Equiniti Magazine Winter 2012

INSIDE> THINKING GLOBALEquiniti's international outlook PAGE 16

REPUTATION MANAGEMENT10 masterclass tips froma PR expert PAGE 30

Man on a missionSimon Walker’s ambitions for the IoD

INSIGHT + INFORMATION + LEADERSHIP

MAGAZINE> WINTER 2012 > ISSUE 07

2 > Equiniti Magazine | winter 2012

FOREWORDWORDS FROM THE FRONT

What an amazing four yearsJohn Parker, Managing Director, Equiniti

Later this year will see the fifth anniversary of Equiniti leaving the Lloyds Banking Group and establishing itself in its own right – and what an extraordinary four years it has been.

This issue of the magazine looks at what has happened to the UK and global economy since 2007, whilst our CEO Wayne Story explains the impact it has had on Equiniti, and how we’ve developed new services to meet the changing needs of our clients.

There’s also a strong international flavour to this issue – we explain the European corporate governance debate, look at some clever solutions from Paymaster International Payments and discover what’s currently occupying company secretaries in Hong Kong.

Elsewhere, we hear the plans of Simon Walker, the new man heading up the Institute of Directors, and a man with an extraordinary CV that includes 10 Downing Street and Buckingham Palace. Meanwhile PR expert Richard Ellis gives us a masterclass in reputation management.

I hope you enjoy the issue and do get in touch if you have any feedback.

John Parker

Please contact me at: [email protected]

6Though it has long ceded its title of the ‘Workshop of the World’, the UK can still boast some significant, and perhaps unexpected, export successes.

1 Scotch whiskyWe may be in the depths of a global

recession, but the world still enjoys a wee dram – Scotch whisky exports grew by 23% in the first nine months of 2011, to reach nearly £3bn. The USA remains the most lucrative market, valued at £430m, while France imported the largest volume of Scotch, at 39.4 million litres.

2 The Financial TimesFirst published as the four-page ‘London

Financial Guide’ in 1888, the Financial Times is now printed in 23 sites around the world, with an average daily readership of 2.1 million people. Its Chinese subsidiary, FT Chinese, has more than 1.7 million registered users.

3 ClarksThe Somerset-based high street brand

has enjoyed significant success overseas. US sales rose by 19% in 2010, while sales in the lucrative Chinese market jumped by 20%. Such is the popularity of the brand in Jamaica that it last year inspired an improbable dance floor reggae tribute by Vybz Kartel.

NO 1: GREAT BRITISH EXPORTS

of the best

www.equiniti.com > 3

CONTENTSINSIDE THIS ISSUE

REGULARS4 Thinking Aloud

Wayne Story reflects on Equiniti’s journey since 2007

9 Postcard from Hong KongVictoria Ng gives the Tricor perspective

20 My EquinitiSimon Wadey on compliance, risk and being a football referee

22 What’s new at Equiniti?Meet Head of Group IT, Ben Crick

26 Company secretary profileWhy BSkyB’s Chris Taylor is always braced for the unexpected

30 MasterclassAn expert’s guide to reputation management

7 Five years onIt’s amazing what’s happened

since Equiniti was founded

10 Six steps to ESP successDavid Coleman provides tips on making the most of your employee share plan

12 New man at the IoDSimon Walker – the man from

Buckingham Palace

16 Thinking globalHow Equiniti is making an

impact internationally

24 At your serviceWhy 2011 was a record-breaking

year for Equiniti

28 Auto-enrolmentWhat you need to know now –

and how we can help

INSIDE> THINKING GLOBALEquiniti's international outlook PAGE 16

REPUTATION MANAGEMENT10 masterclass tips froma PR expert PAGE 30

Man on a missionSimon Walker’s ambitions for the IoD

INSIGHT + INFORMATION + LEADERSHIP

MAGAZINE> WINTER 2012 > ISSUE 07

EQUINITI MAGAZINENUMBER 07Cover photograph by Paul Rider

FEATURES

Equiniti Magazine is published on behalf of Equiniti by White Light Media.

Editorial Director: Fraser Allen Creative Director: Eric Campbell

Writers: Nicola More, Liz Longden, Nicholas KellyDesigner: Jenny Proudfoot

www.whitelightmedia.co.uk Members of the APA & PPA

Equiniti Magazine has been printed on environmentally responsible paper, manufactured using 50% recycled waste and 50% fibre from well managed forests, controlled sources and recycled wood.

4 TV programmesThe UK may be home to just five

terrestrial channels, but its television production companies still do a healthy trade abroad. The 2011 annual UK Television Exports Survey revealed a 13% annual increase in revenue from 2009-2010, to £1,418m. Hits include Doctor Who, Coronation Street and Downton Abbey. The UK is the second largest exporter of television

programmes in the world.

5 Harris tweedOriginally the product of a cottage

industry and associated with staid British upper classes, Harris tweed has risen to the heights of an aspirational fashion brand worn by the likes of Kate Moss and Madonna. Still handwoven in the

Outer Hebrides, the brand has gained kudos after being used in collections by Calvin Klein and Vivienne Westwood, and is currently exported to over 50 countries worldwide.

6 The Dyson vacuum cleaner

Tired of his vacuum cleaner’s poor performance Sir James Dyson did what great innovators do – he created his own, using the principle of cyclonic separation to produce a bagless model. The now famous vacuum cleaner has enjoyed success both in the UK and abroad

– 80% are sold outside of the UK – with exports helping the company to achieve a 15% rise in revenues.

4 > Equiniti Magazine | summer 2011

THINKING ALOUDWAYNE STORY


It’s just over four years since Equiniti Group was established. In that short time, the company has doubled in size – both in terms of turnover and the expertise it offers. CEO Wayne Story takes stock

It’s been an amazing four yearsWe started as a registrar business with revenues of about £150m. Four years on, our revenues are over £300m. We also have a much wider base of services and our retention rates for clients are strong. We’re in great shape to build the business further but that growth will be customer-driven. Our strategy has been to work closely with our clients, discover what they need and find fresh ways of delivering it.

The current economic situation brings threats and opportunitiesWe didn’t see many corporate actions in 2011 and the long-term yield curve for interest rates, which is a key driver for us, remains challenged. On the other hand, the pension side has continued to grow. Because of the current economic situation, more organisations are wanting to outsource pensions administration. In addition, our consulting division is benefiting from developments on the pensions front and several of our clients have chosen us as their software provider. We are delighted that our BPO business has also seen very good growth again this year.

The threat of double-dip recession is focusing mindsWe review the economic forecasts on a regular basis and we understand what a double dip could look like. To an extent, we’re protected in that out client base is typically made up of the larger corporate and public sector bodies. However, we’re in uncharted waters and it would be very foolish to assume that everything will be okay. All we can do is adopt a strong risk management approach, and work hard as a team to support our clients and to continue to provide an excellent service.

Because of the economic situation, organisations are wanting to outsource pensions administration. In addition, our consulting division is benefiting from developments on the pensions front and several of our clients have chosen us as their software provider.

PORTRAIT BY ANT UPTON


THINKING ALOUD>WAYNE STORY

We will continue to expandThe registrar business remains a valuable part of our offering. However, we have now transformed ourselves into a business services group that provides a wide range of complex administration and payment services. We want to be able to offer our clients a broader choice of services and to support this we will continue to add specialist businesses such as the recent acquisition of the Corporate and Employee Services division of NatWest Stockbrokers. We’re constantly looking out for similar opportunities.

International expansion is not an end in itselfWe want to be able to service our clients in the markets in which they operate. If our clients have

global needs, we must be able to cater for that. Our strategy for this includes the development of strategic alliances such as the Global Share Alliance and bolt-on acquisitions. It’s the same with the pension market. Having said that, there is still a big market in the UK and I wouldn’t underestimate the opportunities.

