Blue-sky thinking

For Mr Jonathan Willcocks, managing director, global head of retail sales at M&G Investments, the ideal product in the new at retirement environment had already been launched by the firm four years prior to the unveiling of the reforms by George Osborne.

The £322.5m – as at 28 February 2015 – M&G Income Multi-Asset Fund was launched in November, 2010 with the aim of delivering a high and rising income, as well as offering the potential for capital growth over the longer term.

Mr Willcocks said: “We sat down once the Budget announcement was made and said, ‘okay, what do we need to do?’ but realised we already had the solution, and built it in 2010.

“The M&G Income Multi Asset Fund was launched in 2010 not because of the pension freedoms – that was not even on the cards then – but because we recognised that people will want to have this solution going forward.

“I believe income multi-asset funds can play a very good core part of anybody’s solution.”

A school of thought has predicted an uncertain future for annuities thanks to the new pension reforms which allow pensioners to cash in their pension pot for the first time.

However, there will still be a market for the financial product in the future, according to Mr Willcocks, adding: “You may not want to buy an annuity on day one, but it does not mean that you will not want to buy one at all.

“The pension freedoms do mean that consumers are presented with choices they did not have before – which has to be a good thing.

“For the intermediary market it is fantastic news because in the old days if the client bought an annuity, that’s it – they would not need to have further contact with that individual. In this new world, intermediaries are able to manage their client’s journey through retirement.”

Finance was not necessarily Mr Willcocks’s preferred career path

Inspired by his father, who worked in the Royal Air Force and mother, who worked as a paramedic, Mr Willcocks originally embarked on a career as a medical officer in the RAF.

However, failing the colour blind test proved to be an insurmountable obstacle, dashing his hopes of a career in the armed forces.

He quickly turned his attention to finance, and entered the industry in 1986 at Hambros Bank in the investment management division.

“I became hooked very quickly on the concept of financial markets and the vibrancy of the City. You realise that you can play an important part in society,” he said.

The industry has changed from the bull market Mr Willcocks walked into during the 1980s. It has become more regulated, professional – from a qualifications perspective – and increasingly transparent, according to Mr Willcocks.

He said: “In the old days, you could win business over lunch. Today, it is a very intense process. You can go through months and even years to win new business. You have to go through so many hoops for your clients, and quite rightly so.

“Asset management was seen to be the poor cousin in the 1980s. In recent years, particularly after the banking crisis in 2007 and 2008, I think asset management has taken centre stage.”

According to Mr Willcocks, perhaps one of the biggest and most important developments in modern history has been the advancement in technology and the internet, and people are now flooded with easily-available information often delivered in soundbites.

“Because of all of the information out there, we have to get much smarter with how we communicate online,” he said.

In addition, there has also been a shift in attitude towards investment.

He said: “If you look at what investors used to do, they chased the input that would generate the most return in the short term. Then 2007 happened. Suddenly, you have an environment where people thought: ‘I need to replace the income I used to get from my bank, and I need to invest, but I am not sure I should be doing it on my own. I need to outsource.’”

Dealing with regulation, making financial products more transparent and relaying specialist information in a manner which is easily digestible for clients are among the challenges facing providers in the investment marketplace, according to Mr Willcocks.

“The next generation of investors after the baby boomers is the challenge,” he said. “They probably do not have a lot of money today, may have debt, have a greater interest in social and responsible investments and probably tar the financial industry with the same brush after the global financial crisis. They may not have money today but they will have in 20 to 30 years’ time. We as an industry need to take the steps today to connect with those investors tomorrow.”

Outside the office, Mr Willcocks enjoys golf, photography and travelling.

He said: “I have been to countries all over the world, but did not actually really see these countries, so I have been making an extra effort to immerse myself in different cultures.”

Jonathan Willcocks career ladder

2005–Present

Managing director, global head of sales

M&G

2001–2005

Sales director, UK and Scandinavia

MFS Investment Management

1997–2001

Investment sales director

Aberdeen Asset Management

1993 – 1997

Regional sales manager

Prolific Investments Limited

1986-1993

Regional sales manager

Hambros Bank