Opening: Why You Brought Us In (In One Sentence)

• In one sentence, what prompted you to engage with an LDI/multi-asset conversation right now?
• Which best describes your role in the decision process for this initiative? Options: CIO / Head of Investments, Investment Officer / PM, External Investment Consultant, Trustee / Board Member, Plan Sponsor / CFO, Other
• Which plan type are we discussing today? Options: Public defined benefit pension, Corporate defined benefit pension, Multi-employer pension, Defined contribution (DC) / hybrid, Other
• What is your most recent reported funded ratio (please use the actuarial valuation you rely on)? Options: Under 70%, 70%–79%, 80%–89%, 90%–99%, 100%+, Unsure / prefer to explain
• Who will be our primary day-to-day contact for follow-up? Options: CIO / Head of Investments, Investment Officer, Consultant Lead, Plan Administrator, Other

Are We Aligned on Who Holds the Keys?

• If this initiative fails publicly, who is most likely to be held accountable — and are those the same people who need to authorize it?
• Which stakeholders must sign off before a mandate can be issued? Options: Board of Trustees, Investment Committee, Plan Sponsor / CFO, External Consultant, Actuary, Legal / Compliance, HR / Benefits, Other
• For each stakeholder you listed, what is the single most important decision criterion they will use (e.g., funded status impact, fee, track record, political optics)?
• How do these stakeholders prefer decisions be presented (high-level board slides, deep technical appendix, consultant-led recommendation, RFP comparatives)? Options: Board-ready slides with executive summary, Technical appendix with scenario outputs, Consultant-led recommendation only, Formal RFP / scoring matrix, Informal consensus discussions, Other
• What is the expected decision timeline from initial proposal to final signature? Options: Immediate (weeks), 1–3 months, 3–6 months, 6–12 months, 12+ months, Undetermined / political
• Do any stakeholders already have ‘deal breakers’ (e.g., no derivatives, duration caps, ESG limits)? Please list who and what. Options: Yes — list provided, Yes — discuss later, No known deal breakers, Unsure

Tell Me the Parts That Keep You Up at Night

• Which single element of your current portfolio or funding/actuarial setup is most likely to cause an unexpected funding shock?
• Which drivers most explain your current funded status (select all that apply)? Options: Investment returns shortfall, Contribution insufficiency, Longevity / mortality changes, Inflation dynamics, Benefit changes / settlements, Sponsor covenant deterioration, Other
• Which governance constraints materially limit your ability to implement LDI or multi-asset solutions? Options: IPS allocation caps, Duration / duration gap limits, No derivatives policy, Prohibited asset classes, State/federal regulations, Sponsor approval required, Other
• Which reporting outputs are mission-critical for your board and consultant on a regular basis? Options: Quarterly funded status, Monthly performance attribution, Actuarial scenario outputs, Cash flow / liquidity forecasts, Risk-factor sensitivity reports, Custody & accounting reconciliations, Other
• Who are the operational owners we’ll need to engage to make onboarding possible (custody, accounting, payroll, trading desk, legal)? Options: Custodian / Transfer Agent, Internal Accounting, Third-party Administrator, Trading Desk / OMS, Legal / Compliance, IT / Data Team, Other
• Are your actuarial scenarios currently fed into your investment stress-testing tools (so we can run actual-plan LDI simulations)? Options: Yes — fully integrated, Partially integrated, No — but accessible, No — not accessible

When 'Good Enough' Starts Costing You

• What is one strategic compromise you’ve accepted that, in hindsight, is now costing you the most?
• How frequently has contribution volatility led to sponsor pushback or funding negotiations in the past 3 years? Options: Never, Rarely (once), Occasionally (2–3 times), Often (4+ times), Constant / ongoing
• Has the plan experienced headline or political risk related to investments in the last 5 years? If yes, what happened and what were the consequences? Options: Yes — major, Yes — minor, No
• Which actuarial assumptions feel most vulnerable to a market reality check (select up to three)? Options: Discount rate / assumed return, Salary inflation, CPI / benefit indexation, Mortality / longevity, Asset return correlation assumptions, Other
• When underperformance occurs, what tends to be the board’s behavioral response? Options: Immediate tactical changes, Hold the course, Request consultant review, Replace manager(s), Political escalation
• What operational or cultural obstacles inside your organization make change slow or risky?