This business is excitingI can’t stress that enough. We have a fantastic group of people here, a wealth of expertise, a supportive shareholder in Advent International, a strong management team and clients with which we have excellent relationships. Things may be difficult economically, but I see these as exciting times, with opportunities, both for us and for our clients.

For more information,

please email [email protected]

The Equiniti Group: The journey so far

...and what else happened?

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Group formed

Trusteepension (PWC)

£400m

£100m

£200m

£300m

2008The Summer Olympics are held in Beijing, China

2009Barack Obama becomes President of the United States

2010Spain win the World Cup, held in South Africa

2011The Arab spring: governments in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya overthrown

The Equiniti Group: The journey so far

...and what else happened?

2008The Summer Olympics are held in Beijing, China

2009Barack Obama becomes President of the United States

2010Spain win the World Cup, held in South Africa

2011The Arab spring: governments in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya overthrown

Group formed

2008

2008 2009

2009

2011

2010

TrusteePensions

(PWC)


FIVE YEARS ONLOOKING BACK AT BUSINESS

According to the popular press’s interpretation of the Mayan calendar, the world is going to end this year. While that outcome is probably unlikely, the economic forecast for 2012 feels suitably apocalyptic. According to the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), the UK is likely to be heading towards a second recession as the global debt crisis continues to wreak havoc on the country’s recovery.

The past five years have been a long, challenging and often exhausting time for British business. The period has effectively seen the country go from boom to (not quite) bust, with the breezy, freewheeling optimism of Blair’s Cool Britannia a distant and slightly sour memory.

In many ways, 2007 was a watershed year for British business. At the end of 2006, Chancellor Gordon Brown was predicting a 3% rate of economic growth. He also went as far as claiming government finances would steadily move out of deficit, growing to an annual surplus of £14 billion by 2011. With total government debt expected to reach £1 trillion by 2014, he couldn’t have been more wrong.

So, what happened? Even by the first quarter of the year, confidence was clearly on the slide, with the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) reporting “disturbing” trends, and a “worrying deterioration in performance” in most sectors.

However, venture capital investment – a vital cog in the wheel of business start-ups – was in reasonably good health, with UK firms having less difficulty accessing finance than their US, French and German counterparts (The 2007 Productivity and Competitiveness Indicators, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform). Manufacturing industries may have been continuing to slow, but other sectors of British business – particularly commodities, the housing market and financial products – were still

benefiting from a boom that had been building since the turn of the century.

Confidence was no more evident than on the London Stock Exchange. During June, the FTSE 100 hit a seven-year high, while British high street brands like Tesco and Boots continued to perform well. The technology and telecoms sectors were also staking their claim – 2007 was not only the year that Apple’s iPhone made its first appearance but also the beginning of the public’s obsession with internet-based social media like Facebook and a marked increase in online shopping.

Later this year will see the fifth anniversary of Equiniti emerging from the Lloyds Banking Group and branching out on its own. It’s been a good five years for the business – but a tricky time for everyone involved in the wider business world. Nicholas Kelly reports


FIVE YEARS ONLOOKING BACK AT BUSINESS

It was also the year of outlandish and daring takeover bids: the Royal Bank of Scotland took over ABN Amro, while Rupert Murdoch’s ever-expanding publishing empire reached new heights with the acquisition of US firm Dow Jones.”

Weather-wise, however, it was the worst British summer since records began, which went some way to explain why high-street fashion outlets recorded poor figures. And by the time Gordon Brown began his reign as Labour leader in June 2007, the economic outlook was increasingly bleak.

In August, the European Central Bank (ECB) was forced to inject 95 billion euros (£63 billon) into the eurozone banking market, following the suspension of investment funds from French bank BNP Paribis. The credit crunch had begun. The contagion swiftly spread to the UK, with Northern Rock receiving emergency support from the Bank of England and the country witnessed the first run on a bank in over a century.

While the trickle-down effect of these financial catastrophes was hardly going to have an impact

on smaller British businesses overnight, over the weeks and months that followed caution became the watchword, with both banks and investors becoming increasingly reluctant to part with their money. By December, the Bank of England had cut interest rates, and many economists were beginning to speak the word that strikes fear into the heart of all governments: recession.

The rest, as they say, is history. In the third quarter of 2008, after almost 16 years of

unbroken growth, the UK economy entered its deepest post-war recession. Over the next eighteen months, the UK’s GDP fell by 6.4 per cent. The recession spread across the economy, not least in the housing market, which ground virtually to a halt. The auto sector was also hit particularly hard: in 2009 Nissan severely cut production and was forced to make a humiliating move to a three-day week in the run-up to Christmas.

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime crisis, and possibly the largest financial crisis of its kind in human history,” Bank of England Deputy Governor Charlie Bean said in 2008. A lot can change in a year. From a British business point of view, 2007 was the year that changed everything. Fortunately for Equiniti and their much valued clients, it was the start of a rather more successful chapter.


POSTCARD FROM...HONG KONG

SKILLED COMPANY secretaries are very much in demand in Hong Kong. The

profession is gaining more recognition here due to an increased emphasis on the importance of corporate governance, continual upgrades on listing rules requirements and the fact that compliance is growing ever more complex.

At the moment, demand is outstripping supply so there is a high staff turnover amongst company secretaries as they move about seeking new opportunities. It’s a concern for businesses here; they are aware of the need to invest in training – but training becomes expensive when staff move on quickly. The issue is exacerbated by the fact that there are few university courses in Hong Kong specifically designed for company secretaries.

IPO and new listings of international brands on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange confirm international recognition of Hong Kong's potential. Hong Kong is strongly connected with other markets and significantly influenced by both the performance of the US dollar and the European markets. We’re constantly vigilant for any changes in global market conditions that might affect us. The other big influence, of course, is China. Its economic policies and developments inevitably affect our financial performance.

Currently, company secretaries in Hong Kong are busy preparing to ensure compliance with

new listing rules and corporate governance requirements that will be introduced in the second quarter of this year. The changes aim to enhance governance and transparency, providing better investor protection. Stakeholders support the changes and appreciate the value of compliance.

Boardroom diversity and director pay levels aren’t the big issues in Hong Kong that they are in the UK. Hong Kong is very well known for the efficiency and speed of its businesses, and pay levels are regarded as an acceptable reward for the commitment required. Having said that, the new listing rules are setting more stringent requirements for listed companies to ensure that sufficient reasons are given for the remuneration of directors and senior management.

As to the Tricor Group, one of the priorities for 2012 is consolidating and developing Tricor Investor Services’ Global Share Alliance with Equiniti and Australia’s Link Market Services (see p18). At the same time, we will continue to expand our global reach. We have made two recent additions to the Tricor family with our offices in Japan and India. Then there is China. Although there are more and more overseas issuers coming to Hong Kong, China remains a significant source of new listings for the stock exchange here. Our strength in offering services that will meet the needs of the Chinese issuers, or for that matter international issuers, is our extensive global network of professionals.

Hong Kong is a great place for business – a gateway to the region with a very robust governance structure and a stock exchange that is very supportive to overseas issuers seeking listing. For the year ahead, we’re cautiously optimistic as markets in Asia, particularly China, still hold out promises for growth and expansion.

VIRGINIA NGBORN: Hong KongEDUCATION: The Hong Kong Polytechnic UniversityQUALIFICATIONS: ACS, ACISFAMILY: Married with a nine-year-old sonHOBBIES: Travelling and cooking

Virginia Ng, Director of Investor Services at Tricor Investor Services, gives a Hong Kong perspective on corporate governance and economic prospects for 2012


SHARE PLANS SIX STEPS TO SUCCESS

Set your focusIt’s important to understand why you set up the plan in the first place – what did you ultimately hope to achieve? Statistics show that share plans are fantastic for employee morale, making a significant impact on loyalty and performance. Before you flesh out the details of your scheme, take the time to think about the results you hope to achieve. A plan to simply reward might look different to a plan that is designed to engender long term employee loyalty.

