Fid i A dit d Fiduciary Audit and Benchmarking Options Serving Employees of Illinois Community Colleges and Universities What is a Fiduciary Audit What is a Fiduciary Audit ? Q A fiduciary audit has been described as: – A systematic diagnostic study of a pension fund’s organization, program and practices, by experts independent of all the regular professionals. – Main focus is usually the investment program, but can also cover administrative functions, benefits administration and Board operations. Diff f h i id d b h f d’ Q Differs from the services provided by the fund’ s regular investment consultant. – Non-recurring – Covers areas the Investment Consultant may not – Process focus as much as substantive
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
Fid i A dit dFiduciary Audit and Benchmarking Options
Serving Employees of Illinois Community Colleges and Universities
What is a Fiduciary Audit What is a Fiduciary Audit ??
A fiduciary audit has been described as: duc a y aud t as bee desc bed as:– A systematic diagnostic study of a pension fund’s
organization, program and practices, by experts independent of all the regular professionals.
– Main focus is usually the investment program, but can also cover administrative functions, benefits administration and Board operations.
Diff f h i id d b h f d’Differs from the services provided by the fund’s regular investment consultant.
– Non-recurring– Covers areas the Investment Consultant may not – Process focus as much as substantive
What is a Fiduciary Audit?What is a Fiduciary Audit?
Purpose is to Identify:– Aspects of the fund’s operations or organization that pose
undue risk,– Aspects that pose undue expense or inefficiency and,– How its organization and procedures compare to industry “best
practices”practices
What is a Fiduciary Audit?What is a Fiduciary Audit?
Fiduciary Audits are not a requirement of i b d h GFOAany governing body such as GFOA or
industry groups such as:– Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA)– National Council of Public Employee Retirement
Services (NCPERS)– National Association of State Auditor Controllers &
Treasurer (NASACT)Treasurer (NASACT)– National Association of State Retirement
Administrators (NASRA)– National Association of State Investment Officers
(NASIO)
Why perform a Fiduciary Why perform a Fiduciary Audit?Audit?
• Most common reasons for fiduciary audits:y• Funds that are managed internally may want independent help
to identify issues that require upgrading and obtain a blueprint for doing so
• Changes in status quo where new “players” want to know what they’ve inherited or want a fresh look
• Change in upper management, e.g., Chief Investment Officer, Executive Director etcExecutive Director, etc
• Change in Board of Trustees• May come from Board or outside oversight agency, e.g.,
legislative oversight committee or government auditor
Which Funds have Conducted Fiduciary Which Funds have Conducted Fiduciary Audits?Audits?
Some of these PERS funds are as follows (in alphabetic order):– Alaska State Pension Investment Board (2003) – District of Columbia Retirement Board (1994)– Florida Sate Board of Administration (2000 - real estate program)– Idaho Public Employees Retirement System (1995)– Illinois State Teacher Retirement System (1998)– Indiana State Teachers Retirement System (2001)– Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association (2008)– Michigan Bureau of Investments (2001)– Missouri State Employees Retirement System (2006)– Nevada PERS (1995)
Ohio PERS (2000 2001)– Ohio PERS (2000-2001)– Pennsylvania Public School ERS (2006)– Pennsylvania State Employees Retirement System (2006)– St. Louis Police Retirement System (2001)– Texas Teacher Retirement System (1996 & 2001)– Virginia Retirement System (1993)– Washington State Investment Board (1997)
StepsSteps in a Fiduciary Auditin a Fiduciary Audit
Identify the scope of the audit and subjects toIdentify the scope of the audit and subjects to reviewCollect information including Board meeting minutes, investment policy and procedures, strategic plans, external manager performance, etc.pInterview Board and staff Analyze the data and present recommendations to the Board
Possible Subjects EvaluatedPossible Subjects Evaluated
Due Diligence Procedures-- Selecting external managers-- Monitoring external and internal accounts, including
compliance with guidelines -- Clarity and thoroughness, by asset class and strategy
Cost and Fees-- Reasonableness and consistency of asset management fees -- Consultant fees-- Accounts payable process-- Transactions costs
Possible Subjects EvaluatedPossible Subjects Evaluated
Legal Matters-- Adequacy of legal resources, especially regarding
private/appraised assets-- Conflicts of interest-- Statutory fiduciary standards-- Legal or statutory provisions that constraint performance-- Policy and procedures for determining whether to join, or act
as legal plaintiff for, securities class action litigation-- Ethics policies
Possible Subjects EvaluatedPossible Subjects Evaluated
Personnel Practices-- Size of staff-- Adequacy of compensation -- Adequacy of training and personnel evaluation
Investment Management Structure-- Active vs. passive -- Internal vs. external-- Number of managers-- Suitability in light of investment policy and asset-- Suitability in light of investment policy and asset
allocation
Trust and Custody Arrangements-- Costs and hidden fees-- Cash management-- Securities lending - risk, return, monitoring
Possible Subjects EvaluatedPossible Subjects Evaluated
Investment Consultant’s Responsibilities-- Fiduciary statusy-- Scope of work -- Conflicts of interest-- Actual performance vs. contract
Fiduciary Liability Insurance-- Board and investment managers -- Self-insurance vs. third-party coverage
C t/b fit-- Cost/benefit
Brokerage and Trading-- Procedures for evaluating trade execution-- Use of minority-owned firms-- Directed brokerage/commission recapture/soft dollar
practices
Possible Subjects EvaluatedPossible Subjects Evaluated
-- Appraised assets, e.g., real estate and private equity -- Economically Targeted Investments (ETIs)
Investment Accounting and Operations-- Trade order entry management systems-- Need for and functions of a “middle office”
Note: the actual extent of the audit will depend on the scope agreed to between Internal Audit, Investments, Executive Management and the Board.
