Standard Life has appointed Helen Dean CBE to the Standard Life Master Trust board.
Dean, the outgoing Nest CEO, will assume the role of the board chair, overseeing 300,000+ master trust scheme members. Her appointment, effective May 2024 pending regulatory approval, replaces Richard Butcher, the current chair since 2015.
Prior to her appointment as CEO of Nest in 2015, Helen was instrumental in the establishment of PADA’s low-cost pension plan. Dean is also a trustee and non-executive board member of Step Change. She also has memberships on the Council of Scholar Advisors at Georgetown University’s Centre for Recruitment Initiatives in Washington, D.C. She also serves as a member of the Money and Pensions Service’s (MaPS) Advisory Board and as a governor of the Pensions Policy Institute UK.
Elsewhere, Gurmukh Hayre will join Dean as a trustee director board member from 1 April 2024, pending regulatory approval, while Rene Poisson will end his tenure as independent trustee director, after nine successful years in the role.
Hayre is a certified professional independent trustee and a former partner at KPMG. He currently holds a number of non-executive roles at Atos DC Retirement Plan, Cadbury Mondelēz Pension Fund and Centrica Pension Schemes. He also served for a number of years as an independent trustee of the National Pensions Trust until earlier this year.
Standard Life managing director for workplace Gail Izat says: “I am delighted to welcome Helen and Gurmukh to the SLMTC and to have secured the services of two candidates of such outstanding calibre. Helen is a visionary who has been at the forefront of revolutionising pension saving in this country for over two decades. Her focus on better outcomes for people and the social purpose of pensions closely aligns with our holistic view of financial engagement, education and wellbeing.
“Likewise, Gurmukh was a standout candidate, and members will benefit from his broad multi-industry experience in consultancy and insight gained as a professional independent trustee to some of the country’s best-known brands in Cadbury and Centrica.”
“I’d also like to thank Richard and Rene for their dedication and efforts while serving on the SLMTC. Together they have been instrumental in building a strong framework to support the needs of scheme members and they leave us well positioned to face into the future.”
Dean says: “I look forward to taking up this role and using my broad range of experience to help facilitate greater financial inclusion and engagement among Standard Life’s master trust members, while upholding the principles of strong governance and consumer interest.”
Hayre says: “I am pleased to join the SLMTC and represent the interests of scheme members, helping them achieve the best possible retirement outcomes in an everchanging pensions landscape where DC pensions will be the main form of saving for most people.”
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