Want some advice on communicating your employee share plan? David Coleman, Head of Employee Benefits Support Services at Equiniti, provides a guide to some of the essentials

Choose the right planUnderstanding your employees is key to running a share scheme that people will want to participate in. For example, the primary benefit of a Partnership shares only Share Incentive Plan (SIP) is the tax break, which might appeal more to employees who are higher rate taxpayers. For many companies, Sharesave is a great way to incentivise all their employees, as it provides a no-risk opportunity to save as well as the potential for significant returns. It’s important to know what your colleagues want and what will benefit them the most.

Talk to peopleA good way to get the best results is to go out and talk to your people to gauge what will suit them best. Marks & Spencer is a great example. They held focus groups and talked with a range of people across the business to gain a strong understanding of what motivates their staff, then built the communication of the plan around that. Interestingly, the majority of Marks & Spencer employees are female, and their feedback was that the company’s share plan communications felt very masculine in tone. That’s something so simple and easy to overlook, but it can make a big difference. It’s an incontrovertible truth that the only way to really know what people want is to ask them.

1

2

3


Choose the right mediumAgain, this is about knowing your employees and how they like to interact. There are now a vast range of methods to communicate and market your share plans, but the key is to choose the ones that are right for your employees. Centrica is a company that does this well, for example by communicating Sharesave messages in short broadcasts to their engineers on the road. That suits their working pattern more than a blanket email campaign or newsletter – but, again, consultation is the key.

Paint a pictureWhen I worked as a financial adviser, part of our training was to learn to draw little houses and cars upside down. Why? Because I wasn’t selling a mortgage or a loan, I was selling a house or a car to the person on the other side of the table to me. The same thing applies to share plans. Alongside communicating the detail of the product itself, you’re also marketing the benefits and the aspiration. Personalisation and segmentation have become increasingly popular in marketing, and if your communication can reach out and say, for example, ‘This plan is helping you to save for your dream holiday’, you have a better chance of engaging people. However, it’s also important not to over-sell it. Anecdotal feedback suggests that when companies use someone’s first name excessively in marketing material, the people they are targeting can sometimes find it invasive, so use such techniques sparingly. It’s great to understand what your employees want, and to tailor your tone, design and imagery to appeal to them, but if you over-egg it, you might scare people off.

Find a championGetting buy-in and visible support from the leaders of your business is really valuable. It’s key to find the people who will connect everyone. We’ve worked with a number of companies where their CEO was an iconic and visible figure in the business, and their endorsement of the share scheme had a big impact on take-up. For disparate companies in particular, with many stores and offices, having a strong central figure gives people a sense of wanting to be part of something. An example is the CEO of Talk Talk, Dido Harding, who is very visible and has a blog which is read by employees and which regularly refers to sharesave. Your business leaders can rally everyone to come together to move the business forward. That’s very powerful.

To find out more about the service from Equiniti’s Employee Benefits, please contact David Coleman on 0207 469 1895

or [email protected]

46

5

FEATUREINTERVIEW SIMON WALKER


As CVs go, Simon Walker’s is impressively eye-catching. The Oxford-educated South African began his working life as a journalist and public relations consultant before becoming a special adviser in the Prime Minister’s Policy Unit. He later became Director of Corporate Affairs at British Airways and, from 2000 to 2003, was Communications Secretary to HM The Queen. Four years as Director of Corporate Communications and Marketing at Reuters followed before he became Chief Executive of the BVCA, the organisation representing British private equity and venture capital.

A background in journalism and PR; political know-how and royal associations; high-level corporate affairs experience, media knowledge and chief executive credentials – no wonder the Institute of Directors (IoD) was keen to appoint him as its Director General this autumn.

But what was the attraction for Simon? After all, recent years have not been kind to the reputation of corporate Britain. Rightly or PO

RTRA

IT B

Y PA

UL R

IDER

GRASPING THE NETTLE

Working for both Downing Street and Buckingham Palace taught Simon

Walker valuable lessons. The Director General of the Institute of Directors

explains all to Fraser Allen


INTERVIEW SIMON WALKER

wrongly, the kudos of being a company director has been tainted in the public eye by the banking crisis, corporate governance issues and, most recently, media debate about pay increases for Britain’s wealthiest businessmen.

“When you start a new role, you need to take time to think very hard about what you’re doing, and then be decisive. You’ve got to grasp the nettle. I’m thinking carefully about what we can do next and the attraction for me is that I’m passionate about the good that business does,” says Simon. “Now more than ever, during tough economic times, we need strong business skills. I saw this job as a great opportunity to help business put its case forward.

“The issue with pay increases for directors is more about reward,” he adds. “Nobody begrudged Steve Jobs or Bill Gates the billions they made because they invented and marketed fantastic products that have changed our lives. But I think people rightly resent it when someone wrecks a company and walks away with a large reward for failure. I sympathise with that completely. What I would add is that the Government can’t do much about that. Shareholders and investors need to become more demanding, and I would encourage them to take more control over the remuneration of directors.”

Simon also points out that membership of the IoD is a broad church. “The average IoD director runs a business employing a few dozen or perhaps a few hundred people, at a time of extraordinary economic challenge. I was in the Midlands recently with an export business that has lost about 80% of its European orders in the last year but is striving to retain its staff and continue running the business for the upturn because it’s a long-term

believer in its product and its people. To me that’s a much more typical approach of directors in this country.”

As part of its public spending cuts strategy, the Government has placed considerable faith in the private sector’s ability to create extra job opportunities for those formerly in the public sector. Despite the disappointing growth figures throughout 2011, Simon is broadly supportive of the strategy.

“Reducing the structural deficit is extremely important and we think that the Government is proceeding in exactly the right direction on that,” he says. “The truth is that the public sector has been over-staffed for years, and it’s going to take time for that to be ironed out. To a certain extent, the private sector is taking on people from the public sector – that is happening. However, we would also like to see more business-friendly measures that encourage people to start and grow businesses.

“I think people rightly resent. it when someone wrecks a. company and walks away with. a large reward for failure”.


The IoD would also like to see the Government ease back on auto-enrolment of pensions. “We understand that pensions are vital, and getting the pensions scheme right is absolutely vital, but it’s going to impose a burden on smaller and medium sized companies in the middle of a severe economic crisis. A modest delay would be a sensible measure.”

On a more positive note, Simon believes that Britain’s directors strongly support the Government’s moves to encourage greater diversity in UK boardrooms. “What it’s really about is diversity of thought, and you achieve that by having the greatest range of people in your organisation. That’s partly about helping to create climates in which women are able to participate more fully in the workplace earlier in their careers. We need to address issues such as childminders being priced out of the market by over-regulation. That’s a problem – it’s a lot more difficult and expensive for women with young children to have their children looked after, and that sets them at a disadvantage as they rise further through the business ranks.”

The value in embracing diversity of thought is one of the key lessons that Simon drew from his spell at Downing Street. “I learnt that good ideas come from all kinds of different sources,” he says. “It’s important to be on the look-out constantly. A lot of people connected with the IoD have excellent ideas, and I want to hear as many of them as possible.”

His career to date has also taught him the importance of being open and straightforward in dealing with people, and accepting that mistakes are an important part of working life – as long as you learn from them, and quickly.

Simon took over the reins at the IoD in October and since then has travelled throughout the UK. “The authority of the IoD comes from its membership, and the breadth of its membership, rather than individuals,” he says. “I’ve been testing members’ opinions, it’s really important to do that. I suppose I had always thought of the IoD as having a big London presence, but the vibrancy of the regions has really impressed me.”

