Pension fund experience
I started in the pension profession, merely by chance, shortly after I graduated in 1997. I knew the word ‘pension’, but had no idea that it entailed such an interesting field. Since then, I have gained more than 25 years of experience as a pension consultant, focusing on policies, governance, outsourcing and contract management, IT, audit and non-financial risk. And whenever I think I've seen it all, I am pleasantly surprised by some new development. This is what keeps my work interesting.
Since 1 July 2023, I've been employed by FNV trade union as a pension board member. I am also a board member of the PWRI pension fund.
Considers his main duty
When making a decision, I always ask myself whether it will be fair for all stakeholders. Whether the decision will be justifiable, suitable for administration and cost efficient. I also find it very important that we communicate frankly about things we, as a pension fund, really cannot do. And that we are transparent about external factors over which we have little or no control. I am also committed to helping our participants make good decisions. People need to be able to reach out to us if they have any questions about our policies or the quality of our services.
CDC message
The transition to the new pension rules is a very complex process. We are working together with the supervisory committee, the accountability body, our colleagues at the board bureau, our outsourcing partners and advisers to get this huge job done. The main challenge in this transition is adapting our IT landscape. We are also changing the way we communicate with our participants; after all, it's their interests we are safeguarding. The quality of our administrative systems will be key to ensure we move all current pensions to the new pension system without making any errors. This means we need to redefine our operational risk management. At the same time, we need to keep our business going as usual. We will continue to carry out the current pension plan in a proper and controlled manner until the very end.
