Course Overview

Pension fund risk management involves a special focus on operational risks. Operational risk management is the practice of identifying and designing various procedures and processes to help assess, monitor and control operational risks.

Risk management frameworks for organisations are influenced by the actions of the organisations’ board of directors, senior management, employees, etc.

Effective pension fund risk management provides management with clarity and security in operation and management of the pension fund, beneficiaries with transparency and integrity in the fund scheme and the risk management of it, etc. Thus, successful pension schemes are those with processes and systems to efficiently identify, assess, control and mitigate risks.

This Zoe training course will empower you with a detailed understanding and information about pension fund risk management and the various pension scheme risks.

Through this course, you will acquire the required experience and knowledge to partake and successfully oversee pension fund risk management, thus proving your potential to your organisation, fostering rapid career growth and progression. The course content affords global exposure and will set you up for challenges at a global level.

Course Objectives

The key objective of this Pension Fund & Pension Scheme Risk Management training course is to empower professionals with—

• detailed knowledge and information regarding pension and relevant pension plans and funds worldwide
• a comprehensive understanding of various methods for pension fund risk management
• an enhanced perspective and greater maturity to analyse situations and circumstances and predict future risks to be able to set controls in place in the present day
• the required confidence and knowledge to coach other professionals on pension fund risk management
• the ability and experience to regularly audit existing processes and systems of one’s organisation to stay updated with the newest methods and concepts related to pension fund risk management for one’s organisation
• the overall skill set and capabilities to oversee end-to-end pension fund risk management, thereby helping one’s organisation stay relevant and conduct effective risk assessments for greater success, in turn, building trust in one’s capabilities and potential to grow to higher positions within the organisation
• the necessary exposure to global practices and standards to be able to compete with fellow professionals at a global level, thus securing one’s future as a professional in pension fund risk management
• adequate analytical skills to accurately assess all data points before drawing conclusions in building a framework or managing risks for the fund
• the overall ability and potential to contribute to organisational success through effective and successful management of pension funds and pension fund risks

Training Methodology

Training at Zoe Talent Solutions is extremely effective for professionals because of the unique approach it adopts in its training program. Courses are highly customisable to suit the professional backgrounds and experience of the training audience. The course content is delivered through detailed and well-prepared audio-visual presentations by experienced professionals from the relevant domain.

Trainee participation is encouraged through the assignment of projects and tasks in groups, which also fosters interaction among the trainees. Role-plays and case study discussions form an active part of the training methodology.

This format of training followed by Zoe Talent Solutions is one of the firsts in the industry and is called the Do–Review–Learn–Apply Model.

Organisational Benefits

With professionals undergoing this Pension Fund & Pension Scheme Risk Management training course, organisations will derive the following benefits:

• Trained and experienced professionals managing pension funds and associated risks
• Structured processes and documentation in place to help define, identify, monitor and control risks in time
• Effective risk management strategies providing assurance of continuity and sustainability, in turn contributing to organisational growth and development
• Regular training of other employees on best practices for effectively identifying and managing risks to prevent business loss
• Frequent audits and checks to ensure that organisational practices and systems for risk management are at par with existing standards at the industry level, thus helping the organisation stay relevant
• Global exposure and potential to compete at a global level because of experienced professionals managing key functions related to pension fund risks
• Adherence to relevant and updated international, universally accepted standards and benchmarks

Personal Benefits

Professionals opting for this Pension Fund & Pension Scheme Risk Management training course will benefit in the following ways:

• Complete understanding and information about pension funds and pension fund risks
• Increased confidence and knowledge to train other professionals on best practices for effective pension fund risk management
• Enhanced analytical skills and foresight to predict future risks and place controls to mitigate a negative impact in future
• A greater understanding of global practices and standards and regular review of existing organisational processes to ensure adherence to help one’s organisation stay relevant, proving one’s potential and securing one’s career growth and progression
• Increased understanding and confidence to handle end-to-end pension fund risk management, thereby inviting greater opportunities for growth and progression not just from within the organisation but also from other organisations
• A sense of pride and satisfaction from contributing to organisational growth and development through advanced and effective systems for risk management

Who Should Attend?

• Senior management of organisations involved in offering pension schemes and plans
• Professionals managing pension fund risks for organisations
• Other pension scheme providers who need to stay relevant in a competitive industry
• Human resource professionals managing employee pensions and benefits
• Legal advisors responsible for ensuring security to organisations against liabilities arising from pension funds
• Other professionals in an organisation dealing with employee benefits
• Any other professional interested in understanding pension scheme risks and pension fund risk management in detail

Course Outline

The Pension Fund & Pension Scheme Risk Management course covers the following aspects important to understand pension scheme risks and pension fund risk management:

Module 1 – Types of Pension Designs

• Defined benefit arrangements
• Defined contribution arrangements
• Hybrids

Module 2 – Types of Pension Plans

• Executive pension plans
• Group personal pension
• Master trust pension
• Self-invested personal pension
• Small self-administered schemes
• Stakeholder pension

Module 3 – Common Pension Risk Factors

• Investment or market risks
• Counter-party default risks/credit risks
• Funding and solvency risks
• Liquidity risks
• Asset—Liability mismatch risks
• Actuarial risks
• Governance and agency risks
• Operational and outsourcing risks
• External and strategic risks
• Legal and regulatory risks
• Integrity risks

Module 4 – Benefits of Enterprise Risk Management

• Shareholder perspective
• Regulator perspective
• Beneficiary perspective

Module 5 – Core Aspects Associated with Pension Risk Management

• Plan design
• Funding strategies
• Investment strategies
• Risk transfers

Module 6 – Steps in the Risk-Based Supervision Process

• Risk focus
• Risk factors
• Risk indicators
• Risk mitigants
• Risk weightings
• Probability
• Impact

Module 7 – Four Broad Categories of Risk Management Frameworks

• Management oversight and culture
• Strategy and risk assessment
• Control systems
• Information, reporting and communication

Module 8 – Components/Phases of a Pension Risk Management Strategy Framework

• Corporate objective definition
• Potential strategy analysis
• Scoring and implementation
• Monitoring and refining

Module 9 – Elements of a Comprehensive Investment Policy

• Investment objectives
• Asset allocation
• Diversification
• Liquidity need
• Foreign exchange exposure
• Valuation methodology
• Use and monitoring of derivatives
• Asset—Liability matching targets
• Performance measurement, monitoring and benchmarking
• Control procedures (risk tolerances/risk monitoring procedures)
• Reporting format and frequency
• Investment in alternative assets
• Leverage of funds