If We Reimagined Your Fund in 3 Years

• If your board asked you to reduce funded-ratio volatility materially in three years, what would be the hardest internal story to rewrite?
• What target funded-ratio range would you like to see as a realistic goal over a 3–5 year horizon? Options: Under 80%, 80%–89%, 90%–99%, 100%–109%, 110%+
• How much incremental tracking error versus your current benchmark would you accept to materially improve funded-ratio stability? Options: Under 1%, 1%–2%, 2%–4%, 4%+
• What is an acceptable fee profile for a mandate that demonstrably improves funded-status outcomes? Options: Lower than current manager, In line with market, Slight premium for demonstrable outcomes, Significant premium if guarantees provided, Unsure / need examples
• Which measurable success metrics would convince trustees this approach is working (select all that apply)? Options: Improved funded ratio, Reduced contribution volatility, Lower downside risk in scenario tests, Board-ready scenario comparisons, Consistent cash-flow matching, Positive stakeholder sentiment
• How would achieving those outcomes change conversations with sponsors or trustees?

What Would Make This Mandate Unarguable?

• If you could ask one measurable promise from a manager to justify switching today, what would it be?
• Which mandate structure do you think aligns best with your goals? Options: Dedicated segregated LDI mandate, Pooled LDI sleeve, Multi-asset absolute return mandate, Overlay / duration management only, Cash-flow matched segregated mandate, Combination / phased approach
• What duration / cash-flow matching preference do you have for this mandate? Options: Full duration match, Partial duration match, Targeted cash-flow matching, Duration overlay only, Undecided — need recommendation
• What reporting cadence and formats will satisfy governance and consultant requirements? Options: Monthly dashboard + quarterly board pack, Quarterly plus scenario appendix, Monthly performance + monthly funded status, On-demand scenario outputs, Other
• Which due-diligence artifacts are mandatory for you before recommending a manager? Options: Live track record vs relevant benchmark, Third-party operational due diligence report, Custody and reconciliation evidence, Actuarial scenario output samples, Client references (similar plan type), On-site due diligence visit, Other
• What approval conditions (e.g., consultant sign-off, trial period, performance gates) must be in place before your board will sign?

What Would It Really Take To Say Yes?

• Assuming the financials check out, what single internal hurdle would still block a contract (culture, legal, sponsor politics, timing)?
• What is your ideal timeline from selection to first investment? Options: Under 1 month, 1–3 months, 3–6 months, 6–12 months, Longer / phased
• Who signs the final mandate or contract on behalf of the plan? Options: Board Chair, Investment Committee Chair, CIO / Head of Investments, Plan Sponsor CFO, Legal Counsel, Other
• Would you feel comfortable with a pilot / phased mandate (e.g., partial funding, temporary overlay) as a path to full implementation? Options: Yes — pilot preferred, Maybe — depends on terms, No — prefer full mandate, Unsure
• What vendor commercial formats would make internal approvals easier (illustrative fee scenarios, redline-ready contracts, consultant-priced comparison)? Options: Illustrative fee & outcome scenarios, Redline-ready contract, Consultant-priced comparison memo, RFP-ready artifacts, Other
• If we agree next steps today, who would you like us to engage first and how would you prefer we brief them? Options: Consultant — workshop style, Investment Committee — executive summary, Board — full presentation, Operational owners — technical session, Legal / compliance — document package

Quick Operational Reality Check (Can We Deliver When Needed?)

• Where does onboarding typically stall in your experience — custodian integration, data feeds, trade permissions, or governance approval? Options: Custodian integration, Data & accounting feeds, Trade permissions / broker approvals, Governance / board approval, Internal resourcing, Other
• What is the status of your custodian connectivity and custody reporting for new managers? Options: Fully connected for new managers, Partial — some feeds missing, Not connected — needs setup, Using multiple custodians — complex
• Are your accounting and actuarial systems prepared to accept daily or monthly funded-status feeds from a manager? Options: Yes — daily, Yes — monthly, No — needs work, Unsure
• Do you have trade permission rules or restrictions that would affect implementation timing (e.g., pre-trade approvals, external brokers only)? Options: Yes — significant restrictions, Yes — minor restrictions, No restrictions, Unsure
• Who will be the operational owner on your side for onboarding and how should we coordinate (name, role, preferred communication)?
• What acceptance criteria must be met post-deployment for you to declare the transition successful (examples: reconciled accounting, scenario outputs match, board sign-off)?
• Is there anything else—political, operational, or emotional—we haven’t covered that could materially affect feasibility or timing?

