As the saying goes, hindsight is 20/20 – and this is particularly salient when reviewing investment performance. The “right” investment decisions are revealed and obvious in retrospect, judged over chosen time intervals. But decisions must be made in prospect, based on expectations, probabilities and risk tolerances.
The Trustee Board has a crucial role to play in how USS is run – so we asked some of our directors to talk us through its composition and how its decisions are made. We also took the chance to ask them to share their thoughts on the scheme as a whole, gender diversity, and engagement with the Pensions Regulator. You can hear from them directly in these films.
USS plays a key role in supporting the continued success of a sector that is of vital importance to the UK economy.
When I was offered the role of Chief Pensions Officer at USS, the high calibre of its people and its commitment to quality and value really appealed to me. Recently, I’ve been reflecting on if and how my initial expectations, shaped from the outside looking in, have been met or changed over the course of my first 100 days in post.
Defined benefit pensions have long been a valued element of the total reward enjoyed by colleagues in the higher education sector.
What makes USS such a great place to work? We asked our colleagues to share their thoughts.
As the principal pension scheme for some of the country’s leading higher education institutions, we asked our colleagues to share their memories of student life and their journey to USS – where they look after the retirements of the people who taught them.
Financial markets have been analogous to Spain’s world famous Pamplona bull run over most of the past decade, with equities leading the charge. Born out of the financial crisis, quantitative easing and the search for real returns have engendered an asset price boom
Every three years, the Trustee must make judgements about how various expectations and risks will play out over the long-term and the short-term that could influence the scheme’s ability to pay members’ benefits. It must also review whether recent experience has met with previous expectations, and respond accordingly.