Mallowstreet, June 2018
Bart Heenk blogs on Mallowstreet regarding the challenges of investment decision-making for trustee boards. Please note access is restricted to Mallowstreet members only.
Transparency - what have we achieved?
Mallowstreet, June 2018
Bart Heenk comments in this blog on Mallowstreet by Sandra Wolf. Please note access is restricted to Mallowstreet members only.
Sally Bridgeland an award winner at Women in Pensions 2018
Professional Pensions, June 2018
Sally Bridgeland was joint winner of the ‘Role Model of the Year’ award at the inaugural Women in Pensions Awards. You can watch a video of Sally talking about the award here.
Matthews to replace Smart as chair of TPT trustees
Professional Pensions, June 2018
Joanna Matthews will succeed Sarah Smart who leaves TPT Retirement Solutions (TPT) trustee board after eight years in the post.
UUK appoints three to USS joint expert panel
Professional Pensions, May 2018
Sally Bridgeland one of three appointed by Universities UK (UUK) to the Universities Superannuation Scheme’s (USS) joint expert panel, to examine the valuation of the USS.
This was also covered in I&PE.
People Moves: Beckers joins Avida
I&PE, May 2018
Stan Beckers joins Avida International’s Advisory Board.
This was also covered in Financial Investigator, FondsNieuws and Investment Officer.
Pension consolidation: is it all good news?
I&PE, April 2018
Bart Heenk and Sarah Smart consider the pros and cons of consolidating pension funds.
Avida International hires Sarah Smart
Professional Pensions, March 2018
Sarah Smart appointed Senior Adviser at Avida International.
This was also covered in Financial Investigator and I&PE.
Avida International roundtable - DB pensions - a CFO's perspective
Avida International, February 2018
On 27 February 2018, Avida International organised a breakfast roundtable on running DB pensions from a CFO’s perspective. Annemarie Straathof talked about the governance changes she, as CFO Europe for Rabobank, helped effect during the last couple of years at their UK pension fund. This was followed by a roundtable discussion.
Investment outsourcing for institutional investors
Clear Path Analysis, February 2018
Sally Bridgeland is interviewed in this report in relation to ‘Timing is everything: when to transition to an outsourced investment partner’.
Wie hoch sind die 'Pension Assets' in Deutschland?
I&PE Asset Management Guide 2018
Dorothee Franzen considers the difficulty of obtaining figures on funded pensions in Germany.
When mentoring matters
Pensions Expert, November 2017
Sally Bridgeland comments on mentoring.
Kommentar: Governance im neuen Sozialpartnermodell - Lessons from Behavioural Finance
I&PE, October 2017
Dorothee Franzen comments on governance under the new social partner model.
Industry views - FCA review
I&PE, September 2017
Bart Heenk comments on the FCA review.
Investment Solutions - no turning back
I&PE, September 2017
Bart Heenk comments on the potential regulation of investment advice.
How consultants can prepare for scheme consolidation
Pensions Expert, July 2017
Bart Heenk explains why consultants should embrace scheme consolidation and how they can prepare for change.
Top 400: Market forces - coming together
I&PE, June 2017
Pension funds are consolidating. Bart Heenk considers the consequences for investment managers.
Guest viewpoint - fiduciary management
I&PE, June 2017
Dorothee Franzen, Paul Boerboom and Peter Kolthof give their ‘guest viewpoint’ on the state of play of fiduciary management.
Peter Kolthof chairs Financial Investigator roundtables on fiduciary management
Financial Investigator, Volume 9, No. 1, 2017
Peter Kolthof, chaired two Financial Investigator roundtables on fiduciary management – one for providers and one for pension fund clients.
During the roundtables the importance of soft factors (match in culture) next to hard results was stressed, as well as the continuous and independent evaluation of a fiduciary manager.
Defined benefits - the role of governance
Pensions Policy Institute, February 2017
Interesting Pensions Policy Institute Briefing Note on DB governance, exploring the role played by trustees, the benefits of good governance and examples of good practice, the current gap between good and poor governance, the relationship between scale and governance, and improving scheme governance.
UK Financial Conduct Authority seeks to regulate consultants
I&PE, January 2017
Bart Heenk talks about need for pension funds to be able to ask the right questions and arm themselves with sufficient expertise in relation to the asset management and investment consultant industry.
People round-up - Avida International opens a representative office in Germany
I&PE, December 2016
The independent advisory firm has opened a representative office in Germany. Dorothee Franzen has been appointed head of the office, as managing director for Germany. She is also director of the Allianz-Oxford Pensions Conference and honorary research associate at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at the University of Oxford. Franzen was previously director at Allianz Global Investors, where she headed international pension research.
Regulating investment consultants not the answer
I&PE, November 2016
Regulating investment consultants will not solve the problem of ensuring pension investors are not losing out as a result of “murkiness and complexity” in the asset management and investment consultant industry, according to Bart Heenk.
