Involved in pensions? You’re Invited to Join the new Smarter Pensions Summit
Are YOU involved in improving pension scheme arrangements? Do you work with trustees who want to demonstrate good governance and meet the Regulator’s expectations? Do you need access to skills and competencies to help make funding negotiations easier?
If so, you’ll want to join us for the new Smarter Pensions Summit. The 2011 Summit will feature short interviews with pensions experts, each day throughout the Summit, and you can then join in our online discussions. The Smarter Pensions Summit is a unique chance for you to develop your skills, without the need to travel. There is no charge to register to listen in. Once you have registered, you can listen to each speaker via the web each day, at a time to suit you, and then join in the discussions. The next summit will run from 31st October 2011. Register here:
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Who should attend? Those working on improving their pension situation, through better governance, cost savings, smarter processes or changes in the industry. Those interested in delivering benefit solutions that fit the needs of their organisation. Your title could be trustee, Independent Trustee, pension consultant, or even Finance Director. The key is that you are involved in making a change for the better. If that’s you, then fill in the form above for your place.
Why a Smarter Pensions Summit? In a time of unprecedented change in the pensions industry and with the economy in challenging times, the chance for smarter pensions to make a difference is bigger than ever. But it’s not easy, with so many barriers in your way:
- It’s difficult getting trustees together to discuss issues;
- Conflicts of interest can arise between the trustees and employer;
- People often don’t seem to know what they want until you deliver what they don’t want;
- The distance between the trustees is too great;
- You need to communicate effectively with the employer and members at all levels, as well as your advisers;
- There are fewer resources and in less time than before, but with the same need for delivery;
- Everything we produce should ideally be agile and able to flex as necessary as the business changes and adapts over time.
But it’s not impossible!
Join us to hear from a team of pension experts as we interview them to gain their top tips on how to succeed with pensions in your organisation.
How? You’re in the right place! Sign up now for the Smarter Pensions Summit 2011. Once you’ve signed up, we’ll keep you informed and let you know how to access each day’s interview. The time that you choose to listen in each day is completely up to you: the talks will be available each day from 8am Greenwich Mean Time (3am Eastern Standard Time) for 23 hours. To listen in, you’ll go to a special web page and play back the interview.
We’ve selected a crack team of experts willing to share their thoughts, ideas, and experience with you, so you can:
- Learn more about the changing and sometimes complex role of Pensions today
- Understand how funding negotiations are crucial to businesses
- Find out how you can get the most from your Independent Trustee to enable you to be more successful
- Learn how DC may be the next pensions mis-selling scandal
- Hear about the latest developments from the NAPF
- Understand the pitfalls you can avoid and gather hints and tips you can use straight away
- You can even ask your own questions, through the form below
and more! Of course, the important thing about this Smarter Pensions Summit is that you get to ask questions beforehand and participate in discussions on the Smarter Pensions LinkedIn group and/or via Twitter, so your ideas and issues are central.
Sign up now!
Meet your panel of top experts and some of the well-kept secrets they will be revealing…
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Gareth Burton (Client Service Partner, Founder of Ash Shaw and Co-Founder of Ash Shaw LLP)“Focussing more on Assurance Reports”Monday, 31 October 2011Gareth helps pension scheme trustees and assurance managers solve their pension headaches. Experienced in pension scheme auditing and assurance reporting under AAF 01/06, Gareth is known for his energy and enthusiasm to clarify technical and complex information so clients understand the relevance to themselves and achieve their goals. His client-focused approach ensures audit and assurance objectives meet client expectations, represent value for money and make you go WOW! Key Topics
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Terri Jarvis“Pension Scheme Financial Reporting Pitfalls”Monday, 31 October 2011Terri works with pension scheme trustees and their advisers to help solve their pensions audit and accounting headaches. She brings attention to detail and clarity of thought to her client’s concerns and queries to ensure that the most appropriate, but also pragmatic, solution is achieved. Terri works on industry and technical bodies and shares best practice developments with her team, clients and advisers. Key TopicsGetting to grips with:
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Richard Butcher (Managing Director, Pitmans Trustees Ltd)“101 Simple Steps to better Governance: Occupational Pension Schemes made easier”Tuesday, 1 November 2011Richard joined Pitmans Trustees Ltd in 2008. He became Managing Director in 2010. Immediately before he was at Pitmans Trustees he ran his own small independent trustee and consultancy business. Richard has been involved in pension scheme governance since 1985 and has worked with, or as a, pension scheme independent trustee since 1989. He is a Fellow of the Pensions Management Institute and is a regular contributor to the trade press. He was Highly Commended in the 2010 and 2011 Engaged Investor Independent Trustee of the Year Awards. Richard is a member of the Retirement Policy Council of the National Association of Pension Funds and the Committee of the NAPF City and Eastern Group. Richard has responsibility for a wide and diverse range of clients. The best part of the job, he says, is building a good team with the other trustees and the scheme sponsor and getting under the skin of the sponsors business. Key Topics
