Towers Perrin is entering the outsourcing market, rolling out a package aimed at large corpo-rate superannuation funds.
Towers Perrin is entering the outsourcing market, rolling out a package aimed at large corpo-rate superannuation funds.
Managing director David Solomon says the launch of SuperSolution was driven by the con-cern within the actuarial group that the needs of large corporate superannuation funds were not being adequately served by master trusts or industry funds.
“The large corporate funds will not find a satisfactory solution to all their needs with a master trust or industry fund with the former developed and designed for small to medium funds and industry funds catering to the small investor,” Solomon says.
“Large corporate funds wish to retain control over their name, assets and surpluses and they often have defined benefit components within them, which are too complex for master trusts to administer and manage effectively.”
Solomon says the SuperSolution product has the flexibility to allow large corporate funds to outsource all or part of their superannuation requirements.
“This is more a package of services than a product and as needs differ larger funds can out-source as they see fit,” Solomon says.
At present Towers Perrin will offer outsourcing support for trustee services, investment strat-egy and implementation, actuarial services, administrative services, member communication,
financial planning, insurance and secretarial services.
However Towers Perrin’s principal of retirement, Stephen Schubert says the only services not directly offered by Towers Perrin will be insurance and investment management.
“We don’t do those tasks but will take on the task of finding the best quality service provider for clients. We don’t have groups on the books as there will be no fund-of-fund approach,” Schubert says.
There will also be no pooling of assets. The aggregated size of the funds will be used to achieve cost savings and the package will only be offered to large funds.
The launch of the package coincides with the departure of Towers Perrin consultant Ken Lockery who has been with the group for 21 years.
Lockery will leave to move into a senior role in funds management however Towers Perrin will not release the name of company concerned.
Lockery joined the group in 1979 and has been a principal of Towers Perrin but says he is keen to try something different after two decades of consulting.
“I have been interested in the asset side of the superannuation industry for some time so when I was considering a change of career, funds management was the obvious choice.”
Lockery will take up his new role at the end of the month.
