Pension Scheme Design Training Course

Participants can distinguish pension system structures and assign accountabilities to key parties.

• State, occupational and personal pension pillars compared within retirement income systems
• Trust-based and contract-based arrangements assessed for accountability and operating responsibilities
• Roles of sponsor, trustees, administrator, custodian, adviser and investment manager
• RACI matrix constructed for pension decisions, controls, reporting and escalation
• Fiduciary duty separated from employer commercial and human-resource responsibilities
• Decision rights documented for benefit changes, investments, funding and communications

Participants can identify regulatory and tax constraints that shape pension design decisions.

• Mandatory enrolment, preservation and vesting requirements translated into design constraints
• Tax relief limits tested against contribution formulas and benefit accruals
• Plan documents aligned with statutory disclosures, recordkeeping and reporting obligations
• Anti-discrimination rules considered when setting eligibility, matching and vesting provisions
• Data protection controls applied to member records, beneficiaries and health information
• Local legal advice scoped where cross-border pension obligations require specialist interpretation

Participants can evaluate and specify core defined benefit design features and liabilities.

• Final-salary, career-average and cash-balance formulas compared using benefit incidence
• Accrual rates tested against service patterns, salary growth and retirement ages
• Normal retirement age aligned with workforce policy and longevity assumptions
• Indexation and revaluation rules assessed for member protection and cost volatility
• Early-retirement, ill-health and survivor benefits specified through eligibility conditions
• Closure, freezing and future-accrual options evaluated using member and sponsor impacts

Participants can design defined contribution arrangements that support participation and retirement outcomes.

• Employer core, matching and age-related contribution structures compared for equity
• Automatic enrolment and opt-out architecture assessed using participation and affordability data
• Vesting schedules designed to balance retention objectives and member fairness
• Default investment pathways matched to member demographics and retirement decisions
• Decumulation options considered alongside accumulation design and member communication
• Charges, transaction costs and provider fees incorporated into member outcome analysis

Participants can assess hybrid pension designs and allocate risks transparently between parties.

• Cash-balance arrangements analysed for sponsor guarantees and investment risk allocation
• Target-benefit designs assessed against funding adjustment mechanisms and member expectations
• Collective defined contribution features examined through pooling, smoothing and intergenerational equity
• Risk-sharing matrix assigns longevity, inflation, investment and salary-growth exposures
• Benefit adjustment rules tested under adverse funding and investment scenarios
• Hybrid design documentation distinguishes guaranteed benefits from discretionary outcomes

Participants can use workforce evidence to target pension design and communication decisions.

• Workforce segmentation combines age, pay, tenure, location and employment status
• Participation patterns analysed by demographic group, grade and contractual category
• Salary progression assumptions derived from payroll history and workforce plans
• Employee personas developed from retirement needs, financial capability and mobility
• Equity analysis identifies pension gaps affecting part-time and lower-paid employees
• Data-quality checks reconcile payroll, membership, contribution and beneficiary records

Participants can model retirement adequacy and explain assumptions affecting projected outcomes.

• Replacement-ratio targets set using income needs and retirement spending patterns
• Contribution adequacy model built from pay, age, return and inflation assumptions
• Real and nominal return assumptions separated within long-term projection models
• Salary escalation and career breaks incorporated into member outcome scenarios
• Longevity assumptions tested against retirement age and expected payment duration
• Scenario analysis compares baseline, adverse and improved retirement income outcomes

Participants can interpret actuarial valuation outputs and challenge key liability assumptions.

• Projected unit credit method explained through service cost and obligation measurement
• Discount-rate selection linked to duration, bond yields and accounting requirements
• Demographic assumptions reviewed for mortality, turnover, retirement and family composition
• Sensitivity analysis interprets liability movements from financial and demographic changes
• Actuarial valuation report read for funding position, assumptions and contribution recommendations
• Experience analysis distinguishes assumption changes from member-data and investment effects

Participants can develop funding policies that balance benefit security and employer affordability.

• Funding objectives define target security, recovery periods and contribution stability
• Technical provisions compared with accounting liabilities and solvency measures
• Deficit-repair schedule modelled against sponsor cash flow and covenant strength
• Contribution corridor sets escalation triggers, limits and decision authorities
• Sponsor covenant assessment considers profitability, liquidity, debt and business resilience
• Contingency plans specify responses to deficits, restructuring and adverse markets

Participants can connect liability characteristics with investment objectives and risk tolerances.

