We’re simple folk at First Actuarial .we build our strategies around things we like to do, things we are good at and things that need to be done.

We like helping people “get” pensions. It gives us a buzz when we see people confused or sceptical develop a smile during a meeting which turns into a grin as they understand what they need to do and how to do it.

We fancy ourselves as good at helping people work things out for themselves. When it comes to sorting retirement we reckon we’ve got the bases covered and , as importantly – we’ve got the fire in our belly to get people excited enough to do something about their finances. Ok , this usually means people spending more on their retirement savings but it’s also about spending smarter, paying less tax, less charges and picking the right investments for each stage of life.

We’re actuaries for heaven’s sake , we know about these things! What’s more we’ve learned how to listen and explain things in ways that get things done.

And there’s an enormous job of work to be done. Even where companies have done the hard work, people still feel disillusioned and confused about their plans. It seems the better the pension scheme, the more likely staff are to go on strike and that can’t be right.

The public’s frustration with financial planning and pensions in particular, is bound up with deep  misunderstandings about the scale of the problems ahead and the need to organise our finances to meet these coming challenges.

Words like “passion” have become clichés.

But words like “fun” and “pleasure” don’t often find their way into the boardroom. They are words we are proud people talk about when they mention our work.

We do our jobs because we find them fun, people find pleasure in working with us and we know we are needed.

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• Are your junior staff’s finances any business of yours? (henrytapper.com)
• How to buy a pension (henrytapper.com)
• How to get the pension you’ve earned (henrytapper.com)
• Now I speak actuarial (henrytapper.com)