Creating a proactive media plan: the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund sought to create a brand to educate the media and to promote the fund as a relevant, modem, and cost-efficient pension plan.

• Author: Walker, Phyllis
• Position: Management & Careers

Public pension plans are getting a black eye from news media outlets. Everyone has heard reports that public pensions are experiencing considerable market volatility and abuse (e.g. pension spiking and inadequate funding). But despite the negative publicity, a majority of public pension plans have continued paying benefits to more than seven million retired public workers. For example, in 2009, the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) paid $896.7 million to retirees. It ended 2009 with $22 billion assets.

IMRF, which began operations in 1941 with $5,000 in assets, was created to provide employees of local governments and school districts in Illinois with a sound and efficient system for the payment of retirement, disability, and death benefits. The fund's mission statement is to efficiently and impartially develop, implement, and administer programs, in a prudent manner, that provide income protection to members and their beneficiaries on behalf of participating employers.

IMRF has been successful in meeting its mission. However, fund officials realized that addressing external challenges--such as the volatility of the market and increasing media scrutiny--required a strategic approach. So the fund undertook a formal process to develop its first strategic plan.

ANALYZING THE GOALS

Organizations need to occasionally step back and consider whether their goals are relevant. As the IMRF deputy executive director has said, "You may paint a room perfectly, but if the wrong room was painted, you will have not achieved your goal." Accordingly, IMRF senior management conducted a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis as well as an analysis of the social, technological, economic, and political (STEP) influences on the fund. The SWOT analysis helped identify the fund's strengths:

* Independence of the board of trustees

* Knowledge and longevity of staff

* Effectiveness of internal controls

* Culture of providing excellent customer service

The fund's weaknesses were also identified:

* Lack of a proactive media plan

* No "brand"

* Lack of a formal comprehensive quality assurance program

* Dependence on key staff

Opportunities were pinpointed:

* Changing the IMRF image through enhanced communication

* Taking the lead in a constructive debate regarding the appropriate role of defined benefit and defined contribution plans

* Improving customer service through continued technological advancements

* Modernize the IMRF benefit structure And threats were recognized:

* Conversion of defined benefit plans to defined contribution plans

* Participation in IMRF becoming optional for governmental units

* Consolidation of pension systems

* Economic stagnation or inflation

The analysis was reviewed and discussed with the IMRF board of trustees. The board prioritized the issues and identified four strategic goals:

* Advocate preservation of the defined benefit plan

* Create and support the IMRF brand

* Advocate existing autonomy of plan administration and investment authority

* Advocate preservation of the 100 percent...