Start: Tell Us Where You Are Today

• Which best describes your pension plan and its approximate AUM? Options: Public defined benefit ( <$500M ), Public defined benefit ( $500M–$2B ), Public defined benefit ( >$2B ), Corporate defined benefit, Multi-employer plan, Other
• What was the funded ratio in your last actuarial valuation (enter exact % if available)?
• When was your most recent actuarial valuation finalized? Options: Within last 3 months, 3–6 months ago, 6–12 months ago, Over 12 months ago, We run monthly estimates only
• Which actuarial firm(s) and valuation basis do you currently use? (list firm(s) and key assumptions)
• Which of the following best describes how often your funded status is reported to trustees? Options: Monthly, Quarterly, Biannually, Annually (formal valuation), Ad-hoc on request

If Markets Move Suddenly, What Breaks First?

• If a 10% equity drawdown or a 200bp move in rates happened tomorrow, which would create the largest governance pain point for you? Options: Equity drawdown (assets fall), Rates move (liabilities change), Both equally, Depends on scenario details
• What are the top three drivers that move your funded ratio most (pick up to three)? Options: Interest rate movements, Equity market returns, Inflation surprises, Contribution shortfalls, Unexpected benefit changes, Longevity improvements, Other
• How volatile have sponsor contributions been historically—do contributions flex after bad years, or are they smoothed? Options: Highly volatile and responsive, Moderately adjusted, Smoothing adopted (actuarial policy), Contributions fixed by contract/legislation, Unsure
• Tell us about the last time a market shock materially changed your plan’s actions—what happened, and how long did that impact persist?
• Which actuarial scenarios or stress-tests matter most to your trustees (e.g., interest-rate shocks, CPI spikes, longevity tail risks)? Options: Interest-rate shocks, Equity market shocks, CPI/inflation spikes, Longevity tail risk, Liquidity stress, Multi-factor scenarios

Who Actually Holds the Levers When Things Get Tough?

• When funded status swings, who typically makes the strategic call—investment committee, full board, sponsor, or consultant recommendation? Options: Investment committee, Full board of trustees, Plan sponsor/legislature, Lead investment consultant, Hybrid / depends on issue
• What is your formal approval timeline for strategic changes to the portfolio (from proposal to ratification)? Options: Days (urgent authority), Weeks (committee cycle), Quarter(s) (board schedule), Requires legislative approval / longer
• Which of these governance constraints are active in your investment policy (select all that apply)? Options: No derivatives, Duration caps, Leverage limits, Maximum allocation to alternatives, ESG/IPS screens, Minimum liquidity thresholds, Other
• How do trustees typically react on an emotional level to funded status deterioration—concerned, paralyzed, looking for a hero, or focused on process? Options: Highly concerned / urgent action, Cautious / want analysis, Defer to consultant, Politically reactive, Calm / long-term oriented
• Who are the operational and fiduciary owners we should expect to engage during strategy discussions (roles, not names)? Options: CIO/Head of Investments, Plan Administrator, Chief Financial Officer, Board Chair/Trustees, External Consultant, General Counsel, Treasurer/Controller

Reporting That Actually Speaks to Trustees

• If you had one slide to reassure a skeptical trustee about funded status, what three metrics must appear on it?
• Which reports and cadences are required by your governance rules (select all that apply)? Options: Quarterly performance attribution, Quarterly funded-status monitoring, Formal actuarial updates (valuation), Monthly cashflow forecasts, Ad-hoc stress tests on request
• Which systems deliver your current reporting (custodian portal, actuarial modeling tool, GIPS/portfolio accounting)? Select all that apply and name any non-standard tools. Options: Custodian portal, Third-party accounting (e.g., BlackRock Aladdin), Actuarial system (e.g., Milliman/Willis/GAM), In-house dashboards, Spreadsheet-driven reports, Other
• What reporting gaps have led to trustee confusion or misinformed decisions in the past?
• How ready are your systems to accept feed-based, board-ready reports from an external manager? Options: Fully automated feeds ready, Partial feed capability, manual reconciliation needed, Manual reporting today; would need integration work, No capability / significant build required

Operational Reality Check: How Do Trades, Cash, and Custody Flow?

• What custodial and administrative platforms do you use that would impact onboarding and settlement? Options: Major global custodian (e.g., BNY/Morgan/State Street), Regional custodian, TPA/recordkeeper, Multi-custodian model, Separate account platform, Other
• Which of the following operational constraints have bitten you before (select all that apply)? Options: T+ settlement cutoffs, Limited trade permissions, Foreign custody/friction, Pension accounting cutoffs, NAV timing for illiquid assets, Insufficient trading authority documentation
• How mature is your operations team for integrations—do you have a single contact and SLAs for new manager onboarding? Options: Dedicated onboarding team with SLAs, Shared operations team; ad-hoc SLAs, Limited internal ops; rely on custodian/OCIO, No formal ops owner
• Describe any recurring data quality issues (e.g., mismatched security identifiers, stale valuations, missing cashflow histories). How long have these persisted?
• Are there specific counterparty, legal, or custodial approvals that historically delay trades or asset transfers? Options: Regulatory approvals, Contractual custodian limits, Sponsor sign-off required, No major approvals

