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Trustee Board Composition

Trustee bodies should be aware of all the skills required to allow the to make the correct decisions at the right time to ensure that their scheme is run effectively.

It is also essential that they have a thorough understanding of the skills and experience that they have available both from within the trustees and from the sponsoring employer.

Only when they have both sets of information can they accurately asses whether they have necessary experience to carry out their duties or if they should look to obtain additional help. At this point they will also need to decide whether this help should take the form of additional consultancy or strengthening of the trustee body by appointing another individual with the required skills.

It may be appropriate to consider appointing alternative experts even where the skills could be available within the sponsoring employer; the time required to act as a trustee can be significant and seriously impact someone's ability to undertake their main job. It may be more efficient and cost effective to pay someone for their expertise.

We also believe that it is very important that the Trustees have enough knowledge to challenge the advice of the consultant. This should allow them to asses whether particular reports or pieces of work are actually required or whether a quick discussion would be more appropriate. Over time, this could lead to some substantial cost savings.

Finally, we are seeing more and more instances where conflicts of interest where senior employees may need to remove themselves from discussions or negotiations. This can rob the trustees of important experience and skills just when they are most required. It is important that these skills are replaced to make sure that members interests are effectively represented.