Really thought-provoking article in Retirement Magazine by Pamela Hanrahan about Fund Governance in light of the Retirement Income Covenant. The following paragraph really stood out for me:
"Directors of a superannuation trustee are not directly accountable to fund members in the way that directors of listed companies – who are elected by the general meeting – are to shareholders. This puts a heavy onus on those who control the composition of trustee boards to ensure directors have the knowledge and experience to anticipate likely risks and opportunities for members in the retirement phase. These arise across technical, regulatory, financial, commercial, behavioural and political dimensions. And all while ensuring the fund administration is up to providing the level of cybersecure customer service delivery expected by the regulators. This is not the same as needing people to represent the experience or preferences of retirees."
Retirement planning is one of those special areas that requires a multidisciplinary approach to the problem. My guess is that trustees will enjoy success in this nascent field when they fully embrace the Medici Effect – i.e. that true innovation exists at the nexus of different ideas and disciplines.