• Asset-liability study frames return objectives against benefit cash-flow requirements
• Duration matching assesses interest-rate sensitivity between assets and liabilities
• Liquidity budget identifies benefit payments, collateral calls and operating costs
• Strategic asset allocation tested using return, volatility and correlation assumptions
• Liability-driven investment approaches assessed for hedging inflation and rate exposures
• Funding-ratio scenarios show combined effects of asset returns and liability changes

Participants can establish investment governance and assess default fund suitability.

• Statement of investment principles defines objectives, constraints and delegated authorities
• Strategic and tactical investment decisions separated through governance documentation
• Default fund design considers time horizon, risk capacity and retirement pathways
• Glidepath structures compared using de-risking triggers and member outcome objectives
• Manager due diligence reviews philosophy, process, team, performance and fee arrangements
• ESG integration, stewardship and climate-risk reporting assessed within fiduciary duties

Participants can specify administration processes and data controls needed for reliable scheme operation.

• Member lifecycle process maps cover joining, contributions, transfers, retirement and death
• Service-level agreements set timeliness, accuracy, escalation and remediation measures
• Contribution reconciliation matches payroll deductions, employer payments and member records
• Data-cleansing plan prioritises missing, duplicate, inconsistent and outdated records
• Internal control matrix assigns preventive, detective and corrective administration controls
• Business continuity requirements cover cyber incidents, provider failure and payment disruption

Participants can design governance structures that support informed, accountable pension decisions.

• Board composition assessed for independence, competence, diversity and conflicts management
• Terms of reference define committee mandates, quorum, delegation and reporting lines
• Conflict-of-interest register maintained through disclosure, review and mitigation procedures
• Annual governance calendar schedules valuations, investment reviews, audits and member reporting
• Decision papers structured with recommendations, evidence, risks, alternatives and approvals
• Trustee knowledge plan identifies required training, advisers and periodic effectiveness reviews

Participants can build pension risk registers, controls and monitoring indicators.

• Pension risk register captures strategic, financial, operational and conduct risks
• Likelihood-impact scoring calibrated using defined assessment criteria and tolerances
• Key risk indicators monitor funding, liquidity, administration and member-outcome exposures
• Own-risk assessment links scenario testing with governance and mitigation actions
• Control testing distinguishes design effectiveness from operating effectiveness evidence
• Escalation thresholds trigger trustee review, sponsor action and regulatory reporting

Participants can explain pension accounting effects and communicate them to finance stakeholders.

• IAS 19 expense components separated into service cost, interest and remeasurements
• Defined benefit obligation reconciled from opening balance through annual movements
• Net defined benefit liability linked to plan assets and funded status
• Remeasurements explained through discount rates, asset returns and demographic changes
• Balance-sheet volatility assessed under alternative actuarial and investment assumptions
• Finance reporting timetable coordinated with actuaries, auditors and pension administrators

Participants can plan pension communications that support informed member decisions.

• Audience segmentation identifies messages for joiners, mid-career employees and retirees
• Plain-language benefit statements explain contributions, investments, fees and projected outcomes
• Behavioural insights address inertia, present bias and choice overload
• Annual communication calendar coordinates statutory notices, campaigns and life-event prompts
• Financial wellbeing content distinguishes education, guidance, advice and regulated recommendations
• Communication effectiveness measured through reach, comprehension, actions and member feedback

Participants can run structured procurement and oversight of pension service providers.

• Requirements specification defines scope, data interfaces, controls and reporting expectations
• Request for proposal criteria weight capability, security, service, price and transition
• Provider scoring model records evidence, ratings, assumptions and evaluation decisions
• Due diligence tests financial stability, cyber controls, continuity and subcontracting
• Contract schedules define service levels, data ownership, audit rights and remedies
• Transition governance manages data migration, member communications and acceptance testing

Participants can plan pension changes with controlled implementation and stakeholder engagement.

• Change impact assessment maps affected populations, costs, contracts and legal exposures
• Benefit harmonisation options compare legacy protection, transition and future design
• Implementation roadmap sequences approvals, provider changes, payroll configuration and communications
• Consultation plan identifies employee representatives, trustees, regulators and senior sponsors
• Change readiness assessment tests data quality, process capacity and decision dependencies
• Post-implementation review measures adoption, errors, costs and intended benefit outcomes

Participants can build, review and present a complete pension scheme design dossier for an employer scenario.

• Employer brief converted into pension objectives, constraints and design principles
• Workforce analysis supports eligibility, contribution and retirement adequacy recommendations
• Benefit structure specifies defined contribution, defined benefit or hybrid provisions
• Funding, investment and governance proposals aligned with stated risk appetite
• Implementation plan sets decisions, owners, milestones, communications and provider actions
• Peer review challenges assumptions, costs, member outcomes and control arrangements