The South African now running the IoD has a career path typified by relatively short (3-4 year) spells in high-profile jobs, so he is clearly aiming to make an impact. Expect to hear news of nettles being grasped as 2012 unfolds.

While the Eurozone crisis is still with us, it’s difficult to make concrete plans, but once it has been resolved, I think UK business will be ready to re-engage, particularly in export terms. So we need to make that easier by looking at taxation. We also need to look at employment law – we’ve got to create a climate where businesses want to take people on as employees, that the risk is acceptable. The Government is moving in the right direction on that front, but it could move faster.”

Five other South Africans who have made their mark on the UK

1 JRR TolkienThe creator of

Middle-earth may have seemed as English as tuppence but he was actually born in Bloemfontein. His mother moved him to the UK when he was three.

2 Donald GordonThe Johannesburg property

developer made his name in the UK as chairman of Liberty International before donating a total of £20m to the Royal Opera House and the Wales Millennium Centre.

3 Mark Shuttleworth

Originally from Cape Town, the South African internet entrepreneur and space tourist runs his philanthropic Ubuntu Project from the Isle of Man.

4 Marius BarnardNot only was Marius part of the

team, headed by brother Christian, that performed the world’s first human to human heart transplant, but his concern over the financial plight of seriously ill patients also drove him to help create the world’s first critical illness insurance policy.

5 Kevin PietersonWhisper it, but one

of England’s finest batsmen over the past eight years (and captain for a brief period) is, let’s be honest, South African. Born in Pietermaritzburg, he made his first-class debut for Natal in 1997.

::THE SPRINGBOK CONNECTION

PORT

RAIT

BY

MA

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ALV

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PICT

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: PA

/REX

What’s your favourite place on earth?A bay in New Zealand. It’s on the Awaroa Inlet in the Abel Tasman National Park.

Where are you most likely to be found on a Sunday afternoon?I’m afraid it would probably be at home sitting in front of my laptop.

What did you want to do when you left school?I wanted to be a politician. It’s been a merciful relief that I didn’t fulfill that ambition. I’m pleased I got sidetracked.

If you could spend an hour in conversation with one living or historical figure, who would it be and why?Cecil Rhodes – he was a deeply flawed individual, but nonetheless a man who had great vision and achieved an enormous amount in his 48 short years. He is someone I’d be terribly interested to talk to, partly because of his strengths, but also because of his failings.

How do you relax?I cycle around eight miles to and from work. I like it very much – it brightens up my day.

What’s the last thing you cooked?I’m very fond of aubergines, and whatever I cook usually has aubergines in it. I think the last thing I cooked was a veal parmigiana, aubergines included.


FEATURE


INTERNATIONAL

hen David Cameron made the historic decision to veto EU treaty changes last year, commentators were divided. His own back bench hailed it as a bold move to protect British interests, while opponents argued that such isolation spelled disaster for the UK economy. It’s a complex situation

that will no doubt engross economists for months to come, but it’s symptomatic of key tensions in European relations: can a common treaty benefit 27 economically distinct nations? Or to put it more plainly, does one size fit all?

It’s a question that applies equally to the European Commission’s Green Paper on corporate governance, which seeks to find a governance model that will ensure responsibility and transparency in the operations of listed companies. In its response to the consultation, Equiniti strongly supports the wider application of the UK principle of ‘comply or explain’, but advocates a flexible approach to its application – an approach that is mindful of the differences in each member state.

As a share registrar for more than 700 UK plcs – including around 50 of the FTSE 100 – Equiniti believes it has a duty to its clients to be an active voice in the corporate governance debate. Says Company Secretary Peter Swabey: “In the wake of the financial crisis, there was a general feeling that something must be done, and some commentators and politicians claimed that the crisis was all down to a failure in corporate governance – a judgment I believe to be over-simplistic but which, from their viewpoint, has the merit that it places the blame on companies rather than politicians. This has led to a wide variety of proposals for change from a number of international bodies. The consultations are coming thick and fast, and the truth is that many of our clients have neither the time nor the resources to devote to following this debate. But we have to. Corporate governance is a fundamental issue for our clients, so it’s our responsibility to engage with the changes that are being proposed and communicate them as clearly and consistently as we can across our client base.”

In its response to the EU Green Paper, Equiniti called for flexibility across a number of areas, in order to protect the interests of UK companies. For example, the Green Paper

Following four years of rapid growth, Equiniti is now making strides in the international market with the launch of the Global Share Alliance and Paymaster

International Payments. Nicola Sinclair reports

Thinking global

W


asks whether there should be an obligatory division between the roles of chairman and chief executive, but Peter recalls one company whose chief executive resigned soon after being appointed, and was replaced by the chairman, acting as CEO in the interim. Hardly an ideal situation, but the best solution available at that time. Similarly, the Green Paper considers limiting the number of mandates a non-executive director may hold, but Peter knows from experience that many clients report that social and charitable commitments are just as time-consuming for some directors as additional mandates. Equiniti argues that the time commitment of each individual is a question for the board, not the regulator.

In the case of boardroom diversity, Equiniti recognises this as a key challenge and an area in which businesses can and must do better – but, again, a broad-brush approach is a clumsy solution. “Diversity is better managed at national code than EU level, as this can better reflect the individual circumstances of the company,” says Peter. “For example, a company with major interests in the Far East is much more likely to have a board with significant representation from the Far East, which would add considerable value to the decision-making process, than a company with no such interests. Whilst diversity is important, it must be directly related to the unique situation of each individual company.”

This is the heart of the issue for Peter – looking out for the best interests of Equiniti’s individual clients amongst the sweeping changes to corporate governance in the EU. “Our contribution to the debate is primarily focused on doing what is right and what is appropriate for businesses here in the UK, and seeking to ensure that any new legislation is sufficiently flexible,” says Peter. “However, by virtue of our clients’ global operations, Equiniti is becoming known as a business with interests around the world.”

Global Share AllianceIndeed, Equiniti is making bold steps internationally, with the launch of Paymaster International Payments and the Global Share Alliance both adding a new dimension to its service offering for clients.

The Global Share Alliance (GSA) is a partnership initiative between Equiniti and leading share registrars in Hong Kong and Australasia, designed to

offer clients with global operations one easy solution to managing their share registration and employee benefits.

In the GSA, clients will work with a world-class service provider and benefit from a holistic view of their register across the globe. It’s a simple solution, providing one point of contact and a relationship team to support clients across their international operations, as well as providing advice for expansion into new countries. Investors then benefit from access to all markets, 24/7 opening and multi-currency options. In Hong Kong, Equiniti has partnered with Tricor, whose client portfolio includes the majority of companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, more than 580 companies listed in Singapore and Malaysia, and over a third of companies in the Fortune 500. The GSA partner in Australia, India and South Africa – Link Market Services Limited – is also a market leader. With 10 million holder records under management, Link maintains the registers of over 1,000 securities and provides services to over 90 of the S&P/ASX Top 100.

“Previously, I think Equiniti was viewed as a UK-centric registrar,” says Paul Matthews, Managing Director Corporate Markets. “We didn’t really have an offering for globally mobile companies. The Global Share Alliance is protectionist in that it aims to extend our offering for existing clients, but it also gives us the capability that if a new client comes in who wants to list beyond the UK, we are able to respond to that demand.

“Up until now, Computershare dominated the market, but this alliance with Link and Tricor enables us to join forces to compete. We believe that the GSA will be able to offer a comparable product range but with better service and wider functionality. It’s crucial to have competition in any market, and we now believe that clients will benefit from more competitive pricing and a more efficient end product.”

As with any alliance, effective partnership working is viewed as key to the success of the GSA. “We have a basic share registry offering plus multi-product financial services,” says Paul. “There are many synergies across the partners, and we are currently exploring how we each run, and sharing those insights to help us become ‘best of breed’.”

