In this session keynote speakers from Emma Douglas, Head of Workplace Savings & Retirements, Aviva, and Mark Meiklejon, Head of Real Asset Investment Specialists, Aviva investors, will be assessing the case for performance over fees and what this means for the role of real assets in DC. Do first-class member experiences and first class, sustainable, investment returns deliver a better outcome than the lowest cost solution ? Join us to discuss the challenges and opportunities of delivering good member outcomes whatever the cost.

• Moving to a DC Master Trust
• What are the benefits of different options within this market?
• What does the future hold?

As many schemes move to decarbonise their portfolios and have increasingly regulatory pressure to report on the impact their portfolio is having, private markets solutions can play an important role, providing not only diversified long-term returns but also a positive environmental and social impact. In our session, we discuss how a diversified portfolio across private markets asset classes and sectors focused on climate and social themes can help facilitate the transition to a more sustainable future. We explore climate change investing, how a portfolio can be accessible to all institutional investors including DC schemes and how to measure impact.

• How is CDC likely to evolve and how the Royal Mail scheme is progressing?

• What are the current CDC rules and how should they look to make this scheme attractive?

• Assessing main benefits and risks

• Will it only work for large schemes?

What are current pensioners spending their money on? How do we ensure that pensioners’ money lasts as long as their lifespans? Our presentation examines how DC savers can meet the challenge of increased longevity with confidence by utilising the right default strategy that is aligned to members’ long-term expectations.

• How Trustees can step up their game in supporting members during their retirement
• What would this look like?
• Improving members communication at retirement stage and communication in a lead up
• Increase in minimum pension age (MPA) and the impact MPA and a new protection regime have on members
  

Clara is the first DB consolidator (“superfund”) to complete The Pensions Regulator’s assessment process and is now working with trustees and sponsors on its first transactions. In this session the Clara team will reflect on how good governance is both key to a successful consolidator and to ‘end game’ decision making. They will look at:

• Clara’s development to date, including TPR’s assessment process
• The role of good governance in Clara, including for the Clara Pension Trust
• How we’ve seen trustees and sponsors working well together to prepare for a consolidation transaction

• The evolution of governance - where we’ve been & where we’re heading
• Practical examples of implementing and embedding good governance for your scheme
• The ESoG opportunity - what trustees need to be considering now

• How to make your Board more inclusive?
• Driving real value and leveraging the diversity of thought rather than a tick box exercise
• Practical examples – recruiting a more diverse board
  

• How Trustees reengage with their members today? What are the key challenges?
• Key strategies to help member to ensure to get best outcomes of their pension
  

Successful digitalisation of the pensions sector will hinge on one simple thing – the quality of scheme common data. So how good is yours? As the sector approaches unprecedented change with the introduction of pensions dashboards, learn why schemes must leverage their common data to pivot to a new way of thinking and interacting with scheme members. This session will share insights from the recent pensions digitalisation report by LexisNexis® Risk Solutions and Professional Pensions (which surveyed trustees and pension scheme members), and suggest practical steps on how a data-focussed digital future can deliver better retirement outcomes for everyone.

The world of DC pensions is changing fast, and it’s being pushed forward by member expectations, government proposals, regulations, and external factors like the rising cost of living. Not since 2012 have we seen so much change and just as tech and data management were crucial to the success of auto enrolment, they’re going to be imperative in this new wave of change. In this session, we’ll be talking about the drivers for change and how tech together with good data analysis can not only help meet the challenges we’re now facing but also be a catalyst for bringing about real value to members. Whether it’s transitioning to net zero or implementing simplified statements, we have an opportunity to not only comply but go further and add real value to our ultimate customers, our pension members. We’ll share with you how tech and the good use of data can help providers push forward with real change – it’s not about abandoning the present for the future; it’s possible to manage both!

• Dashboard review : the current state of the implementation
• Challenges of pensions providers connecting to the dashboard through ISPs
• Best practices on managing and organising data

• Cyber resilience in the pension sector
• The relevance of cybercrime to pension schemes
• TPR’s expectations • The nature of cybercrime
• The future of cybercrime • Understanding the vulnerabilities of  your pension scheme
• Cybercrime and governance

The need to support members to engage with their pensions savings has never been more important. This session will look at how this can best be achieved from considering the various saving and financial considerations that members may have throughout their journey to retirement, through to what needs to be understood at retirement such as the how to generate income and the risks involved. It will consider why engagement matters and the role that digital support can play. The session will also demonstrate how this can be put into practice through a case study on what Pearsons did.