About First Actuarial

First Actuarial has been around since 2004, when a small group of like-minded actuaries came together to bring fresh thinking to pensions consultancy. Two decades later, we’re celebrating our 20th anniversary with events at all our five offices. It’s a great time to be part of First Actuarial. Following last year’s 20% revenue increase, our strong growth path has continued into this year, and we now employ around 450 people in the UK

We’re still an independent business with no chargeable hours targets, giving our people the time to deliver their best work and excel. We shape our high-quality services by listening closely to our clients’ needs. And we price those services fairly.

As we develop our business, prospects for our people grow. Our Basingstoke, Leeds, Manchester, Peterborough and Tonbridge offices provide supportive work environments where everyone can make a difference. We enjoy work and celebrate our successes. And we provide support and helpful feedback so we all learn and improve.

We love numbers, but we love people more. Staff wellbeing and work-life balance have always been core values. Beyond the firm, we’re known for our integrity. We’re happy to challenge conventional thinking and speak up. Our pioneering work is set to transform the lives of millions of younger people with a new type of pension.

The role

Due to our continued success, First Actuarial have an exciting opportunity for experienced Defined Contribution (DC) Consultant’s to join our expanding DC team.

Talented employees who are happy to work to the best of their ability for the business, and our clients, are well rewarded at First Actuarial.

Responsibilities

As a DC Consultant at First Actuarial, you’ll be advising a broad range of clients and assisting with our research by visiting product providers. Your work will make a real difference by meeting our clients’ expectations and continuing to build the infrastructure of the DC team.

You will make an active contribution to team goals, develop your skills and broaden your experience. You will be responsible for:

• Attending meetings with providers, established clients and new prospects;
• Scoping pragmatic solutions to meet our clients’ and new prospects requirements;
• Creating and maintaining strong relationships with clients to develop your portfolio;
• Preparing and delivering provider selection advice;
• Developing and supporting the delivery of our DC services, e.g. scheme design, auto-enrolment compliance, governance, salary exchange implementation;
• Maintaining our pension provider research work;
• Developing opportunities in Financial Wellbeing;
• Expanding your DC knowledge and staying up to date on pension issues;
• Developing junior staff.

Not all the work we do is traditional consultancy work – you probably know that we often challenge conventional thinking. So, we will give you lots of variety and challenge – utilising your well-honed skills and bringing your own thinking

What are we looking for?

• Ideally at least 5 years in a UK pension consulting role, with a proven track record of client relationship success;
• An advanced working knowledge of pension providers & master trusts;
• A thorough understanding of the UK DC market, drivers and trends;
• Broad knowledge of relevant legislation and governance frameworks;
• Experience with Occupational Trust Based DC schemes and the wind up process would be an advantage;
• A good understanding of wider employee benefits would be an advantage;
• Have an appropriate qualification, or be working towards it (e.g. Diploma in Financial Planning);
• An excellent communicator who understands how to express complicated ideas in a simple, concise and clear way; able to confidently present to trustees, employers and employees;
• Self-motivated and ability to work autonomously, in line with the responsibilities that the role requires;
• A strong desire to develop yourself and to do “the best you can” for you and our clients;
• Excellent time management skills and workload prioritisation;
• Ability to contribute to good practice and foster the development of junior team members;
• Help further develop the infrastructure of the DC team;
• Possess strong Word, Excel and PowerPoint skills; and,
• Be an analytical thinker with good problem-solving skills.

What we offer you

We’ll actively support you as you build your career – and reward you for doing so. At every level of seniority, we offer:

• A competitive remuneration package, including bonus and profit-sharing payments
• Private health insurance, life insurance and income protection insurance
• 25 days annual leave as standard, increasing with length of service, an extra day at Christmas, plus bank holidays and the option to purchase additional holidays
• A non-contributory pension
• Full training and study support.

We have hybrid working in place for colleagues who prefer homeworking for part of the week. We’re also flexible on working day arrangements and will happily accommodate a range of personal commitments from day one.

Our straightforward, interview-based approach to recruitment ensures equal opportunities for all applicants.

Should you require information in a different format, have other accessibility or reasonable adjustments, or if you have any problems not listed on this page, please contact HRHelpdesk@firstactuarial.co.uk.

Please note that we can only accept candidates who have a permanent right to work in the UK.

Apply now with covering letter and CV