Walkie Talkie

I’m writing this blog on the train home after a very agreeable evening of client entertaining yesterday and a productive Trustee Board meeting today.  Tomorrow I am off to Bristol for a series of client, prospect and provider meetings. So all in all a typical kind of week for Cosan, and many others of us who work long and hard in the industry will spend our time in similar fashion.

I spent a similar end to my working schedule last week, meeting an old client from my Corporate days – Nigel Bottom, International Pensions Manager at Motorola.  We talked through a number of subjects ranging from the curious state the pension administration market currently finds itself in (and the role providers, clients and consultants have played in it), the challenges facing DB and DC schemes, the need to ensure people of all ages understand and engage not with pensions but their overall financial position etc etc.

What made this meeting slightly different was it took place in the Peak District National Park, where we walked and talked and were accompanied by Douglas and Stanley, two well behaved springer spaniels and Spud and Barney, my slightly less well behaved cocker spaniels!

The conversation was wide ranging and refreshing, just like the views, and it did strike us that getting out of our normal environment made a real change and gave us a very different perspective on some of the issues we discussed. 

I am going to make it my mission to do more of these kind of meetings – so often we spend time coming up with the same old solutions to the same old problems.  Perhaps if we all tried to do things a little differently, then we may see more of a change in an industry that frankly needs to change drastically.

It was a great few hours, and a format I have no doubt we will repeat (after my two have spent suitable time at dog training classes) but perhaps if we all tried something a little different in how we engage with each other in the industry every now and then we may make a few small steps to making a difference.

Philip Dickinson

March 2017