Standard Life has joined forces with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for a three-year joint research initiative to explore the challenges faced by today’s retirement savers.
The new initiative, which will be funded by Standard Life, will enable a team of OECD researchers and pension policy experts to look more closely at the two major challenges facing the pensions industry; achieving financial security in retirement and how best to service the needs of a diverse workforce.
Andy Curran, chief executive of Standard Life, said the project will help foster innovation in the way it meets the differing needs and wants of savers.
As a first step, the duo will review global thinking towards retirement, looking at the different retirement income approaches being used in other countries to meet the needs of individuals and improve certainty of income as well as reducing the possibility of running out of money.
In addition, the OECD will focus on the growing challenge of meeting the diverse needs of their employees. With engagement a top concern for many, employers have expressed a desire to better understand whether their pension solutions and support are fit for purpose. The initiative will focus specifically on how factors including gender, culture, ethnicity and socio-economic background influence savings attitudes and behaviours.
It follows research from Standard Life which found that 57% of women feel confident making financial decisions compared to 70% of men, with this gap persisting among younger generations.
The findings of the initiative will be published in future editions of the OECD’s Pensions Outlook, while Standard Life said it will use the findings to support clients and policy makers both in the UK and other markets.
Andy Curran, chief executive of Standard Life, said: “The OECD’s combination of international reach and pensions expertise is unrivalled, and we’re excited to embark on this project with them. Our aim through the JRI is to foster innovation in the way we meet the diverse needs and wants of savers. By incorporating further research on gender, ethnicity, culture and socio-economic factors the OECD will help usshorten the time it takes to enhance our propositions, taking account of the latest international thinking.
“This initiative forms part of Standard Life’s wider commitment to invest in our brand and complements the work I announced last week to close the ‘Guidance Gap’. Through investment in market-leading projects like these, Standard Life is determined to help more people live a life of possibilities.”
Pablo Antolin, principal economist at the Private Pension Unit of the OECD, added: “The OECD is delighted to announce the joint research initiative with Standard Life encompassing retirement income and gender, diversity, equality and inclusion issues. Both work areas are important to consider not only in the UK but elsewhere across the globe. We argue that to address the main challenges that ageing societies present for retirement, we need to understand the different views and concerns of the different stakeholders in the world of pensions and retirement. This joint research initiative brings the views and concerns of a key player to the fore and will help us in our role of providing policy guidelines to policy makers worldwide.”
