Slides from a presentation given by Will Lovegrove at the CIPP / AAT event (3rd March 2016) on "automatic enrolment for agents". It summarises the tactics and strategies currently employed by successful payroll agents to efficiently administer AE for their clients. Including: - Service Design - Service Pricing - Choosing a pension scheme - Choosing software

1. AUTO ENROLMENT
FOR AGENTS
Will Lovegrove
CEO pensionsync
AAT / CIPP hot topic event Manchester 3rd March 2016

2. pensionsync : think of us as
Switzerland in the Europe of AE
We’re in the middle.
We’re big on efficiency.
We don’t pick sides.

3. • Designing your service
• Engaging ‘slow to respond’ clients
• Pension scheme selection
• Different software options
• Automatic re-enrolment
CIPP asked us to speak on
these points:

4. We asked these successful
payroll agents to contribute

5. DESIGNING
YOUR
SERVICE
Designing your service

6. We asked the agents
if they offered the following
services to their clients.

7. • Educate your clients on AE - a general briefing
• Support them through the selection of a pension scheme
• Open a pension scheme with a pension provider on
behalf of your client
• Process AE each payroll period
• Create statutory communications
• Create & upload data to the pension provider

8. 100% of respondents
offered a service in each of
these service areas

9. Service design is consistent
It wasn’t always like this, but after processing AE for 3 years and for approx 10%
of their Clients, successful agents have settled on a modus operandi

10. PRICINGPricing

11. PRICING
The pricing structure is based on client
size, fixed monthly fee for 1 to 3 employees and a per
payslip basis on a pricing scale for 4 employees and
more.
Currently charged a fixed fee for assessment
and enrolment.Additional fees apply for:
Communications - charged per letter
Output file – charged per file

12. PRICING
Fee based on size of payroll and
which provider has been selected.
Pricing is done on a bespoke basis
– based on payroll size for processing. Letters
are charged per head.

13. PRICING
Up to 75 employees we have a
banded fixed monthly fee based on the
number of employees. On 76 and over we
charge per payslip.
No additional fees – AE is included as
standard. However we charge additional for
‘setting up’ a pension.

14. PRICING
We charge per employee fee.We have
fixed prices for 3 major master trusts. In some cases
we have a fixed monthly fee.
We charge for set up of pension scheme,
We charge for declaration of compliance form
We charge for assessing, communications and uploads to
pension company.

15. UNLIKE SERVICE DESIGN,
PRICING HAS NOT STABILISED.
IT IS STILL BESPOKE & COMPLEX.
BUT IT WILL NORMALISE
PROBABLY WITHIN 24 MONTHS

16. WHAT IS THE APPROXIMATE
PAYROLL CHARGE % INCREASE TO
CLIENTS
Depends on size of the
client: typically 25%
30%
50%
NOW Pensions: 16% - 70%
NEST & Peoples: 96% - 147%
Others: 16% – 150%
Client Self Manages in full: 0%
Client Self Manages in Part: 3% - 10%
40% - 45%

17. DO YOU OFFER
DIFFERENTIAL PRICING?
2
5
No Yes
Differential pricing is attributed to the variances in
difficulty of administrating with different pension
providers. Its not popular, but does exist.

18. DIFFERENTIAL PRICING EXISTS
It has been necessary to
create differential pricing based on
provider as some have much more
onerous procedures than others taking a lot
more time. Some are also prone to more
errors so time has to be factored in
for these.

19. Pricing varies across the market.
Pricing is driven by how much
‘manual’ time is needed to process
AE. E.g. the bits that cannot be
done by software

20. ENGAGING
SLOW
CLIENTS
Slow clients

21. ENGAGING SLOW TO RESPOND CLIENTS
90% of clients are slow to respond.
Fees structured so the less time left to set up
AE the more it costs the client.
Regular email, phone calls.There are
some clients who still have a head in the sand
approach but very few now, most are
receptive.

22. ENGAGING SLOW TO RESPOND CLIENTS
80% of our clients are slow
to respond.Yes – we email them
every month and if they have not done
anything 2 months before staging we
telephone.

23. ENGAGING SLOW TO RESPOND CLIENTS
I do remind them of the hefty
fines if they don’t comply and continue to
bury their head in the sand.
The most I have had to contact a client is
7 calls! Generally we have settled AE by the first
meeting, after the first phone call.

24. ENGAGING SLOW TO RESPOND CLIENTS
No - but we are considering
some options
Hard to say [a percentage] as
majority not staging until later this year.
We simply repeatedly chase slow to
respond clients.

25. AE is a reluctant market.
You need a strategy for
engaging Clients

26. PENSION
SCHEME
SELECTION
Choosing a scheme

27. PENSION SCHEME SELECTION
We tell them we have a scheme with
SMART where we will do everything for them.
However we do say they have a choice of provider and need
to satisfy themselves that the scheme we provide is suitable for
their requirements.
Our sister company is a Financial Planner and we do
refer our Clients to them if they need
support.
We recommended speaking to an IFA for
pension advice.

