Pensions in an uncertain world
Highlights from the annual Aon Pensions Conferences 2017
The Aon pension Conferences are designed for trustees of pension schemes and pensions, HR and finance professionals who make decisions about their company's pension scheme.
The 2017 conferences offered delegates the opportunity to hear experts' views and ideas on how to manage defined benefit and defined contribution pension schemes in an uncertain marketplace.
If you did not manage to join us this year then you can catch up on some of our fantastic content by watching the short clips below from selected sessions. You can also pre-register for the 2018 conferences here.
Member decision making - do we make it too hard?
How difficult do individuals find it to make informed decisions about their pensions? What is stopping them and what can we do to help? When even the chief economist at the Bank of England says that he doesn't understand pensions, are we making things more complicated than they need to be?
Drawing on the latest Aon research, this interactive session aims to explore ways in which those of us involved in pensions can support and equip people to enable them to make appropriate decisions for themselves.
Aon Defined Contribution Member Survey 2016
Living with uncertainty
Some uncertainty is always a feature of the investment environment, but this year's surprises are hinting at this becoming a much bigger issue.
What are the divides and tensions in modern economies that have bought us here?
We will ask whether, and to what extent, we should throw out the old investment rules and expectations and just start afresh. We will then do our best to peer through some of this fog to look ahead to the next two or three years so that we can take some medium-term views on the major asset classes.
You can read more on managing investment strategies here.
Getting the numbers right - DB Plans, what you measure is what you get...
Trustees and sponsors may be confused when they see headlines saying that pension deficits are at all-time highs of £400 billion, but other commentators - referenced in the House of Lords - argue that far from deficits we have surpluses of £300 billion. Are deficits just a figment of actuaries' imagination or measurement tools and if we looked at the problem differently, then different solutions would be appropriate? How do valuation methods relate to investment policy - and which should drive the other.
This session explored one of the current big ticket issues in DB. We looked at the pros and cons of different approaches to valuations. Gilts+ is dead or long live gilts+?
You can read more on managing DB pension schemes here.
Investing for success in uncertain times
Investors are now grappling with Brexit and the impact of populism, where volatility and uncertainty are the new 'normal'. It is normal to look to models and metrics to help us make decisions, but in these situations we should guard against over reliance on their output.
In this session we looked at three steps to help you navigate the ever-changing investment terrain:
- Defining principles to build your portfolio
- Robust decision making process - including academic research undertaken by Leeds University Business School.
- Focus on value for money
You can read more on managing investment strategies here.
Seeing the full picture
One in five DB schemes is likely to be using fiduciary management in some form by 2020. Innovations in the DC world are now incorporating the benefits of this approach.
Given that context, in this session we looked at challenging some of the perceptions around fiduciary management (the good and the bad).
In particular the importance of transparency and seeing the full picture; including the key areas of fees and performance.
You can read more about Fiduciary Management here.
Life, death and insurance
At the start of 2016, Solvency II loomed large with rumours of increases in bulk annuity pricing. What has happened in practice has been some of the most attractive bulk annuity pricing in recent memory.
In this session we explained some of the key drivers for this. Along with hearing directly from Trustees involved in one of the most high profile transactions of the year.
You can read more on risk settlement strategies here.
Spending your DC pension - the how to guide
We all know that making decisions at retirement is hard, you will hear from several providers their thoughts on what needs to be considered when deciding on a post retirement solution for your members. We also heard from the members in relation to what they have told us they want.
You can read more on DC pensions here.
Terms and Conditions
The Aon UK Pension Conferences are designed for and aimed at those who manage or govern in-house pension schemes as opposed to Industry Sales Professionals or Fund Managers. If you do not manage or govern an in-house pension scheme, and received an invitation to the Aon UK Pension Conferences in error, please disregard it. Aon Limited reserves the right to decline any registration request received in relation to the Aon UK Pension Conferences. Reasons for Aon Limited declining a registration request include, but are not limited to, the fact that the proposed delegate does not manage or govern an in-house pension scheme. Aon host a separate annual conference for Industry Sales Professionals and Fund Managers in London where we explain our business strategies. For information on this event contact [email protected].
Delegates attending the Aon UK Pension Conferences are responsible for making their own travel and accommodation arrangements and the associated costs of those travel and accommodation arrangements.
Aon Solutions UK Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.