NextGen, the industry body giving fresh ideas a voice and showcasing new talent in pensions, announces its strategic partnership with international law firm CMS. They will be providing mutual support to develop the best and brightest in the industry.
To enhance the skills of future leaders, the initial one-year partnership will focus on expanding NextGen’s training programme. Training will consist of in-person and online events and workshops for its members. It will be designed to support those looking to understand a range of key industry topics. There will be both beginner and more advanced levels of training, as well as soft skill and general career management.
David Whitehair, Chair, NextGen comments: “To be partnering with an organisation of the industry standing and reputation as CMS is a landmark moment in the development of NextGen. NextGen is a collective group of industry volunteers who feel passionately about developing future talent and promoting new voices into industry debate at all levels. It is clear CMS shares our views in this area and with their help we can look to progress towards a mutual set of objectives designed to benefit those within the industry and ultimately those we serve.”
NextGen and CMS event will hold their first joint event in early 2022 - a pensions legal 101 session, providing an overview of the law surrounding key areas. This session will also be an opportunity for NextGen members to ask questions on any number of topics.
In addition, NextGen and CMS will collaboratively launch an online training portal and use this to:
- Help people learn - Provide access to people within the industry who are prepared to help others learn and share knowledge and experiences
- Share video content - Building a library of knowledge, including videos of live events
- Host content - Including articles, guides and podcasts
- Share other resources - Links to other resources that NextGen members might benefit from accessing.
Mark Grant, Head of Pensions at CMS, said: “We are delighted to have entered into a partnership with NextGen at an exciting time in their development. NextGen is providing a platform for the next generation of pension professionals, to help them grow their networks and hone their skills. It’s a concept that is completely aligned with our approach to development of our people and we are excited to see how these CMS lawyers embrace the opportunities that this partnership will present. We are very much looking forward to working together with NextGen over the next year to help them achieve their objectives and to grow their reach within the industry.”
Hadassah Shulman, Senior Associate at CMS and co-chair of the NextGen Research & Insights sub-committee, adds: “NextGen and CMS share a passion for developing talent in the pensions industry and a commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive environment for everyone engaging with the industry, making this an exciting and natural partnership. I’m excited to be working with colleagues from across the partnership to help deliver the wealth of opportunities available, enabling colleagues to develop new and existing skills and engage with people from all across the industry.”
The launch of the partnership coincides with NextGen’s win at the Professional Pensions Rising Star Awards 2021 in the ‘Supporting Development’ category. CMS was highly commended in the same category and picked up the award in 2020.
The exciting new partnership is one of a few that NextGen has arranged with leading pension organisations, with its main aim to support and amplify its work to boost cognitive diversity across the industry.
