Meet the new Chief Pensions Officer: Helen McEwan
In April USS welcomed new Chief Pensions Officer, Helen McEwan. As she approaches her first 100 days with us we asked her to share her initial impressions and her plans… as well as her quick fire favourite five!
Welcome to USS! Tell us which part of the business you’re responsible for…?
As Chief Pensions Officer, my role is to ensure that USS’s proposition is managed and evolved to meet the changing needs of the Higher Education Sector. My core objective is to ensure that we deliver a first class service to Employers and Scheme Members at every stage of their pension journey both today and in the future. Together with my team, I am responsible for developing the pension proposition, Employer and Member Communications, all aspects of Pensions Servicing, Digital Change and Transformation.
What are your first impressions?
At USS I have found a team who are highly committed to ensuring that we provide the best possible service to all our stakeholders and offer the best value for money we can without compromising on excellence. There is a really positive “can do” culture and an incredible amount of unique expertise amongst the staff, many of whom have worked here for many years.
The pensions segment covers a wide ranging remit - what are your key priorities for the coming year?
My key priorities this year include the redesign of the USS website architecture, development of our At Retirement Guidance and Flexibilities proposition, enhancement of our Member Communications Strategy and developing closer relationships with employers to inform our proposition developments. I am very much hoping to build an effective partnership with our employer community and that I will get to meet you to hear your personal views in the very near future.
We work in partnership with employers. You've spoken previously about how important you think that relationship is. Can you tell us a little about that...
We already work very effectively together on a practical basis to ensure the smooth running of the scheme on an ongoing basis - this includes many thousands of monthly contribution deductions being collected and allocated correctly to either USS Retirement Income Builder or USS Investment Builder...I believe we can do even more work together to ensure employees engage with their scheme more effectively. Employers are spending a significant amount to deliver a benefit to members that is considerably beyond that enjoyed by most of the working population today. It is really important that we work in partnership to ensure members value the benefit provided and understand how they can make the most of their pension to suit their individual requirements.
Now that you’ve been here for a few weeks, what’s a typical day like for you and your team?
I am very fortunate to enjoy such a varied and interesting role. I spend most of my time at our office in the Royal Liver Building in Liverpool but I am also regularly in London working with my USS Investment Management colleagues. Although there is no such thing as a typical day, I do spend a large amount of time in meetings - either with my team, in governance meetings (I sit on the Trustee Board, the Joint Negotiating Committee and the Policy Committee) or meetings with our stakeholders. However, I do try to ensure that I plan enough time in my day to work with the team on key issues.
My USS and uss.co.uk are an important part of how we communicate with members, what can you tell us about the projects in that space?
We are really keen to expand our communications with members and to create a digital platform where they can access all the information they need to know about their USS pension scheme.
We’re working on new digital platforms to be launched in 2020 which will deliver an improved user experience across the public website and My USS. The new websites will be easily accessible via mobile with improved search functionality and simpler language.
In the meantime we’re continuing to look at the content that’s available and we’ll be regularly updating the resources that are available for members.
We’ve been making small changes to the employer portal, too in response to employer feedback - including extending the timeout period for users and adding the monthly contribution process section.
Do you have any requests of our employers?
I would ask employers continue to make use of the resources on our website and refer members to the useful information available online to educate members about the valuable benefits they have and how they can fully engage successfully with their pension plan.
Please make sure that you’re forwarding our communications to members promptly.
We also always welcome feedback from employers on where we can make improvements, whether it is to how well members understand our key communications like the Annual Member Statements, or to our joining and retirement processes and the support we provide at those stages. We are focussing really hard on improving the member experience and tackling specific pain points in their interactions with us.
I would also ask that any retirement requests are sent to us as soon as the retirement date is known. At this time of year, we receive many requests at the end of the summer and the volume received in such a short window increases our turnaround times.
What message do you have for USS employers?
I am really keen to work with employers and understand how we can improve our proposition and services to best serve the needs of the Higher Education sector. I would really value any insights you have on any aspect of the pension scheme or your interactions with us. You can contact us at employercommunications@uss.co.uk or, please feel free to spend a minute or two to let me know what you’d like us to stop, start or continue doing here.
And finally, in all our ‘Meet the Team’ interviews we ask the Quick Fire Favourite Five:
Film: Meet Joe Black
Musician: Chris Stapleton
Drink: Villa Maria Sauvignon or any Prosecco
Food: Fish & Chips
Holiday destination: I have travelled to many countries but the one I am drawn to again and again is Spain