The financial downturn has forced pension scheme trustees to seek guidance on governance, according to a survey by Hewitt Associates which shows that there was a 50 per cent increase in requests for governance services.

The past 12 months have caused trustees to struggle with a multitude of issues, said the global human resources consulting and outsourcing company.

Lorraine Harper, head of Hewitt's Governance team, said this was promoted by the combination of the recession and the impact this had on the stock market. "In a recession, it is very easy to make false economies. With both defined benefit and defined contribution schemes demanding their attention, and, in many cases, weakened sponsor covenants, many trustees are coming to us for guidance on how to set priorities."

As trustees have struggled to maintain the safety of their members' pension provision, Hewitt has seen this 50 per cent increase in requests for greater guidance and third party support from its specialist Governance team.

Harper added: "Trustees are no longer stewards, they have to be risk managers and negotiators as well. Now, more than ever, pension schemes trustees are eager to receive clear direction and, in many cases third party support to give them the confidence in their ability to respond to the demands of the role."

To help trustees to cope with the situation and respond more quickly to changes in the markets. They said trustees can work towards achieving this by reviewing their operating structure, considering the appointment of independent trustees, reviewing their decision-making structure, and separating tasks into categories according to their priority.

- Pensions Age March 2009

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