Resources

De-risking with greater certainty

Pension schemes are maturing and the regulator is proposing a new framework for investment, putting pressure on trustees to outline plans to achieve their long-term objectives. An integrated approach to investment, considering the objective in terms of cashflows, may help trustees to reach their goals with greater certainty.

A woman’s place: boosting female labour- force participation to lift long-term economic growth

The diversity and inclusion debate usually centres on the importance of social justice in the workplace and society. But there’s a powerful efficiency argument too. Increasing diversity and inclusivity in the workforce can lift incomes and growth. As well as boosting utilisation rates, it can improve productivity by making better use of human capital. In a world of ageing populations and sluggish labour productivity growth, corporate and government policy that promotes greater diversity and inclusion could provide a much-needed shot in the arm for the global economy.

The importance of diversity and inclusion at Aviva

This year we changed our company statement to “with you today, for a better tomorrow” to reflect how, as a business, we would like to support our customers and treat the communities that we serve equally.

We provide workplace pensions to over 4 million customers, and peace of mind through insurance and investments to millions more. Our customers are representative of the whole of UK society. To ensure that we truly understand what our customers need from us, we recognise that our business and workforce must be diverse. We don’t just need to understand our customers, we need to be our customers.

Diversity and inclusion: the pensions challenge

With auto-enrolment now well established, membership of the occupational pension schemes and Master Trusts that we work with will be more diverse than ever. The challenge for the pensions industry is to consider how to reflect that in our approach, both on trustee boards and as advisers.

Each will have its own hurdles to overcome when it comes to improving diversity and inclusion, but with inaction no longer feeling acceptable from a cultural, moral or legal perspective, what can the industry do to ensure it is representative of its savers?

The new workplace

The introduction of lockdown in March was a period of confusion and disruption in workplaces throughout the country. This was as true for us at PMI as it was for other organisations. There was a rushed period of collecting personal effects and hurried farewells before leaving our familiar and well-loved premises in Tower 42 for what we initially supposed would be a period of a few weeks. Apart from significantly underestimating the length of time that we were to be absent, we gave little thought to the extent to which a temporary emergency would result in permanent change.

The new normal in education… ‘hashtag online’

With a year since the first official reporting of a COVID-19 case, we have almost arrived at a global paralysis of regular education and training provision. This unprecedented situation affected all learning at all levels. Basic and secondary education, initial and continuing training, and work-based learning all came to a stop as we knew them. It upturned course schedules and attendance, disrupted teaching and learning, frustrated examinations and assessments, delayed certification, and will affect the immediate and future careers of millions of learners.