Paymaster International PaymentsFor companies trading internationally, corporate governance and share schemes

INTERNATIONAL

“All international payments are managed through one online service, so it only takes a few clicks to process a payment and there is no need to re-key in data”


are not the only functions that can bring a high level of complexity. Even a process that should be simple – the payment of suppliers – can prove enormously costly in both financial and administrative terms. Despite the rapid progress of technologies and the globalised nature of business, the payments infrastructure is curiously antiquated and fraught with problems.

Independent research shows that a third or more of all international payments contain errors, which incur additional transaction fees. If a company makes 100 international payments a month, each incurring a £15 charge, with a 33% fail rate, that amounts to an additional cost of close to £6,000 per annum.

The vast majority of these errors come from keying mistakes, and some finance departments re-key international payment data four times. Tracie Colin-McKenzie,

Payments and FX Director for Paymaster International Payments, explains: “If you’re not a big global company with an integrated solution, you often end up with keying errors, such as entering account numbers and sort codes in the wrong format. Small errors like these result in approximately one-third of international payments failing and incurring a bank charge. Our research shows that 86% of businesses process international payments through their high-street bank, but these banks can have a very domestic focus that can cause a number of difficulties.

“Say you’re a UK company paying a supplier in China. Your supplier wants to receive payment in their local currency, but the high-street bank can’t pay in that currency so pay in USD, say, instead. Many suppliers will inflate the price of their products or services to cover the cost of converting payment into their currency. Those charges can really stack up, especially with the banks in the chain also taking a little chunk each time.”

Paymaster, Equiniti’s payments processor business, has launched a new

service that aims to resolve all those issues. Paymaster International Payments (PIP) is an international payment and foreign exchange solution aimed at mid-sized corporates. PIP delivers low error rates, fast processing and transparent and competitive fee structures all supported by personalised customer services.

“PIP is about doing everything smarter,” says Tracie. “All international payments are managed through one online service, so it only takes a few clicks to process a payment and there is no need to re-key data. The process is also fully integrated with the client’s account system, and it doesn’t require lots of sophisticated technology to run – it can accept Excel, for example. Even if clients do need to manually enter data, our market-leading software has an inbuilt validation system that spots errors before the payment is submitted.”

The service is designed to be secure and easy to use, eventually enabling payments in up to 180 countries at a competitive price and with no hidden costs. One of the biggest advantages is that customers using Paymaster International Payments can access dedicated customer service from a secure and trusted business.

“Paymaster has been processing payments for 175 years, and has great credentials,” says Tracie. “Being part of Equiniti Group only enhances that. Many of our larger competitors are American owned, while smaller operations tend to come and go. By comparison, Equiniti is an established British company and due diligence shows that we are well respected. Clients taking advantage of PIP can rest assured that they are in safe hands, and that operational and account manager support is available as and when they need it.”

So what’s next for PIP? “At present, we offer 65 currencies, which were all chosen according to client demand. All the obvious ones are there, as well as some that we were planning to develop later but which our clients told us they required now,” says Tracie. “The product will continue to evolve, and we will add new currencies and functionality in line with client feedback.”

This focus on customer needs is at the heart of Equiniti’s growing international profile. Whether it’s influencing European debate on corporate governance, or launching innovative services such as PIP and Global Share Alliance, Equiniti’s efforts are focused not merely on growth, but on delivering client services fit for the future.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

I’ve had some good managers who have told me not to be scared to voice my opinion. Good communication is about being open and honest, and acting with integrity at all times.

What are your passions outside of work?

I’m a qualified referee, and I love the feeling of coming off the pitch after a great game. I also have a little girl, who’s two in February, so I like to spend as much time as possible with my family.

If you didn’t work in compliance and risk, what would you do?

I would be a teacher.

Three quick questions

In 1994 I took a job at Equiniti during my gap year between college and university. I had planned to become a teacher, but here I am 18 years later working in compliance instead. I think what has kept me interested all this time has been the variety in the job. There’s always a new way to support the business and I enjoy understanding its inner workings and tackling any new challenges that arise. It’s certainly not a mundane job, and I have had the opportunity to learn so much over the years.

I started out in the operational side of the business, and moved over to employee share plans before heading up the in-house

Employee trustee team for a couple of years. In 2006 I made the move into Compliance and Risk, an area that’s really diverse and fast paced. We have to keep up to speed with all the FSA regulations and publications, which are released on an almost daily basis, as well as the activities of the Information Commissioner’s Office in the UK and the wider European Commission. It’s vital to the business that we fully understand the implications of the ever-changing regulatory landscape.

The financial crisis greatly accelerated the pace of change in Compliance and Risk, and Equiniti itself has expanded with new acquisitions in recent

years, so the pressure to keep up is greater than ever before. We approach our goals in a very structured way, with a clear view of where we’re headed, and it’s great to have something to really get your teeth into.

2011 was a particularly busy year, as we worked with Xafinity to fully integrate their platforms into the wider Group Compliance function including the deployment of our enterprise-wide risk management approach across the whole group. The industry also needed to react to the implementation of the Bribery Act in July, and I drafted new policies for how we communicate bribery laws to the business and support our

colleagues to meet the new reporting requirements.

The year ahead will see the FSA disbanded and split into two new authorities, and we will be looking closely at how that impacts on Equiniti and our clients. We have a strong and transparent relationship with the FSA and we will be working to maintain this by quickly resolving any new issues as they arise.

Events in Europe will also be a major focus. There’s talk of a new MiFID (Markets in Financial Instruments Directive) early in the year, which will need to be interpreted by the various European territories, and there will also be a new Data Protection Directive. Within Equiniti itself, 2012 will be about continuing to grow the business and delivering new products and services in a smart fashion.

One of the most important aspects of working in compliance is having the right network of contacts across the business so that you can go out and talk to colleagues, finding out the information you need and keeping people up to date on any new developments. That is one of the benefits

MY EQUINITI: SIMON WADEY

He’s a Compliance and Risk Manager who nearly became a teacher, and is a referee in his spare time. If you need someone to help steer you in the right direction, Simon Wadey’s a good contact for you

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“If I could go back and offer myself any advice in 1994, it would be not to hide away, but to make your voice heard and grab the

opportunities that come your way”


of having come up through various areas of the business – I enjoy a strong overview of our operations and have good contacts in all areas.

In addition to my work in compliance I’m also an Equiniti Business Health & Safety Champion and notional Chair of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). We take a structured approach to CSR, with a very active charity committee and a range of initiatives in our local community and the

wider environment. Over the past few months I have been working on a partnership with the local high school in Worthing, which sees a group of Year 10/11 pupils spend a day getting to know the business. We treat them as we would a client coming to visit and give them a fairly intensive tour of all our operations, including IT and the mailroom. It helps the students to understand that there’s more to running a business than just what you see at the front end. It’s a good

way to give something back to the community, but it also helps enrich our understanding of how to interact with the younger generation, supporting our recruitment and marketing efforts. We’ve had great feedback from the programme and I hope to roll it out to more sites in future.

On a personal level, working with young people really appeals to the would-be teacher in me. I’m also a fully qualified football referee, so I guess

between compliance, teaching and refereeing I just really enjoy enforcing the rules! The trick with all those things is learning to communicate your message with confidence. If I could go back and offer myself any advice in 1994, it would be not to hide away, but to make your voice heard and grab the opportunities that come your way. Finally, if there was one thing I would say to others about compliance, it’s that, contrary to urban belief, good compliance is all about business enablement.



WE TAKE A LOOK AT THE LATEST NEWS FROM ACROSS EQUINITI

WHAT’S NEW AT EQUINITI?

INTRODUCING BEN CRICK, HEAD OF GROUP IT, EQUINITI What’s your role I’m responsible for most of the technology and IT Services across the Group. We’ve got around 100 permanent employees within IT, and our work is mainly around delivering IT services, application development and support. We also have a service delivery partner, with around 70 people offshore in India, and a good portion of what we do is managing that relationship and making sure that the services they provide to us are to the level that we require.

