Audrey Hepburn, Gary Cooper and Pension Governance

Grab the popcorn. If you haven't seen the 1957 romantic film, "Love in the Afternoon," check it out. No nudity. No violence. No swear words. Just some clever banter, courtesy of Maurice Chevalier, Gary Cooper and Audrey Hepburn. I love these old-fashioned movies for their charm and ease of viewing. They remind viewers that there are some things that never get old. Yes, good ideas are fresh, sound and worth revisiting again and again.

Pension governance comes to mind.

When I created www.pensionriskmatters.com in 2006, my goal was (and still is) to provide educational information about process. Not only is procedural prudence a key element of various trust rules and regulations, it is the cornerstone of effective investment, risk and asset-liability management. Indeed, it is easy to show that bad process can be hugely expensive for plan sponsors and beneficiaries alike.

At the inception of this pension blog, there were few studies and surveys about the topic of pension governance. Things have changed since then. Always an important topic, it is good to know that this "old-fashioned" topic is receiving more attention and will hopefully gain even more visibility over time.

According to a July 23, 2013 press release, a survey of U.K. employers indicates awareness of the importance of pension governance. Sponsored by SEI Investments, the survey answers reflect a frustration that companies need to do more since "current governance structure [do] not allow them to easily take advantage of market conditions to improve their funding levels, with many trustees unable to make informed and timely decisions due to a lack of resources, including limitations of time and/or expertise." Consultant relationships was another queried topic. Nearly one third of respondents expressed a "perceived lack of transparency around the costs associated with traditional investment consultants who often charge separately for investment reviews, manager changes, and ongoing support, and who are not fully accountable to the scheme." Click to learn more about how to access the SEI UK survey.

Will pension governance remain a classic a la Gary Cooper? One certainly hopes so. Too much is at stake for good process to end up on the shelf.

Source: http://feeds.lexblog.com/~r/PensionRiskMatters/~3/dFs8AZUUxnY/

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