What Employers should expect from their Pension Scheme Trustee

What is expected?

When it comes to managing pension schemes, employers should expect a comprehensive and professional approach from their trustees and pension management teams. Here are the key elements that define an effective and collaborative relationship:

• A dedicated contact
• Collaborative working relationship with the trustee working with the employer rather than against them
• Creating a strategy for the scheme which the employer has full input and engagement on with regular review
• Effective project management of all scheme activities ensuring all statutory/regulatory requirements are completed on time
• Focused management and control of a scheme’s governance
• Strict budgetary control
• Tailored reporting in accordance with what the employer wants
• Professional unbiased advice provided by trustee to employer

At Dalriada.Together® we pride ourselves on delivering these key elements to our clients.

As an employer you should have direct contact with all key stakeholders, not just the trustee. Although not commonly fostered, the absence of these wider connections can create a disconnected communication path, deflecting from the task at hand.

This is where you as an employer can ask about the scheme management strategy. With the trustee, the short, medium and long-term goals of the scheme should be agreed upon and a clear and understandable plan for the future drawn up.

Until all parties know the rules of engagement it is difficult to manage relationships and the scheme effectively. We have many tools at our disposal to make the sharing and actioning of information accessible, transparent and simple. To achieve true collaboration these tools should be exploited to their full potential.

Don’t be afraid to ask your trustees or pensions manager to detail how they will create a collaborative working style that meets everyone’s needs. This includes how information is shared, timing of review meetings, and ways in which feedback and reporting are implemented and presented.

A key focus of the Dalriada.Together team is working very closely with the sponsoring employer of the scheme. The key contact(s) at the employer has direct and regular access to a dedicated trustee contact as well as the other specialists within the team; the administration team, the investment consultant, the scheme accountant and the actuary.

Soon after being appointed, we engage with the employer and all key contacts to establish collaborative ways of working that best suit the group. We never presume what the employer wants, we ask them!  It is all about open and transparent engagement and we quickly establish what works best in terms of reporting back on how we are managing all aspects of the scheme.

Each scheme has a bespoke strategy outlining the common objectives held for the scheme’s future and the actions required to achieve them.

Tailored engagement and continuous feedback

We are aware that the employer’s primary focus is that of running their business and they have appointed Dalriada to fully manage their scheme. Just like the strategy is tailored to the needs of the scheme, so too is our engagement tailored to meet the employer’s wishes.

To ensure we are truly responding to our clients and to inform how we can continue to improve, we seek independent feedback on how we are managing a scheme from the employer.  There is a regular programme in place where a director of Dalriada not associated with the scheme, organises a feedback call with the employer. This feedback is invaluable and used by the Together team to maintain focus on where improvements need to be made.  

Running a defined benefit pension scheme is more complicated, time-consuming and riskier than ever. As the company who bears the responsibility and the expense, understanding how to get the best from your trustees and suppliers can help relieve that burden. We believe building strong long-term relationships between trustees, suppliers, advisers and the company will maximise the positive outcomes for the sponsor, the scheme and its members.

Interested in learning more about our Together service?

Learn more about the service here.