28. SIMPLIFYING THE PROCESS &
PROPOSITION IS A GOOD STRATEGY
FOR AGENTS.
BUT SUCCESSFUL AGENTS EMPHASIS
THAT THERE IS CHOICE IN THE
MARKET.

29. PENSION SCHEME SELECTION
90% of clients ask for help
selecting a scheme.We refer all our Clients to
our internal FAs
95% of Clients ask for help.We send a
list of providers available and request they do
the appropriate research to choose a scheme.
We do refer Clients to an IFA.

30. 90% OF CLIENTS ASK
FOR SUPPORT
CHOOSING A
SCHEME

31. PENSION SCHEME SELECTION
We have a strategic relationship with
an IFA and refer our clients to them.
67% of
clients need help with scheme selection. We
currently operate with only with 3 providers:
NEST, People’s & NOW.
We are looking to expand this though
We do refer Clients to a partner adviser

32. FORMING A STRATEGIC
RELATIONSHIP WITH AN
FINANCIAL ADVISER IS
A POPULAR STRATEGY

33. PENSION SCHEME SELECTION
We offer Pension Playpen as an
assistance to choosing their scheme or speak to
an IFA.We do have a strategic relationship with
an IFA
95% of clients need help
selecting a scheme.
If they don’t want an IFA we offer the Pension Playpen
which is a fantastic platform to help select a
pension.

34. ROBO-ADVICE
IS AN
ALTERNATIVE

35. DO YOU OFFER GUIDANCE?
6
2
No Yes
Guidance is not advice.
Guidance is a presentation of the facts, but without a resulting recommendation.
The majority of agents understand the difference and are comfortable with giving
Guidance.

36. DO YOU REFER TO TPR WEBSITE?
7
1
No Yes
Overwhelmingly the majority refer their clients to the TPR website

37. Your Clients will ask you for help. You should formulate
options to help your clients choose a scheme.
Smaller Clients may not want to pay for an IFA.
Guidance may be enough. Emerging software tools will
mean there is a low-cost alternative.

38. DIFFERENT
SOFTWARE
OPTIONS
Software

39. DIFFERENT SOFTWARE OPTIONS
We use our own software!
We use our own software!

40. DIFFERENT SOFTWARE OPTIONS
we prefer to manage the workplace
assessments [in payroll] as it sits comfortably in the
payroll process.
Differential pricing: No we don’t, as it is hard enough
for our clients to have the extra charges, so some we win and
they take no time and some take longer – but using pensionsync
this will be a thing of the past.

41. DIFFERENT SOFTWARE OPTIONS
We have not considered changing payroll
software because together with pensionsync it
provides all the functionality we need
We
did consider changing and looked at
other payroll software last year, but after major
updates and changes due to AE we are happy
with our payroll functionality

42. DIFFERENT SOFTWARE OPTIONS
I do see it as unfair that
software providers are charging
additionally for it- AE is simply a part
of payroll it’s not optional.

43. You cannot administer AE without software.
Different software does different things (at the moment).
Your choice of software will impact
your range of services and efficiency.
Generally speaking Payroll Bureaus are reluctant to switch software,
but many small bureaus operate
multiple payroll software products in parallel

44. Software will in time help normalise the work
effort to administrate pensions, create
ubiquitous equal access to different
providers, and so ultimately normalise the
pricing structure for pension administration
in the market.

45. So what are your big
takeaways from
todays session…

46. AE administration is complex
& now part of a Payroll
Administrators job.

47. EDUCATE YOUR CLIENTS ABOUT AE
Regular newsletters
Seminars
Targeted correspondence as Client approaches Staging Date
Free workforce assessment report

48. All of our payroll staff have
been trained on AE and we have held
seminars in conjunction with the Pension
Regulator. We have ensured our systems can
make the process as seamless as possible. Clients
want the simplest route to be compliant and
are more than happy to follow our
guidance.
EDUCATE YOUR STAFF ABOUT AE

49. You will have to invest in
upfront training to service your
Clients with AE administration

50. Or you should consider
outsourcing AE to experts

51. WITH THANKS TO:
Liz Robins lrobins@asrobins.com
Nicky Godard-Dady nicki.Goddard-Dady@p-hr-s.co.uk
Hayley Whitten hayley@biznuspayroll.co.uk
Michelle Webb michelle.webb@bond.co.uk
Caroline Gibbs caroline.Gibbs@qtac.co.uk
Matthew Duro matthew@rollpay.co.uk
Robin Mead rmead@virtualsource.co.uk
Suzanne Gallagher suzanne.gallagher@armstrongwatson.co.uk