Crisis management for pension funds - event brochure
Avida International, October 2016
In celebration of its 10 year anniversary and the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire of London, Avida International hosted a seminar on ‘Crisis management for pension funds’.
Hiring a fiduciary manager is just the beginning
I&PE, September 2016
Pension schemes should ensure they choose an independent adviser to assess their fiduciary manager’s performance, says Paul Boerboom.
How to make your providers work harder
Pensions Expert, August 2016
Competition in the asset management sector is under scrutiny in the Financial Conduct Authority’s market study, but schemes can act now to get a better deal, says Paul Boerboom.
Confidence in uncertain times - event brochure
Avida International, June 2016
In celebration of its 10 year anniversary, Avida International hosted a seminar on ‘Confidence in uncertain times’.
Governance practices - bridging the gap between rhetoric and reality
The 300 Club, May 2016
Sally Bridgeland and Prof. Amin Rajan discuss bridging the gap between rhetoric and reality in governance practices in this 300 Club paper.
Trustees must be willing to tackle 'big, difficult decisions' - 300 Club
I&PE, May 2016
European pension funds need to make a “fundamental” behavioural and cultural shift to close a “yawning gap between the rhetoric of governance improvements of recent years and their reality on the ground”, according to a paper from The 300 Club, a group of investment professionals seeking to challenge mainstream investment practice and thinking.
Define the measures of success
Pensions Expert, February 2016
Sally Bridgeland explains what trustees and pension fund committees need to be mindful of if they decide to move their investments in-house.
Roundtable: Fees and Costs in Asset Management
CFA Society UK, Professional Investor, Autumn 2015
Fees and costs are controversial issues in the investment industry. Steven Charlton, Aisha Dudhia, and Bart Heenk break down the key challenges in the discourse in the Autumn issue of Professional Investor. Bart Heenk: “The average pension fund trustee has limited insight into management fees and no idea of the true costs. This is largely because there is no attempt by the industry to provide clear and complete reporting. In fact most costs are, and remain, hidden unless you specifically ask for them.”
Appointments update - Dorothee Franzen joins Avida International
Pensions Age, May 2015
Avida International has appointed Dorothee Franzen as a partner. She will take on a dual role of supporting the team in servicing multi-national companies on cross-border pension investment governance and expanding Avida’s footprint into Germany.
Previously, she was a director at Allianz Global Investors where she headed international pension research. Further to her role at Avida she is director of the ‘Allianz-Oxford Pensions Conference’ and visiting research associate at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at the University of Oxford.
Maturing pension funds can rework investment governance
I&PE, March 2015
Sally Bridgeland: “Looking beyond the UK may provide lessons on how maturing pension funds can rework investment governance”
Rembrandt’s self-portraits show an honest, unflattering, self-awareness as he aged. At a recent discussion event in London, large and maturing UK pension funds were candid in challenging their limitations and knowing their weaknesses. While UK pension funds still have long-term time horizons, these will diminish and will have a bearing on whether it is worthwhile establishing in-house resources to manage long-term illiquid investments.
Pension fund governance: avoid the bear traps
Investment & Pensions Europe, July 2014
The UK is a divided market for pension funds and while many argue it is well-regulated, others say it is overly restrictive. In truth, both sides are right. The regulations put in place since Pensions Act 1995, the regulatory response to fraud at the Mirror Group pension fund following the death of Robert Maxwell in 1991, have succeeded in averting further scandals but have arguably hastened the demise of defined benefit (DB) schemes.
Outsourcing investment process beneficial to DB pension schemes
I&PE, June 2014
More and more pension funds are outsourcing part or all of their investment process to fiduciary managers or delegated CIOs, and in the Netherlands the majority of pension funds have already done so. Fiduciary management, solvency management, outsourced CI or delegated CIO, depending on how the various market participants label their service, can be very beneficial for defined benefit pension schemes that want or need a relatively sophisticated investment portfolio to meet their obligations.
How to mix business with pensions management
I&PE – Netherlands, November 2007
The growing interest in fiduciary management in Europe has seen the rise of fiduciary management consultants. Their task is to identify pension funds’ core competencies and help them decide on the suitable organisational model, which functions they want to outsource and which they want to keep in-house. One such consultant is Amsterdam-based Avida International BV, a firm of independent advisers which has been at the elbow of a number of high-profile fiduciary management deals involving mainly Dutch pension funds.
Deal breakers for deal makers
Fiduciary Management Magazine
The pension world has been subject to a high level of change. Mergers, pension buy-outs, fiduciary alliances, outsourcing and in-sourcing are becoming common aspects of the organisational design of pension funds. However, there is a risk that most alliances with external parties will fail to yield the desired results. Fortunately, the most common obstacles in building (fiduciary) alliances can be avoided.
Bridging the disciplines
The Finance Director
The growing complexity and demanding requirements of pension funds are increasingly calling for sophisticated solutions. Paul Boerboom of Avida International explains how his company offers a holistic approach to client needs.