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Simon Kew (Employer Covenant reviewer, Jackal Advisory)“Understanding employer covenant requires team work”Tuesday, 1 November 2011Simon has many years of experience in pensions, as well as finance, business development and public speaking. A former, unanimously elected, director of the UK’s first Business Improvement District, Simon has also held other significant managerial and leadership roles. In 2007, Simon joined the Pensions Regulator. Leading cases on some of the country’s largest multi-national schemes, driving the widely praised Open Market Option project and managing government relations have led to Simon briefing TPR executives, Ministers and Secretaries of State and 10 Downing Street on current issues and strategy. Now recognised as one of the country’s leading experts on the regulator and the scheme funding process, Simon is regularly quoted in the industry press and is a highly sought speaker and trainer at seminars and conferences. Key Topics
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Henry Tapper (Director, First Actuarial LLP)“What defined benefit schemes can do to offer members a greater choice?”Wednesday, 2 November 2011Henry Tapper is a Director of First Actuarial and has responsibility for the development of the business. He is an able speaker, blogger, tweeter and thought-leader. With an MA in English Literature from Cambridge he brings an unusual perspective to occupational pension scheme management but after nearly 30 years, he has concluded he just might be beginning to get the hang of it. SynopsisMost people think that they’ve got no say on how their defined benefit pension is paid. This isn’t necessarily the case, trustees and sponsors of these schemes are increasingly looking to offer members choice as to whether and how the pension increases, whether a spouse’s pension can be included. Sponsors are keen that trustees explore all options for members including the possibility of using enhanced annuities where circumstances allow. But all too often, the best intentions are thwarted by the lack of good quality financial advice. Henry Tapper will discuss what defined benefit schemes can do to offer members greater choice and take unwanted risk from the scheme in the process. |
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Rosemary Kennell (Director Capita Pension Trustees and Chair of Trustees of the Sea Containers 1990 Pension Scheme)“How a professional trustee can help a trustee board when major events occur such as on a scheme winding up and securing benefits, closure to future accrual and when there are financial problems.”Wednesday, 2 November 2011Rosemary worked for several actuarial consultancies prior to becoming a professional pension trustee with Aspen (Actuaries & Pension Consultants) plc where she set up and ran their independent trustee services. In 2007, Aspen were taken over by Capita and Rosemary is a director of their two pension trustee companies. She is chair of one of the Sea Containers pension schemes, the only schemes where the Pensions Regulator has issued Financial Support Directions on the companies involved, and she was a witness in the Chapter 11 bankruptcy court on behalf of the trustee board. Amongst other trustee roles, she was chair of trustees of the Emap Earnings Related Pension Plan trustee board, where she led the £170m buy-out in 2007, the first all risks transfer to an insurer, she is also the chair of the Denso pension schemes which undertook a similar deal. She is a trustee of several schemes which have closed to future accrual and other schemes which have gone into the PPF and several ongoing pension schemes. She is an Associate of the Institute of Actuaries and a Fellow of the Pensions Management Institute. |
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James Walsh (Senior Policy Adviser, Workplace Pensions at NAPF)“EU pensions issues—why you should bother”Thursday, 3 November 2011James Walsh is Senior Policy Adviser, Workplace Pensions at NAPF, which he joined in 2009. He leads the NAPF’s policy work on EU issues, regulation and simplification, liaising with the Pension Protection Fund and the Pensions Regulator. Prior to joining the NAPF, James was Public Policy Manager for ASDA Stores Ltd and Head of Public Affairs at the Institute of Directors. Earlier in his career he held a series of positions in the Conservative Research Department, serving as Head of Economic Section and then as Deputy Director. He has worked with political leaders in Namibia, Sri Lanka and Belarus. SynopsisPensions have risen rapidly up the EU’s agenda. The European Commission’s plans for a new pensions Directive, potentially based on the insurance industry’s Solvency II regime, could have a major impact on DB scheme funding requirements. And a Pensions White Paper, expected from the Commission later this year, is likely to make recommendations on DC pensions, risk-sharing and the role of pensions in a changing labour market. James Walsh discusses what these developments could mean for your scheme and explains how pension funds can ensure their voices are heard in Brussels. |
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Julia Ridger (Director, Smith & Williamson Employee Benefits, a division of Smith & Williamson Financial Services Limited)“Work place pensions reform in a nutshell”Friday, 4 November 2011Julia joined Smith & Williamson in 1994 as an administrator and over the last 17 years has worked in the employee benefits team at Smith & Williamson. Julia leads a team which specialises in providing consultancy and administration services for company pension schemes, both defined benefit and defined contribution. Julia’s primary area of expertise is in the restructuring of existing pension arrangements, winding up trust based schemes and implementing contract based alternatives. Over the last 7 years Julia’s team has been appointed to administer a number of Employee Benefit Trusts, servicing in particular a number of Japanese clients. Julia’s focus over the coming year will be in the education of employers on work place pensions reform. In this respect Julia has already created Smith & Williamson’s pensions auto-enrolment brochure which can be accessed via http://www.smith.williamson.co.uk/uploads/publications/Pensions-Auto-Enrol-NEST-.pdf and is leading the employee benefits team in delivering its message to employers. In all, Julia has 24 years experience in the pensions/employee benefits arena and has shown versatility and an experience in understanding niche areas of pensions reform over these years. Away from work, Julia is a keen sports woman, enjoys food, watching films and dancing and in particular music, so much so she has her own decks and is a part-time DJ. Key Topics
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