Pensions Technical and Trustee Services Expert

Job Title: Pensions Technical and Trustee Services Expert

Location: Kingston Head Office

Job Purpose:

We are seeking a highly skilled Pensions Technical and Trustee Services Expert to join our team at Unilever. As a key member of our Pensions Technical and Trustee Services team, you will be responsible for providing technical pensions expertise to the Trustees, Company, and outsourced Third Party Administrators. This includes working with actuarial and legal advisers in investigating technical pensions matters, proposing solutions, getting approvals, and providing instructions on implementing changes.

Responsibilities:

* Manage and provide assistance on projects in the areas of governance, policy, and benefit administration.
* Assist in researching technical queries raised by internal and external stakeholders, identifying and gathering all relevant information, liaising with external advisers where appropriate, and drafting briefing papers/summaries with recommendations.
* Assist in ensuring schemes are compliant in all areas of regulations and legislation and carrying out certain compliance activities such as obtaining relevant information from internal and external stakeholders to complete the Pensions Regulator's Annual Return and completing compliance paperwork for implementing changes to Participating Employers.
* Manage the distribution of SMPI statements and ensure the database for legacy Additional Voluntary Contribution providers is kept up to date.
* Manage the various internal and external stakeholders in order to produce the statutory Scheme Annual Report and Accounts and draft sections for the Trustees' report in the Scheme Annual Report and Financial Statements and get stakeholder sign-off.
* Monitor technical bulletins; identify and provide summaries of key matters of interest to relevant stakeholders, identifying actions, and ensuring those actions are taken by appropriate stakeholders.
* Accurately maintain technical databases of important historic scheme information.
* Manage the production and execution of formal documents process: liaising with internal and external stakeholders to explain why documents are required, obtain relevant approvals, answer queries, and ensure documents are executed within required timescales.
* Complete surveys and statutory requests for information.
* Provide assistance to secretaries of the Trustee Boards and Committees; including proactive forward agenda planning, preparation of papers for Trustee meetings (including occasionally presenting at Trustee/Committee meetings), ensuring other contributors are aware of what is required of them and that they provide their papers in good time, writing up minutes, and monitoring and chasing actions.
* Assist in maintaining best practice in trustee governance. Maintain key Trustee governance and key information documents and ensure the Trustee electronic storage system is kept up to date with assistance from the Admin Support Team. Assist in delivery of Trustee training, assist trustees with their personal development plans, and oversee the Admin Support Team in implementing changes to the Trustee Boards. Produce quarterly performance reports for the Trustee Boards against the Service Level Agreement with the company for review and sign-off by the relevant Trustee Secretary. Ensure annual renewal of trustee liability insurance is carried out. Carry out, or supervise Admin Support Team in carrying out, routine regular trustee governance actions such as updating training or gifts/hospitality logs.
* Assist in dealing with cases referred to the Trustees for discretionary decisions or going through the Internal Resolution Disputes Procedure
* Provide assistance on any other matters as required by the Pensions Technical and Trustee Services Team Manager or Head of Trustee Services

About You:

We are looking for a highly skilled and experienced Pensions Technical and Trustee Services Expert who is passionate about bringing structure to all work carried out by the team, ensuring that not only they themselves are organized but also that their work, and the work of other team members, can be easily accessed and understood by the team, improving team efficiency. You will have a natural ability to apply logic and bring problem-solving skills to put your knowledge, and new knowledge you acquire, into practice. Being able to research and understand new and sometimes complex pensions matters, with the help of advisers, and to identify, and be able to communicate, actions needed.

Requirements:

* Excellent verbal and written communication skills. Able to use those skills in a range of ways from writing clear reports for decision by the Trustees, to influencing others and giving them clear instructions where their help is needed, or they need to take action.
* Be confident to work independently and exercise judgment but also to judge appropriately their limitations and what matters should be consulted on or escalated for decision.
* Enjoy managing a large and varied workload and have the ability to prioritize effectively to deliver to critical timescales.
* Be confident in the use of IT systems

Qualifications and Experience:

* Qualified to degree level and working towards the professional exams for Associate Membership of the Pensions Management Institute and possess sound knowledge of UK pensions legislation and best practice.
* Experience is likely to have been in a technical pensions role or trustee secretarial role or as a consultant. However, candidates with the right skills, knowledge, and ability to learn and develop would be considered.

Leadership:

* You are energized by delivering fantastic results. You are an example to others – both your results and your resilience. You are constantly on the lookout for better ways to do things, engaging and collaborating with others along the way.
* As an individual, you are the one responsible for your own wellbeing and delivering high standards of work. You must also focus on the Consumer and what they need. You are humble and have your head up, looking around to interpret evidence and data smartly, spot issues, and opportunities to make things better.
* Critical SOL (Standards of Leadership) Behaviors: PASSION FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE: Takes personal responsibility and accountability for execution and results. Has an owner's mindset, using data and insight to make decisions. PERSONAL MASTERY: Sets high standards for themselves. Actively builds own wellbeing and resilience. CONSUMER CLIENT/MEMBER LOVE: Whatever their role, always looks for better ways to serve consumersclients and members. Invests time inside and outside to understand the needs of consumersclients/members. PURPOSE & SERVICE: Has humility, understanding that leadership is service to others, inside and outside Unilever. AGILITY: Explores the world around them, continually learning and developing their skills.

About Unilever:

Unilever is one of the world's leading suppliers of Food, Home and Personal Care products with sales in over 190 countries and reaching 2 billion consumers a day. Unilever has more than 400 brands found in homes around the world, including Dove, Tresemme, Lynx, Lifebuoy, Shea Moisture, Persil, Domestos, Ben & Jerry's, Magnum, Marmite, The Vegetarian Butcher, Graze, and Pot Noodle.

What We Offer:

Not only do we offer a competitive salary and pension scheme, we also offer an annual bonus, subsidized gym membership, a discounted staff shop, and shares. You'll have the opportunity to work directly with our renowned and exciting brands in a flexible and hybrid working environment.

Diversity at Unilever:

Diversity at Unilever is about inclusion, embracing differences, creating possibilities, and growing together for better business performance. We want to push boundaries, and have the flexibility needed to keep adapting in an ever-changing, more dynamic world. This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity.

Recruitment Fraud:

Cyber criminals advertise fake job adverts with prestigious employers as a way of stealing information or even defrauding individuals out of money. In the most sophisticated cases, they will set up fake websites, which have a similar address to companies like Unilever. They even conduct fake telephone interviews and then offer candidates a role with the proviso they pay a fee for background checks or to cover work visa costs. These types of attacks are becoming more common as more people are looking for employment in the economic climate.

How is Unilever tackling this?

Many of Unilever's recruitment sites publish a warning to candidates about recruitment fraud. The Cyber Security team also proactively scans for signs of people setting up fake Unilever sites and act to close them down.

What can I do?

If you become aware of potential recruitment fraud, spot fake Unilever recruitment adverts or fake LinkedIn profiles, report them via Una Live Chat.

Unilever does not accept responsibility or liability for any candidates who are financially impacted by recruitment fraud. Your vigilance is key

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