Pensions Manager UK and Ireland in Sittingbourne

The Opportunity

We will shortly begin actively recruiting for a Pensions Manager for our Corporate Financial Services division, to be office-based from a UK site location (Solihull or Maidenhead most ideal).

What You’ll Do

• Lead the in-house Pensions Team, providing support and information to Company Management, the Trustee Directors and all active members of both pension schemes across multiple sites and business divisions.
• Ensure adequate support is in place to support members transitioning as a result of corporate acquisitions or divestments within a complex corporate group and to members seeking to understand their options as they approach retirement.
• Actively support the UK entity and the Trustee in the relationship with the US parent company.
• Act as Secretary to the Trustee of the Abbott Laboratories Pension Fund (1966), supporting the Chairman of the Trustee in taking decisive action to deliver the objectives of the Board.
• Act as a technical expert in support of both the Trustee Board and the Company, including the continuous assessment of the requirements of pension schemes due to the evolving regulatory environment and the implications of pensions tax regulations.
• Lead, manage and direct all elements of pension administration and communication for the Abbott Laboratories Pension Fund (1966) and Abbott Retirement Saver (2015), including automatic enrolment of all new hires, and similar support for a closed DB scheme and an open DC scheme in Ireland.
• Manage all aspects of governance, support and delivery for the Trustee Board, including preparing, running and minuting Trustee Meetings.
• Lead representation in all key relationships with professional advisors to both the Trustee and the Company.
• Seek and evaluate expert technical advice to deliver structured and targeted support to decision makers.
• Monitor administration performance against service level agreements and ensure all member issues are resolved in a timely fashion.
• Lead in the production of all member communications for the Abbott Laboratories Pension Fund (1966), ensuring consistent high quality of communication content and presentation through a rigorous review process, including oversight of the scheme website and its frequent updates.
• Ensure compliance with applicable legislation, regulation and Regulator guidance as well as the delivery and coordination of all necessary training for the Trustee Board.
• Responsible for ensuring adequate internal financial controls and administrative procedures are maintained throughout the pensions function.
• Ensure that the Trustee’s Annual Report and Accounts is prepared, audited and signed off within the statutory deadline.
• Lead the Trustee Board in operating Integrated Risk Management, including the regular review of the Trustee Risk Register.
• Partner with HR and Payroll in benefit design and administration issues.
• Direct all activities of the pensions office staff ensuring adequate resourcing, training and development, and direct line management of one individual.
• Manage the activities of the third party administrator of the Abbott Laboratories Pension Fund (1966) and of the provider of the Abbott Retirement Saver (2015).
• Coordinate and evaluate detailed technical analysis in support of funding issues arising from triennial actuarial valuations.
• Budgetary responsibility for management of Trustee expenditure exceeding £2 million annually, and budgetary negotiations.
• Oversee the application of the Trustee Internal Dispute Resolution procedure for the Abbott Laboratories Pension Fund (1966) to ensure any member complaints are dealt with quickly and appropriately, as well as any member issues with the Provider of the Abbott Retirement Saver (2015).
• Oversee automatic enrolment and automatic re-enrolment to ensure that all Abbott employers in the UK comply with their duties and that compliance is registered with The Pensions Regulator.
• Manage the annual renewal processes.
• Support the annual Corporate audit.
• Proactively identify pension related issues creating opportunities or requiring decisions from the Company and the Trustee, making suitable recommendations.
• Excellent stakeholder management - lead multiple relationships with professional advisors, the management of Trustee Board activities etc.

What You’ll Need

• Extensive experience of managing all aspects of both DB and DC pension funds including acting as Secretary to the Trustee.
• Ability to communicate effectively at all levels within a complex corporate environment.
• Project management experience.
• Thorough understanding of personal taxation as it relates to pensions and specifically high earners.
• Professional qualification to APMI or equivalent with membership of PMI.

What We Offer

As you’d expect from a global healthcare company, we offer a fantastic range of benefits to support you and your family, including competitive salaries, a superb defined contribution pension scheme, private healthcare, life assurance and a flexible benefits scheme.