Who performs these auditsWho performs these audits??
Accounting Firms (Big 4)g ( g )Various Consulting Firms (in alphabetic order):– Callan and Associates – Cortex– Ennis Knupp and Associates– Fourth Street Financial– Independent Fiduciary Services (IFS)– Mercer Investment Consulting– Segal Company– Stratford Advisory Group– Tillit Group
BenefitsBenefits
Independent assessment pValidation for Board and staffIdentification of Best Practice ideasIdentification of developing trends and technologies that could help improve
ioperationsMay find a potential problem before it becomes a major problem
DrawbacksDrawbacks
CostTime commitmentRedundancyNo knowledge transfer
CostCost
D d t th f th ditDependent on the scope of the auditTypical audit hours - 1,000 – 1,400Range - $400,000 to $800,000Average costs per informal survey -$500 000$500,000
Staff Time CommitmentStaff Time CommitmentThe fiduciary audit can take 6 to 12 months to completeco p eteStaff must gather extensive amounts of data – 197 items required for recent LACERA auditBoard usually participates in RFP and selection process and must be available for interviews and surveysExecutive staff must be available for extensive interviews and surveysTypical reports have more than 50 recommendations which can take years to implement
RedundancyRedundancy
SURS is 100% externally managed. There is a significant amount of oversight of the investment managers:– Investment Staff– The Investment Consultant
Significant Board oversight– Significant Board oversight– External and Internal Audits performed on
many investment areas
No Knowledge TransferNo Knowledge Transfer
Several PERS have stated they expected to learn a lot from the fiduciary auditors, but there is no knowledge transfer to staff
List of IS and other Audits List of IS and other Audits
IS general controls – BKD 2007IS k i I lG di 2006IS network penetration – IntelGuardians 2006IS website vulnerability – IntelGuardians 2006IS security practices – Security Compliance Corp 2008IS website penetration – Cenzic 2008IS comprehensive CSG system – Geo Olive 1997IS general controls – Internal Audit every 2 yearsCheck writing w/ claims – Internal Audit quarterly
h k i i bl l di i lCheck writing accounts payable – Internal Audit semi-annualDisability claim process – LewisCo 2005Actuarial audit – Watson Wyatt 2000
Who is CEM Benchmarking Who is CEM Benchmarking Inc.?Inc.?
• CEM stands for Cost Effectiveness Measurement, which stands for the philosophy “measure what matters because what gets measured, gets managed”.
• Company was founded in Toronto, Canada in 1992.
• CEM is an independent provider of objective and actionableCEM is an independent provider of objective and actionable benchmarking information for pension investment and administration operations – worldwide.
Pension InvestmentPension Investment
CEM’s performance database includes funds from around the pworld:
141 US funds participate with aggregate assets of $2.4 trillion USD.100 Canadian funds participate with aggregate assets of $836 billion USD.26 European funds participate with aggregate assets of 1.20 trillion USD.12 Australian and New Zealand funds participate with aggregate assets of $141 billion USD.
Pension InvestmentPension Investment
A l T l P f R i
A Comprehensive Investment benchmarking service:
Annual Total Performance Review.– multi year review of cost, value added, and risk.– Analysis is presented to Trustees and Investment Committee.
Used as a cost Management Tool.– Costs matter and can be managed.– Reports can be used as a negotiation tool.
Value provided from research and insights into best practices and trends.
– Learn what leading international funds are doing and what drives results
Pension InvestmentPension InvestmentCost comparisons are to Custom Peer Group
Primary criteria for peer groups is fund size, because size impacts costs
Abbot LaboratoriesAmeren CorporationCity of Milwaukee ERS
Sample Custom Peer Group for Example Fund
Peer group example for a Public Fund with 3.71 billion USDA mix of Corporate and Public funds with a $3.69 billion average
MERS of MichiganMissouri Local Government ERSMotorola, IncNCR CorporationDenver Public Schools RS
District of Columbia BoardDominion ResourcesGeorgia-Pacific CorporationHouston Police Officers PensionIndiana State Teachers’ RS
NCR CorporationNestle USA, Inc.North Dakota State Investment BoardPension Trust for Operating EngineersSandia CorporationSiemens CorporationVentura Country ERA
Pension InvestmentPension InvestmentCEM collects investment costs by major asset classes and 4 different implementation styles as well as costs of investment oversight and administration.