Rules, Regs and Politics — The Invisible Handbrakes

• What hard constraints would immediately veto an LDI or derivatives-based hedge (statutory, IPS, sponsor political risk)?
• Which of the following legal/regulatory considerations apply to you? Options: State statute limitations on asset types, ERISA/ERISA-adjacent constraints, Legislative oversight on contribution increases, Collective bargaining agreements, Procurement/RFP requirements
• How transparent or politically visible is investment decision-making for your plan—could media or legislators intervene quickly? Options: High visibility / politically sensitive, Moderate visibility, Low visibility / technical domain
• Do you have blackout windows, fiscal-year constraints, or timing risks that would block major rebalancing? Options: Yes—seasonal/fiscal blackout, Yes—contractual windows, No formal blackouts, Unsure
• Who would need to be convinced internally before adopting a new LDI posture, and what does each group care about most?

What Success Feels Like — Concrete Signals We Can Measure

• In 12–24 months, what concrete funded-status or cashflow signal would make you say ‘this worked’?
• What maximum year-to-year contribution volatility would your sponsor tolerate while pursuing better funded outcomes? Options: Very low (≤2% of payroll), Moderate (2–5%), High (>5%), Sponsor provides fixed contributions
• What risk budget would you be comfortable allocating to liability-hedging vs return-seeking assets (approx % of plan AUM)? Options: 0–25%, 25–50%, 50–75%, 75–100%
• Which success metric matters most to your board: funded ratio, stabilization of contributions, downside protection in stress-tests, or total-return performance? Options: Funded ratio improvement, Contribution stabilization, Downside protection in stress scenarios, Long-term total return, Combination
• Who must be persuaded of success internally (roles), and what evidence would convince them (e.g., actuarial sign-off, scenario outputs, cost analysis)?

Data & Documents: What We’ll Need to Run Your Actual Scenarios

• Which of these data items are immediately available for secure sharing? Options: Detailed asset holdings (positions), Actuarial valuation file and assumptions, Cashflow schedule / benefit payments, Plan policy and IPS documents, Custodian/portfolio accounting feeds, None of the above
• What format are your actuarial and asset files typically in? Options: CSV / flat files, Proprietary actuarial software export, PDF reports only, API/data feed, Combination / other
• What internal or legal approvals do you require before sending sensitive actuarial or position-level data to an external manager? Options: Board approval, Legal review, Data-sharing agreement / NDA, Consultant sign-off, No special approvals
• What single data gap would prevent us from running rigorous actuarial-driven LDI scenarios for your plan?
• How soon could you assemble and deliver the core dataset (actuarial valuation + positions + cashflows) if we agreed next steps? Options: Within 1 week, 1–3 weeks, 1–2 months, Longer / uncertain

Getting Comfortable Before We Start

• Who will be our primary day-to-day onboarding contact (the person we call when something needs immediate action)? Options: CIO, Head of Operations/COO, Treasurer, Custody/Trustee Lead, Investment Operations Manager, External Consultant, Other
• How would you describe your current internal appetite for a tight, fixed onboarding timeline versus a cautious, phased approach? Options: Aggressive (fixed date, high risk tolerance), Balanced (target date with contingency), Conservative (phased, allow buffer), Undecided
• Briefly describe one recent onboarding or technology integration you completed—what went smoothly and what created friction?
• On a scale from 1–5, how confident are you in your team's ability to meet the onboarding deadlines we’ll set together? Options: 1 - Not confident, 2, 3 - Somewhat confident, 4, 5 - Very confident

What Would Break the Plan on Day One?

• If a single operational failure could derail go-live, what is most likely to be that failure? Options: Custodian connectivity failure, Missing or mismatched accounting feed, Trade permission or signatory gap, Insufficient cash/collateral, Actuarial input mismatch, Other
• Which systems or third parties do you consider single points of failure today? Options: Primary custodian, Ledger/accounting system, Actuarial vendor, Performance vendor, External consultant, Other
• If that failure occurred, what contingency would you expect us to execute immediately? Options: Delay trade execution, Manual reconciliation and temporary holds, Switch to alternate custodian feed, Escalate to executive committee, Other
• How much schedule slippage is tolerable before the board or sponsor must be notified? Options: No slippage, Up to 1 week, 1–2 weeks, 2–4 weeks, More than 4 weeks

Where Your Data Feels Fragile

• How sure are you that the data feeds we’ll need (positions, transactions, market values, actuarial tables) will arrive on time and in usable form? Options: Completely confident, Mostly confident, Some concerns, Significant doubts
• Which data feeds must be in place for you to consider the deployment minimally viable? Options: Daily positions, Daily cash balances, Transaction/ticket history, Custodian statements, General ledger/AUM feeds, Actuarial liability files, Market/benchmark data
• Who currently owns reconciliation and data quality for each feed (name/role and team)?
• What SLAs or timing windows (e.g., T+0 by 8am ET) do your operations require for each critical feed? Options: Intra-day (within 4 hours), By start of business day, By close of business day, Daily but flexible window, Weekly

Who Owns the Buttons?

