Strong support exists within the industry superannuation funds movement for the inclusion of independent directors on superannuation fund boards.
While key industry fund lobby groups have continued to argue for the status quo, a new survey conducted by Money Management’s sister publication, Super Review, has revealed strong support for up to half independent directors.
Asked how they believed fund boards should be structured, more than half of respondents (51.2 per cent) opted for one-third independent directors, while a further 11.5 per cent of respondents indicated they would like to see half independent directors.
Only 35.8 per cent of respondents indicated they believed the status quo was appropriate.
Importantly, the survey conducted during the recent Conference of Major Superannuation Funds (CMSF) and more than half of the respondents described themselves as being either superannuation fund executives or trustees.
A later roundtable of superannuation fund executives concluded that skill outweighed independence when it came to the value of the directors of superannuation fund trustee boards.
