves open to administrative risk.
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News
Uncertainty on IGC detail as providers get ready for April
Pension scheme providers are gearing up ahead of the April deadline to create independent governance committees, but are eagerly awaiting further details on how the arrangements will be run.
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Opinion
How to run a beauty parade to find the best adviser for your scheme
Any other business: The time comes when every scheme needs to hire new advisers. But in an industry with such a diverse range of skills, how can you be sure you are hiring the right one?
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Opinion
We have the ombudsman cases we wanted – but they provide cold comfort
When the pensions ombudsman published its first determination on a pensions liberation case late last year, I blogged that the key cases for schemes would be where trustees had blocked suspect transfers. The first few of those have now been made public.
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Opinion
Mixing it up: how added diversity could boost trustee board results
The global workforce is more diverse today culturally, ethnically, by gender, faith, sexual orientation and age group – and the pace of change is accelerating.
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Opinion
Does your scheme lack a 2015 strategy?
Any other business: Most schemes lack a set strategy for the new year, governance experts say, as the industry turns its attention to the challenges of the next 12 months.
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News
Latest IORP revision ditches 'professional' qualification requirement for trustees
The latest revision of the European Commission pensions directive has removed a contentious requirement for trustees to have a "professional" qualification – reigniting debate in the industry on the merits of a minimum standard of training.
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Features
Off on a Christmas jolly? How to keep on the safe side of industry hospitality
Whether the 'good old days' of corporate hospitality provided important relationship building, or were symbolic of an overly cosy relationship between pension funds and their providers, the consensus is that times have changed.
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Opinion
Five tips for any new pension scheme trustee
Any other business: The governance burden on pension fund trustees becomes heavier by the day, making it difficult to believe why anyone would be such a glutton for punishment as to take on the role. Here are five tips for the brave new trustee.
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Opinion
Trustee education: can training be engaging and insightful?
US president Thomas Jefferson said: "To penetrate and dissipate these clouds of darkness, the general mind must be strengthened by education." This has never been more pertinent to schemes.
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Opinion
Issuing a 'trustee P45' – is firing scheme reps ever justifiable?
Any other business: Going against the grain is not necessarily a bad thing in a trustee; in fact it can be a necessary part of acting in members’ best interests.
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Opinion
Learning from Pimco: Has your scheme got a key-man risk?
Asset manager Pimco has been making headlines for the past week after the departure of chief investment officer Bill Gross, the so-called bond king.
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Opinion
With ALM gizmos, are we seeing the gamification of pensions data?
Any other business: Gamification, according to Gabe Zicherman, a technology guru and chair of GSummit, is “the process of using game thinking and game dynamics to engage audiences and solve problems”.
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News
Smaller schemes combine service provision to reduce legacy burden
Leading benefit consultancies have reported more small to medium-sized schemes are bundling services under a single provider in response to a growth in legacy arrangements and to benefit from economies of scale.
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News
The Pensions Trust takes names off ballot to reduce bias
The Pensions Trust has anonymised its trustee board elections in a controversial attempt to create a more diverse board, as schemes work to improve representation on male-dominated governance bodies.
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News
Risk management key trustee challenge as complexity criticised
An industry survey has shown understanding risk is the biggest challenge for defined benefit pension scheme trustees, sparking debate over whether trustees need more sophistication, or whether scheme choices need simplifying.
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Opinion
Does your trustee board have a women problem?
Any other business: The prime minister is not the only one facing questions over diversity. A quick glance around the pensions industry shows white, middle-aged men make up the majority of trustee boards.