The Public Service Pensions Board (PSPB) is welcoming three new appointments to join their Board and the new trustees are Mr. Orrett Connor, Ms. Sheree Ebanks, and Mr. Robin Ellison.

The PSPB needed to find very capable new trustees to join the Board as not only were they filling a few vacant positions, but a replacement was also needed to fill in the position left by the late Mr. Kirkland Nixon, who was widely viewed as a pillar of the PSPB trustee group.

“Finding new and highly qualified individuals to take on these important roles is always challenging,” says Mrs. Jewel Evans Lindsey, Managing Director and Trustee with the PSPB, “but the three new appointments clearly show we are bringing in the best representative to join this Board.”

Mr. Connor, a well-known individual with an honoured background in the Cayman Islands, served residents though his many years of public service until his retirement as Cabinet Secretary and Chief Officer of the Cabinet Office in 2013. In retirement, Mr. Connor currently hosts his own show on Radio Cayman One and works to connect and interact directly with residents.

Ms. Sheree Ebanks, the second appointment, is currently the chief executive officer for the Cayman Islands Society of Professional Accountants, one the largest and longest established professional societies in the Cayman Islands. Ms. Ebanks is known for her 30 year career in the financial services industry in the Cayman Islands and will bring sound financial oversight to the PSPB Board.

The final new appointment is Mr. Robin Ellison, a well versed pensions and trustee expert from the U.K. who is presently the chairman of Carillion Pension Trustee Limited. Mr. Ellison’s appointment provides an independent assessor of the PSPB which ensures that a non-affiliated trustee is on the Board and can provide balance to governance and policy adherence.

“The Public Service Pensions Board is relied upon by our public and civil servants who want to know they are working towards a secure retirement,” says Mr. Connor, “and I will be working on behalf of and listening to these members to ensure the PSPB continues to be looked upon as the leading pension scheme on Island.”

Mr. Connor officially joined the PSPB Board on 1 August 2018, and Mr. Ellison and Ms. Ebanks officially joined on 1 March 2018. In order to ensure the new members are well versed in the PSPB specific legislation and pension schemes, all trustee members attended a full-day training and orientation session on 7 August 2018.

The full-day training encompassed learning from supporting advisors to the PSPB which included education from the Board’s legal support, plan actuary, investment consultant and the Auditor General.
Ms. Evans Lindsey noted that “it’s important to go through this orientation so new and existing members grow together and understand the trustee role and scope and are ready to govern the PSPB for our members.”

The first formal trustee meeting for the PSPB takes place later this month. The new appointments join an existing group of trustees for the PSPB who will spend the year on priority matters such as an increased focus on member service delivery, a review of plan risk management and further assessment of financial controls and investment monitoring.
Information on the Public Service Pension Board is available on the PSPB website at: www.pspb.ky.