You only joined Equiniti last year. How’s it been?It’s been fantastic. We’ve made a huge amount of changes, one of the major ones being to bring the Equiniti and Xafinity IT teams together and get them working as a single unit. It’s been great to have been involved in that.

What do you enjoy most about working at Equiniti?I enjoy the people side of things. You often hear the saying: ‘People, process and technology’. They are three important elements, but it’s

definitely the people who are the most important, and I’ve really enjoyed bringing the teams closer together. Yes we’ve gone through some challenging times, but the outcome has been very good, we’ve delivered some major technology changes and it’s been great to watch services improve.

What are you working on at the moment?There are a number of projects ongoing that we support, including the Xafinity Data Centre consolidation, but one of the biggest business deliverables has been the ESP portal. This has been a major step forward for Equiniti and I’m looking forward to doing more with it because I think it really is a differentiator for us. I believe it’s the best amongst our competitors, and we need to make sure our clients are aware of that and recognise its value.

What’s your vision for the future of IT in Equiniti? In the near term we aim to evolve our products more so that they are web-enabled and mobile,

allowing our customers to take more value from the services we offer. We also want to broaden our services and make them more technology-driven. Our customer base is maturing, and our customers are becoming more aware of what technology can do, so we want to make sure it’s at the heart of what we do as a company – not just from an operational point of view, but in terms of innovation, too.

5minute interview

“Our customer base is maturing, and our customers are becoming more aware of what technology can do, so we want to make sure it’s at the heart of what we do as a company”


Recent research* has shown that 36% of all international business payments experience at least one problem, while the average missing payment takes seven working days to notice

and rectify. A new service from Paymaster aims to make such errors a thing of the past, offering a new international payment and foreign exchange solution aimed at medium sized companies.

Paymaster International Payments replicates the advances in domestic payments, offering a better way of making payments with low error rates, fast processing, transparent and competitive fee structures, and a personalised customer service from dedicated payments and foreign exchange managers. *According to research undertaken on behalf of Travelex Global Business Payments

For more information on Paymaster

International Payments, see Thinking Global on p16-19, or contact Tracie Colin-McKenzie on 01293 604427 or at tracie.colin-mckenzie@ xafinitypaymaster.com

Aquisition boosts share dealing offeringThe Equiniti Group has further extended its service offering with the acquisition of the Corporate and Employee Services (CES) division of NatWest Stockbrokers.

CES is a specialist corporate and share plan stockbroking team providing dealing services for participants of all types of share plans as well as bespoke dealing services for directors and senior executives. The team has been a leading provider in this market for many years, servicing an extensive client list, including over 30 FTSE 100 companies.

The acquisition has added a niche area of business to our Investment Services Division. Combining this with Equiniti’s

existing expertise in share registration, employee benefits and share plans, Equiniti can now offer a ‘one stop shop’ for many investment needs.

For further details, please go to www.equiniti.com

Euromoney and Corac turn to EquinitiEquiniti’s Shareholder Solutions division recently welcomed two new clients in Euromoney and Corac Group plc.

Euromoney is a leading international business-to-business media group, focused primarily on the international finance sector.

It publishes more than 100 magazines, newsletters and journals, runs an extensive

portfolio of conferences, seminars and training courses, and is a leading provider of electronic information and data, covering international finance and emerging markets.

Corac Group plc is an innovative research and development group, specialising in compressor and power electronics technology, developing patented applications and creating value for end customers. It is currently listed on the AIM market.

“These two business wins are a great demonstration of Equiniti’s competitive edge,” says Equiniti Managing Director John Parker.

For more information on Equiniti’s Shareholder

Solutions, please contact Danny Curran on 0207 469 1875 or [email protected]

International payments solution Data analysis is in demandEquiniti has long been regarded as an expert in asset reunification, thanks to its ProSearch service. And it has now seen an increase in demand for these specialist data analysis skills in other sectors, with charities, local authorities and private sector pension schemes among those benefiting from Equiniti’s expertise.

Examples of where Equiniti has been able to help include assisting pension scheme trustees to tackle poor record-keeping; aiding local authorities in increasing collection rates of council tax; and helping the Land & Property Services (LPS) – the agency responsible for mapping, land registration, rating and valuation in Northern Ireland – to identify and segment more than 90,000 property records.

“Equiniti Data Service’s work has been significant in helping us meet our debt reduction target for 2010/11,” says Anne Johnston, Revenue & Benefits IT Programme Manager at LPS. “We were also able to identify for write-off an amount of uncollectable debt and provided with information to enable us to review our internal processes and improve our decision making.”

For more information on Equiniti Data Services,

please contact Duncan Stevens on 01732 748154 or [email protected]


Graham BullHead of Customer Processing

“My highlight of the year is the way in which our people have risen to every challenge we have set them”

“In total Equiniti has handled more than four million transactions of various levels of complexity, 1.4 million pieces of correspondence to customers, whilst achieving our lowest ever complaints record and quality scores in excess of 98%,” says Graham Bull. “In the past decade I believe there has been a change in shareholder appetite – today, service providers are expected to get it right first time, and I’m proud that our team has achieved this in what has been a challenging year.

“Our people bring our operation to life and they have been more than willing to respond flexibly to change, learn new skills and pull together on major contracts. I’m looking forward to seeing even greater successes in 2012.”

Letitia TrimmerHead of Quality Assurance and Complaints Management

“Complaints are at a record low and the focus on quality ensures we continue to deliver service excellence across the board.”

“2011 has been a fantastic year for Equiniti. As a result of our focus on effective complaint management and the quality of handling, we were rated top against our competitors in the Complaint Handling category in the 2011 Capital Analytics survey. We have achieved a record low in terms of our rate of incoming complaints against transaction volumes, achieving 0.02%! In addition to this, the number of complaints referred to the Financial Ombudsman has been reduced by 60% compared with 2010 and Equiniti has not featured on the six-monthly FOS publication for 18 months now.

“Our continued focus on quality and our investment in training and development of staff has enabled us to further enhance the customer experience and consistently achieve our quality and service targets throughout the year. Our plan of action for 2012 is under way and has been developed in conjunction with the Operational Quality Champions to ensure that our efforts are focused on the most important things to our customers to ensure we build on the successes achieved in 2011.”

2011 was in many ways a record-breaking year for Equiniti, which achieved its lowest ever number of complaints and a service score of 98%. Equiniti Magazine looks at the highlights

At your service

SERVICE HIGHLIGHTS


John CoombesHead of Document Services

“We rose to the challenge of integrating our services and mailed 36 million documents on time”

A large increase in the volume of outgoing print and mail made 2011 a challenging year, but Equiniti has maintained service levels throughout. “Our Print & Mail operation has taken on a number of new activities to achieve better integration with Equiniti Group,” says John Coombes. “Through smarter buying practices and reduced outsourcing we have delivered savings in excess of £1m whilst still processing a massive volume of mail and transactions accurately and on time. In outbound mail, 36 million documents were printed and cheques issued to a value of £30bn, whilst the Imaging & Mailing Centre scanned and created digital images for more than nine million documents.”

One of the biggest logistical challenges of the year was the Solvency 2 for Royal & Sun Alliance, which involved the printing of 295,000 documents in six languages, mailing 14,000 envelopes to international destinations. “It’s great to look back on the year and recognise how much we have achieved,” says John.

Guy BrodieHead of Operational Development

“We supported our clients through a number of major new contract wins”

In 2011, Equiniti extended its client offering by successfully managing the delivery of projects in areas such as Solvency 2, Mailroom & Imaging and Data Migration. Project Kong provided scanning and imaging services for Kings Court Trust; Project Condor delivered a complex international mailing operation for Royal & Sun Alliance’s Solvency 2 requirements; and for the data migration project, Equiniti dedicated at its peak a team of 90 (in the customer’s offices across the UK) to support a large financial institution with its data migration challenge.

