Scottish Widows Workplace Savings Podcast

Scottish Widows' Chief Investment Officer is shaking up the way hundreds of billions of pounds of assets are managed, focusing on customer behaviour and a goal to get the UK thinking more like a nation of investors, each with a stake in society.
Kevin's path is nothing short of inspiring. From his beginnings as a math teacher to becoming a CIO, his story is filled with fascinating analogies and memorable anecdotes. He shares the four unique "super-powers" that excite him in his new role, making this episode a must-listen, at a time when Default Pension Funds across the board have never been more centre stage.

Join us as we explore the UK’s largest study of digital and financial lives. In this episode Robert Cochran is joined by special guests Jemma Waters, Head of Customer Inclusion for Lloyds Banking Group and sponsor of the report, alongside Lucinda Crowther from the Royal National Institute of Blind People, where we look at the report findings and support available for employers and individuals to help ensure digital inclusion for all.
You can read more about the report here Consumer digital index | Lloyds Bank

Recorded in front of a live audience of Employers. Robert Cochran is joined by Pension Dashboard experts Chris Curry and Richard Smith.
They have an interactive discussion about dashboards: where the programme is right now, what Richard learned on his European Dashboard trip and answering some great audience questions, including how vulnerable the pension dashboard is to scammers.
To get ready for our podcast, make sure to check out Richard’s video. It's an excellent visual tool for understanding Pension Dashboards: Pensions Dashboards Explainer Nov 2024 on Vimeo.

Damian Stancombe, an award-winning pension personality and one of the most interesting characters in workplace savings, joins me for this fascinating podcast. It's a game of two halves.
In the first half, he shares his unique views on the state of the UK Workplace Savings Market, drawing on more than 30 years of experience—some fabulous insight from inside the world of Employee Benefits and what makes a great partnership.
In the second, Damian shares his very public journey into retirement. He set up a movement, 60 paydays to retirement, and is now living that early retirement. He's thoughtfully sharing his insight, concerns and lessons learned - worthwhile lessons for everyone in their Fifties!

Join us for a special International Women’s Day podcast hosted by Jill Henderson, Head of Workplace Strategic Relationships, Jackie Leiper, Managing Director at Scottish Widows, and her daughter Rebecca. In this insightful episode, we hear about their personal journey of closing the pension gap and explore the importance of meaningful financial planning conversations.
Discover practical tips and inspiring stories on how women can take control of their financial futures. Whether you're just starting your financial journey or looking to enhance your planning strategies, this podcast offers valuable insights for everyone.

In this episode, we flip from the provider view to the Employer view.
After nearly 40 years in the workplace pension market, the majority of which was spent working in-house to run pension schemes for some of the UK's biggest employers, my guest Paul Bird has lots of insight into delivering great pension benefits for employees.
In this podcast, he shares his story—from closing DB schemes to helping colleagues retire early. Paul is proud to have walked the walk rather than just talked the talk and shares his story with us. It's different when you have to walk past colleagues every day for whom you are enacting pension scheme decisions—an extra impetus to get it right!

Yes, kicking off the 2025 series of the Scottish Widows Workplace Savings Podcast, Robert Cochran is joined by Scottish Widows CEO Chira Barua. They discuss Chira's first 18 months in role and his big plans for 2025 and beyond.
The discussion includes - views on adequacy, digitising pensions, gamifying financial experience, Mansion House Reforms, Chira's love of the guitar and empowering individuals to take control of their own financial future.

In our final podcast of 2024, Robert Cochran, our Innovation and Engagement Specialist is joined by our very own Master Trust Lead, Sharon Bellingham.
Sharon shares her invaluable experience and insights, on a journey that takes us from Mansion House and the Secondary Market, through to DE&I and what matters most to our members.

Over 60,000 employees have taken part in the Scottish Widows RetireWell Pension Education sessions this year with a big boost for Pay Your Pension Some Attention.
In this episode, Robert Cochran is joined by Stuart Hopley to discuss exactly what pension scheme members are asking about their pensions, whilst delving into the success of the main Pension Attention campaign too.

The 2024 Women and Retirement report highlights the progress made over the past 20 years in narrowing the gender pension gap.
This podcast reviews the key milestones reached in the past two decades, delves into this year's findings, and explores why further action is essential to fully close the gender pensions gap.