The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association has revealed that it is undertaking a “comprehensive review of its own governance” to make sure it is able to “reinvent” itself when needed.

PLSA chair Lesley Williams announced the review in her opening speech at the PLSA’s Annual Conference in Liverpool today. She said the review of its governance is to ensure that it supports the PLSA’s work on behalf of its members and all stakeholders, and to make sure it operates effectively and attracts the right people.

“We have to make sure we walk the talk of 21st century governance. At our last annual conference we announced that we were reinventing the Association. We have made great progress but there is more to do.

“In a world that changes as quickly as ours, we want to make sure we can reinvent ourselves when we need to. Not just when it comes to conference programmes, publications and policy work, but in the fabric of the Association.

“That’s why the PLSA is undertaking a comprehensive review of its own governance to make sure we have the right structure to deliver our strategy and purpose, the right people within that structure and the right selection processes for those people.”

In addition, also commenting on the review, PLSA independent non-executive director John Dembitz said: “A year after the launch of the PLSA, it’s the right time to look at how our structure can best support our mission to help everyone achieve a better income in retirement and how we can best represent our members.

“I am delighted to bring my experience outside of pensions to support Lesley and the board with the review. This is a hugely important project and a great opportunity to engage members in a way their Association works and to establish governance fit for purpose now and the years ahead.”

The review will start immediately and will run until October 2017. The board will consult with members on any potential proposals in the New Year.

Williams also touched on the issue of diversity and noted that “another relic of the 20th century is that trustee boards, IGCs and pensions management generally are still heavily white, middle-class and male-dominated.”

“Over the past year I have immersed myself in the topic of diversity – what it means, how you achieve it and what it delivers. And I have discovered that I am as guilty as anyone of avoiding and even contributing to the issue with my unconscious bias and my learned ability to operate effectively in a male-dominated world.

"I’ve heard a really diverse set of reasons for not doing anything, but I’ve also read tomes of literature about how diverse groups of people produce better outcomes in business. And that has to be the case for the governance of pensions too. So we are going to dedicate our 2017 Investment Conference to diversity on all levels. If we are going to move the diversity dial we all need to reflect and take action."

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