“These were very challenging projects but we were able to meet our clients’ demands,” says Guy Brodie. “The migration client was so impressed with our flexible resources and quality of service that it has reappointed us to continue supporting it in the next phase for 2012. We are developing a strong outsourcing track record that we can build on in the years ahead that will shape the future of our business.”

Steve BinsteadHead of Client Task Management

“The bar keeps on rising”

For Steve Binstead, one of Equiniti’s greatest achievements in 2011 is the high quality of service now being consistently delivered to our clients. “I’ve worked at Equiniti for a number of years, and I believe our service performance is stronger now than it has ever been,” says Steve. “Complaints are at an all-time low and we are scoring higher than ever before in customer satisfaction. The bar just keeps on rising.

“In 2011 the Dividend Team distributed £24bn payments to 20 million shareholders, achieving a 98% satisfaction rate. It was a fantastic year, and we plan to build on it in 2012 by investing more in training and multi-skilling our people. Our work is more diverse than ever before and we need a flexible, expert team to keep delivering outstanding service to our clients.”

Sam HalfordDirector of Operations

“2011 has been a year of great challenges for Operations – challenges that have been fully delivered by a strong, committed team that I’m proud to work with.”

The award-winning Equiniti Customer Contact Centre has proven capability in operating integrated, multi-channel high-quality services to members of the public, government and companies of all sizes. We possess all the components of functionality, skills and expertise to deliver an exceptional service, as many of our clients will testify. The contact centre was presented with more than 2.2 million customer calls in 2011, with an abandon rate of just 1.6%.

Following a complete review of our capabilities by independent inspectors in October 2011, we maintained our accreditation of Version 5 of the CCA standard, the only company to have been awarded this two years in a row.

Our own survey found that 91% of our customers rate our contact centre service very good or good. In addition, external accreditations have been awarded to a number of operational areas reflecting improvements in quality and service excellence.


Chris Taylor, Deputy Company Secretary at BSkyB, loves the mountains, supports Newcastle United and is always braced for the unexpected

You organised November’s BSkyB AGM which, given everything that happened during 2011, was always going to be a high-profile event. How would you sum it up?A fantastic team effort. A huge amount of preparation went into ensuring that the meeting ran smoothly and it paid off on the day. Hopefully it will be a quieter affair next year. Tell us a bit about your role and what the past year has been like.I work as part of a small team within our head office in West London. My role is wide and varied – I’m typically working on a number of projects with various areas of the business, as well as co-ordinating the work of the Secretariat Team. The past year has been a challenge – whilst it has been business as usual on many fronts, there has been a huge amount of ‘what if’ planning. It’s been hard work, but the experience has been invaluable. What did you do before joining BSkyB and what attracted you to your current role?I joined Guinness as a graduate trainee in 1995 and qualified as a Chartered Secretary in 1997. Since then I’ve worked for Diageo, Orange and Young & Co.’s Brewery in a variety of company secretarial roles, before moving to BSkyB in 2003. It was a great opportunity for me to join a growing FTSE 100 company in a broad role.

What are your priorities for 2012?Keeping on top of the legislative and regulatory landscape – there are so many consultations and reviews going on at the moment. 2012 is going to be busy year! What impact has the global economic downturn had on BSkyB?Despite the challenging economic backdrop, BSkyB has performed well – but we’re certainly not complacent. We’ve been working hard to drive efficiencies and cut costs so that we can continue to invest in the business and provide more for our customers. Alongside great content, we launched Sky Atlantic and Sky Living during 2011, and Formula 1 is coming to Sky in 2012. We’ve also introduced a number of value-added services – such as our video on demand service, Sky Anytime+, and Sky Go, which allows customers to watch live TV on the move – all as part of their subscription.

What is the biggest single lesson you have learnt from your current role?Be ready for the unexpected. You never know what’s round the corner so you have to be flexible, adaptable and willing to knuckle down when you need to. What benefits does your relationship with Equiniti deliver?Equinti are experienced registrars and we work closely with them to ensure that our register of members is well maintained and our shareholders are receiving the best possible service. BSkyB’s recent AGM brought home the importance of the relationship and highlighted the strength of Equiniti’s registrar team. Our AGMs have typically been fairly low-key affairs, but this year was a different challenge and Equiniti’s experience of handling high-profile AGMs was important in helping us ensure that we were well prepared.

The Sky’s the limit

If you could choose a completely different career, what would it be?I’d set up an adventure business in the Alps – living and working in the mountains is a dream. There’s still time, but for the moment I'll stick to my skiing and cycling trips! How do you relax outside work? I enjoy making the most of London, catching up with friends, soaking up its culture, history and architecture, and enjoying the bars and restaurants. I’m

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COMPANY SECRETARY PROFILE


pushing the boundaries; Sir Bobby Robson – Geordie legend and a really genuine down-to-earth guy; and Sir Norman Foster – my favourite modern architect and creator of so many iconic buildings. It would be great to sit with them and hear their stories and gain an insight into what drives them.

Do you have a secret talent?I’m ambidextrous – I write with my left hand but play tennis and golf with my right!

also passionate about sport (watching and doing). At weekends you’ll often find me cycling or running in the Surrey Hills or playing golf at Tyrrells Wood on the North Downs. I also follow Newcastle United – hardly relaxing but we’re riding high this season. Howay the lads! If you could invite three people to dinner, living or historical, who would they be and why?Sir Ranulph Fiennes (right) – an inspirational character who is always

1995-1997Graduate trainee – Guinness plc

1997-1999Company Secretarial Assistant, Diageo plc

1999-2000Assistant Secretary, Orange plc

2000-2003Assistant Company Secretary, Young & Co.’s Brewery plc

2003-2006Assistant Company Secretary, British Sky Broadcasting Group plc

CurrentDeputy Company Secretary, British Sky Broadcasting Group plc

CHRIS TAYLOR BSKYB

CV

AUTO-ENROLMENT


enrolment. So, what do you need to know? And what’s the case for outsourcing?

As an employer, what do I need to consider?As well as the legal obligations involved, a number of factors will help with planning for your business:

Your staging dateLarger employers have earlier ‘staging dates’ (the date by which they must begin auto-enrolment), so find out when yours is and plan accordingly. The Government has extended staging dates for smaller employers, so double check when yours is and ensure you stay up to date.

This autumn will see important changes to pensions provision in the UK, with new regulations requiring employers not only to automatically

enrol the vast majority of their workforce into pension schemes, but also to make contributions on their behalf.

Auto-enrolment is not just a pension issue; it will impact HR, payroll, pensions and finance functions. For many organisations the process will be costly and resource intensive. Being ready to comply

with auto-enrolment could take over 18 months; the impact is more than just extra pensions’ costs. Early preparation is essential to ensure the changes required to systems, processes and communication materials are identified and effectively addressed. The Equiniti Group is uniquely able to deliver a comprehensive auto-enrolment solution to help you mitigate the cost and risks that you face.

In the first of a new series of features on the successful and efficient implementation of auto-enrolment, we consider an area that many firms have yet to address: the impact on their Payroll systems and processes, and whether a company should outsource auto-

Auto-enrolment – are you ready?

October 2012 sees the introduction of major pension reforms in the UK. We take at look at the changes from an employer’s perspective

With the forthcoming pensions changes in mind, Leeds Building Society (LBS) looked to Equiniti ICS to manage its auto-enrolment administration.

Established in 1875, LBS is the UK’s fifth largest building society and provides a range of mortgage and investment products, helping its members to buy their own homes.

