Pension Operations Specialist

ABOUT UPP
UPP is the first pension plan of its kind in Ontario’s university sector, proudly serving over 39,000 members across four universities and 12 affiliate organizations. Our purpose is to bring greater retirement peace of mind to the university sector by investing with integrity and serving members with care. As a sector-wide plan designed for growth, our doors are open to all Ontario universities.

Together, we’re a team of progressive thinkers and agile doers operating within a fast-paced culture of collaboration and respect. We believe in bringing smart and capable people together to create, solve and grow with a clear shared vision and values of integrity, inclusivity, ingenuity, and impact.

Our culture is intentionally welcoming and purposefully rooted in equity, diversity, inclusion, and reconciliation (EDIR). We believe diverse teams, perspectives, and lived experiences contribute to better decisions and a better workplace.

As a long-term investor, we recognize that environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) factors support risk management and value creation. As stated in our Responsible Investing Policy, we are committed to incorporating ESG considerations into our investment management activities and we collaborate with other industry participants in the promotion of a sustainable economy and society.

Join us in building a bright future for our members, our organization, and each other.

ABOUT THE ROLE
Reporting to the Manager, Pension Operations, this is a fantastic opportunity for an experienced Pension Services professional to join a team of high performing professionals to make a great impact.

UPP is based in Toronto’s financial district and has a hybrid work model (~2 days / week in office).

SPECIFIC ACCOUNTABILITIES
UPP is uniquely positioned in its flexibility to build an internal foundation from the ground up. We approach this build thoughtfully and methodically, with a careful focus on building a strong base, operational efficiency and excellent member and employer experience. We are creating a digitally enabled service experience for our members.
Service Delivery
- Deliver best-in-class service to our members, participating employers and universities.
- Act as the primary point for transaction processing of the pension plan, including active faculty and staff, retirees, and vested deferred members retirement estimates and quotes, retirement planning, termination, and death benefit payments, etc.
- Recommend improvements to pension administration.
- Exhibit an ability to listen, negotiate and communicate goals; share knowledge, experience, and responsibility with the team to achieve the highest standards of professionalism.
- Offer distinctive, exceptional pension service to all members.

Pension Administration
- Execute transactions and pension payroll cases, and provide relevant, prompt and accurate information to the Pension Services team regarding cases statuses.
- Remain current on pension benefit trends, practices and procedures, and evaluate and recommend adjustments.
- Prioritize workload to ensure cases are processed within Standard Legislation Agreement timelines.
- Lend support and expertise to the Pension Services team through learned experiences while supporting members.
- Will be expected to provide backup support to other areas within the Pension Services team as needed.
- Support the Pension Operations Manager on special pension projects as needed.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE
- Completed college diploma or university degree with 3+ years of strong client service experience in the pension, insurance or financial services industry.
- CEBS or PPAC would be an asset.
- 3+ years of experience within the pension services industry (defined benefits experience is preferred).
- Strong ability to self-diagnose case processing issues and errors correctly.
- Strong time management skills and an ability to communicate any expected delays, needs to be able to move them forward, and expected completion timelines for complex cases.
- Professional, client-focused approach to colleagues and assignments.
- Seeks out experiences that may change perspective or provide an opportunity to learn new things.
- Ability to organize, set priorities and work independently.

ATTRIBUTES
- A passion for delivering a great pension experience from enrollment to retirement, with a proven ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships.
- High emotional intelligence.
- Organized and able to manage workload based on level of priority.
- Self-motivated, flexible, and adaptable to changing priorities and new challenges.
- Logical and detail oriented.
- Strong commitment to innovation and continuous improvement.
- Ownership mindset.
- Strong conflict resolution skills/ able to manage complaints and escalations from both members and employers.
- Excellent judgment and clear and precise communication skills - written, verbal, listening and presentation, including a high degre