Only asset management and oversight costs are included.
Direct investment costs are collected for all major asset classes and 4 different implementation styles.
Oversight, Custodial & Other includes all costs associated with the oversight and administration of the investment operation.
Pension InvestmentPension InvestmentCost performance is assessed by calculating a benchmark cost, or by estimating what cost would be, using asset mix and peer median costs.
Provide explanation of cost by analyzing the impact of implementation Style choices and all line-item costs.
Quantify cost impact of Implementation Style decisions.
Examine costs relative to peers for all line item costs.
Analysis focuses on two key decisions: asset mix policy andAnalysis focuses on two key decisions: asset mix policy and implementation.
Show how asset mix policy has impacted performance.
Examine where implementation value added comes from and how it compares to other funds.
Pension InvestmentPension InvestmentSample Report
Pension InvestmentPension InvestmentSample Report
Pension InvestmentPension Investment
A t l t d P G b d i SURS
Summary of ServicesA custom selected Peer Group based upon unique SURS characteristics.
A customized report that compares SURS results to it’s peers and to CEM’s U.S. Fund Universe.
Guarantee confidentiality of data and results
Personal on-site presentation of resultsPersonal on site presentation of results
Performance insights from the CEM Research Program
COST $20,000
Pension AdministrationPension Administration
United StatesArizona SRSCalPERS
Pennsylvania SRSPennsylvania Public SchoolsO C t ERS
AustraliaAustralia Post
Over 60 Systems participate
CalPERSCalSTRSCity of Dallas ERSColorado PERADelaware PERSIdaho PERSIllinois MunicipalIndiana State Teachers’Iowa Public Employees’Kansas Public Employees’Kern County ERALos Angeles County ERA
Orange County ERSOregon Public EmployeesSan Diego City ERSSan Diego County ERASouth Carolina RSSouth Dakota RSState of MichiganTexas MunicipalTexas ERSTexas TeachersUtah SRSVirginia Retirement System
Louisiana Teachers’Missouri State EmployeesNevada PERSNew Hampshire RSNew York City Teachers’New York State and LocalNorth Carolina RSOhio Public Employees’Ohio State Teachers’
g yWashington State DRSCanadaAlberta Pension AdministrationBritish Columbia Pension Corp.Canada PostDefence CanadaLocal Authorities of AlbertaOntario Teachers‘OpTrustPWGS CanadaRCMP
1. Strategic governance information.2. Monitoring and improving service.3. Insights into best practices.4. Helps set priorities by demonstrating tradeoffs.5. Networking with peers.g p
Pension AdministrationPension Administration
Strategic governance information
Addresses key performance issues.– Are costs reasonable?
– Are service levels reasonable?
– What is being done different from other systems?– What/where can there be improvements?
CEM benchmarking provides answers to these questions using clearly defined, objective metrics.
Pension AdministrationPension Administration
Monitoring and Improving Service
Analysis is used to define service standards.Performance is compared to the performance of others.
Pension AdministrationPension Administration
Ann al best practice re ie
Insights into best practices
• Annual best practice review.• Identifies examples of best practices that can be
copied, and poor practices to avoid.• CEM evaluates
• Websites– Pension Estimates– Member Statements– Satisfaction Surveys– Disability Brochures– Collections and Data Maintenance Process
Pension AdministrationPension Administration
Higher member ser ice means higher costsHelps set priorities by demonstrating tradeoffs
• Higher member service means higher costs.
• Achieving good service means investing in people and systems to make it happen.
• Understanding tradeoffs leads to better decisions and the ability to assess whether you are getting good value for the cost.
Pension AdministrationPension Administration
Systems attribute total costs to 13 core Benefit Administration Activities.Total cost per member compared to peers.Demonstrates where budgets are spent.Analyze 5 factors that impact costs.Compare to peers on the 5 major cost drivers.Benchmark cost is predicted using transaction types and volumes.Quantify complexity challenges and assess how they compare to peers.
Comprehensive Benchmarking Report.Assistance with data collection, to ensure data consistency and comparability.A best practice review of a key element of communication material or a business process.Full benefit of participation through a personal, on-site presentation of results.Global Client Conference. Access to Peer Network which can save valuable research time.All-inclusive cost $35,000.
Staff Time CommitmentStaff Time Commitment
• Data collection begins January of each year.• Benchmarking report available May.• Best practice report available December.
• Executive staff must be available to complete extensive surveys.
• Executive staff time commitment is estimated to be approximately 20 hours per person.
• CEM site visit to review system results.
BenefitsBenefits
Independent assessment.Independent assessment.
Validation for Board and staff.
Identification of Best Practice ideas.
Identification of developing trends and technologies that could help improve operations.