Becky Hewitt, Head of HR at LBS, discusses the process with Rachel Daly, HR and Payroll Consultant at Equiniti ICS:

Rachel: Why is auto-enrolment an issue for LBS? Becky: Despite being in the financial services industry, nearly 50% of employees have yet to enrol in one of our occupational schemes. With most of our staff being over 22 and eligible for auto-enrolment, the forthcoming legislation will mean additional administration for a significant part of our workforce.

Rachel: Why did you decide to sign up to Equiniti ICS’s managed service ahead of the legislation coming into effect? Becky: Our staging date isn’t until October 2013 but we were keen to be involved in developing the solution. We have agreed that although policy doesn’t require it, it is best practice to confirm an employee’s opt-out decision in writing, and Equiniti ICS has now incorporated this into its service. We also want to ‘drip feed’ communication to employees about how we are complying

:: CASE STUDY: LEEDS BUILDING SOCIETY


AUTO ENROLMENT

To find out more about Equiniti ICS’s auto-enrolment

outsourcing service contact us on 01635 262080 or visit www.equiniti-ics.com/hr-auto-enrolment

Our sister company and pensions expert Xafinity can also help with reviewing your pension scheme to ensure it meets your needs, and ensuring you understand the costs involved. In addition they can help with implementation through their auto-enrolment software for data management. To find out more, simply call 0118 918 5457 or visit www.xafinity.com/autoenrolment

Your HR and payroll system/providerAuto-enrolment will rely on information from HR and payroll data, such as age and earnings thresholds, so you will need to be properly equipped.

Resources availableMost preparation for auto-enrolment will require a short period of intensive activity (though eligible employees will be automatically re-enrolled every three years), so ensure you have the right resources in place at the right time.

Your pension schemeWorkplace pension schemes must meet

certain requirements, and you may also wish to consider a number of options in terms of the type of scheme you choose.

How should you manage auto-enrolment?The administrative burden of auto-enrolment is heavily weighted around a business’s staging date, but ongoing administrative considerations – such as when employees join, or their age or earnings level changes – may make managing this time consuming and costly. For many businesses, outsourcing may be beneficial, ensuring that the job is done effectively, without placing further demands on your staff and business.

with legislation, as it is important that they understand when, how and why pension contributions will be deducted from their pay. Again Equiniti ICS has included this in the managed service.

Rachel: Which aspects of the service are particularly important to you?Becky: Flexibility is essential. As our payroll provider, the Equiniti ICS team and service are very flexible in meeting our requirements, so we were keen to extend this to our auto-enrolment administration. We are also interested in the analytic tool offered as part of the service, which provides information on when job holders become eligible for auto-enrolment due to

age or earnings changes. This will enable us to assess what will need to be done in the next six months or a year’s time.

Rachel: What benefits do you expect to see as a result of using the Equiniti ICS managed service?Becky: Ultimately, we want to be relieved of the administrative obligation of auto-enrolment whilst ensuring our service is high quality and compliant. I am confident that Equiniti ICS’s service will meet these needs, with its automatic triggers, alerts and workflow, and I expect it will make our lives much easier. On that basis, why would we choose to do it ourselves?

Why should my organisation outsource the management of auto-enrolment?There are five main reasons.

1 Eliminates the need to find and train resources for a one-off peak activity

2 Guarantees compliance with legislation

3 Cost-effective, thanks to economies of scale

4 You can set high service level agreements

5 Allows management time to focus on core business activities


MASTERCLASS

Reputation management has never been trickier, with the stakes rising, budgets shrinking and social media giving every consumer the stones to slay a Goliath. Richard Ellis, Communications Director of the Public Relations Consultants Association, offers 10 expert pointers for preserving your business’ good name

1 Involve your communications and PR people…

It’s impossible for your comms and PR people to communicate your message if they don’t know what’s going on. An inability to respond to key issues creates confusion and mistrust amongst stakeholders, and this is often caused by a lack of resources in PR teams. The recession has actually boosted investment in this area, with most companies planning to invest more heavily in communications in the short and medium term.

2 …and involve them from the start

Communication tends to be proactive or reactive. If your comms people know what’s coming, they can take a proactive approach, identifying potential opportunities, hurdles and pitfalls. This kind of communication has a positive impact on your organisation’s reputation. By contrast, reactive communication means that instead of setting the agenda, you’re playing catch-up. It forces you into a negative, defensive position that at best represents a missed opportunity and at worst can do lasting damage.

3 Know your stakeholders In order to monitor your reputation effectively, you need to know who your stakeholders are. This is not just about communicating with customers, staff and investors, but also knowing your suppliers, pressure groups in your industry and the sections of the media that talks about you. You need to have the comms channels in place both to engage with the whole community and to have targeted

conversations with your most influential commentators. Don’t ignore your detractors – if you can get your message across to them, they may well change their message. Such commentators are not to be underestimated, as they can be very influential with investors. Keep the lines of communication open and earn their trust.

4 The press are still important Social media may have changed the game, but that does not mean the press are any less important than they were previously. Most of the national papers and their serious bloggers will have a huge number of followers, and their opinion will carry a lot of weight. You need to get your message across to them in an honest way to gain their trust. When they put a message out there it will be much more influential than when you say it, as they are perceived to be independent. Make sure you have a direct route to them, give them all the facts and allow them to voice their opinions freely.

5 Be proactive When I worked at a consultancy that undertook engineering projects, I used to read their reports from the perspective of a pressure group and note down all the potential issues. Part of being proactive is getting to know your risks – a bit like a reputation audit. Every organisation knows how it wants to be perceived, but what you do and say is often distorted by how people perceive what you do and say. Make sure your actions align with your values.

This proactive approach also extends to opening dialogue with stakeholders. We no longer live in a broadcast world where

‘‘Know your risks’’

6 Social media has changed the game

In the past, companies used to know everyone who had the ability to influence their reputation and had the mechanisms in place to go out and talk to them. Now, anyone can publish and it’s impossible to know everyone individually. We need not just look at press, investors and analysts but also staff, consumers, pressure groups and suppliers, and keep scanning the horizon to see what messages are appearing. Once it’s out there, you have a choice to make: do you ignore any negative discussion or engage with it? On some occasions it’s best to let the fuss die down on its own, and at other times it’s worth tackling the issue head-on. It’s really a judgement call, and this is where a good comms person will earns their money.


communication goes one way. Putting the mechanisms in place to engage with people’s comments and concerns goes a long way to generating good will and confidence.

7 Know your reputational risks

It’s vital to understand your reputational risks, because the time you have to respond can be very small – things can burn slowly for a while and then suddenly blow up. If you see the risks in advance, you know who to contact for comment and how to address the arguments against you. It saves a huge amount of time if your CEO knows about any potentially critical issues and is prepared to drop everything and speak to the press about it.

8 Reputation management is a judgement call

There can be a conflict between lawyers and PRs. Lawyers will generally look to minimise liability but this is not always the best approach for your share price in the long term. The legal process is notoriously slow yet years of investment in your brand can be wiped out overnight by a slow or inadequate PR response. Opinion shifts rapidly in an age of social media and, if you fail to communicate, then others will fill the void for you. Lawyers are there to protect you financially, PR people are there to protect your reputation. Similarly, we have seen a rise in the use of super-injunctions, but I’d argue that you need to think very carefully about covering something up because when, it does come out, the damage to your reputation will be ten times worse.

9 Trust is hard to earn, but easy to lose

The jeweller Ratner spent years building up the brand only to see it crash overnight when their CEO described the product as “total crap”. If you’re open and honest with your customers, they’ll forgive you a few mistakes, but never treat them like idiots or lie to them.

10 Look to the thing you most want to hide…

The thing you most want your comms person not to know is probably the thing they most need to know. Don’t waste time hiding something when you could be preparing for potential calamity! IL

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Equiniti Magazine Winter 2012