Irish Pensions: A Crisis of Unpreparedness and the Role of Financial Literacy

This seminar is orgainsed jointly by Cork University Business School and Investanalitix, an investment research, consulting and education company.

It is aimed at corporate pensions professionals such as HR managers, trustees, and finance professional directly involved with designing pension benefits' packages.

A common lament of corporations is that employees do not actively engage with their company-sponsored pension plan, partically because they lack the necessary investment knowledge and financial savvy to confidently participate in the investment planning process.

Consequently, corporate pensions remain under-utilised, much to the dismay of their sponsors. One undesirable result is that a significant proportion of the working population is unprepared for retirement, with one-in-three facing the prospect of a substatial income shortfall during their "golden years".

This half-day forum will re-evaluate the crisis of retirement unpreparedness in Ireland from the often-neglected perspective of financial literacy. Key questions raised will include: 

• Why are formal investment education and financial literacy initiatives not seen as essential components of a corporate pension package?

• Can investment education promote member participation and engagement?

• Can improved financial literacy engender greater retirement readiness in the working population?

• What strategies can corporations adopt to address this issue?

• How can companies best structure their pension benefits’ package to cater to disparate plan member needs?

Speakers include: 

Andrew Nugent:      Pensions Authority of Ireland

Niall O’Sullivan:      Cork University Business School

Zola Sookias:          Investanalitix 

For further details and booking inquiries, contact Mairead Geaney in University College Cork on 021-490-2574 or E-mail mairead.geaney@ucc.ie

Reservations are made on a first-come, first-served basis