• If a trade block or program fails at execution, who is ultimately empowered to authorize a manual workaround? Options: Portfolio Manager, Head of Trading, CIO, Operations Lead, Treasurer, External Consultant, Other
• What trade permissions and controls must be configured before any live orders (select all that apply)? Options: Block trade authority, Programmatic trading access, Cash sweep controls, Collateral management controls, Broker-dealer routing rules, Pre-trade approval workflows
• List any delegated signatories, trading limits, or approval authorities that differ from your standard policy.
• Do you have any planned blackout windows or governance meetings that could prevent trade activity during onboarding? Options: Yes — specific dates, Possibly — pending approvals, No

Custodian & Connectivity Reality Check

• How prepared are your custodians to support test and production integrations on our timeline? Options: Fully prepared with resources, Prepared but limited resources, Uncertain — need to confirm, Not prepared
• Which custodians and account types will be involved in the initial deployment?
• What is the current status of test connectivity for each custodian (No work started, Integration in progress, Testing complete, Production enabled)? Options: No work started, Integration in progress, Testing complete, Production enabled
• Are there IT constraints we should know about (firewalls, VPN, SFTP restrictions, PKI certificates)? If yes, please list. Options: None, Known constraints — will provide details, Unknown — need IT input, Other

Accounting, Reporting and Actuarial Integration

• If our funded-status reporting or actuarial scenario outputs were incorrect on day one, who would feel the immediate impact and how? Options: Board/Trustees (public scrutiny), Plan Sponsor (contribution decisions), Investment Committee, Actuary/Consultant reputation, Other
• Which of these reports must be delivered from day one (select all that apply)? Options: Funded status snapshot, Performance attribution, Actuarial scenario outputs, Cashflow matching status, GL/Accounting ledger exports, Regulatory filings
• What file formats or APIs do your actuarial and accounting teams prefer (e.g., CSV, BAI2, SFTP, REST API)? Options: CSV/flat file, BAI2/financial format, SFTP drop, REST API/JSON, Proprietary vendor format, Other
• Who must sign off on the validation of actuarial scenario outputs and funded-status calculations? Options: Chief Actuary, External Actuary/Consultant, CIO, Treasurer/Finance, Independent Compliance

Deployment Friction & Past Lessons (Let’s Not Repeat History)

• What single mistake from a prior onboarding caused the most pain—and what would you want us to guarantee we won’t repeat?
• Historically, which category caused the longest delays? Options: Custodian integrations, Data format mismatches, Governance approvals, Trade authority/signature delays, Actuarial reconciliation, Other
• Which internal behaviors or cultural dynamics have slowed past projects (e.g., risk aversion, unclear ownership, competing priorities)?
• What would you say would make this onboarding feel like a ‘best-in-class’ experience to your board and staff?

Sign-offs, Timelines and Success Signals

• If we hit every technical milestone but miss a governance sign-off, is the board likely to accept a delayed financial go-live, or would they demand a hard pause? Options: Accept delay, Demand pause, Depends on the reason, Unclear — need to confirm
• Who are the required signatories for final go-live approval (name/role and backup)?
• Which acceptance criteria must be met before we mark deployment complete (select all that apply)? Options: Successful end-to-end trade test, Daily reconciliations balancing for 3 days, Actuarial scenario validation, Custodian confirmed live feeds, Board/investment committee approval
• What is your target go-live date or window, and what factors could move that date? Options: Within 2 weeks, 2–6 weeks, 6–12 weeks, Quarter +

Operational Resourcing & Runbook Ownership

• Who will be on-call for critical operational incidents during the first 30 days post-go-live? Options: Head of Operations, Trading Desk Lead, External Ops Vendor, Custodian Support, Rotating team
• Does your organization have an up-to-date runbook for onboarding and first-week operations? If so, who owns it? Options: Yes — internal owner named, Yes — but outdated, No runbook, Runbook managed by external consultant
• What training or handover would your operations team find most valuable before handoff (select up to 3)? Options: Walkthroughs of reconciliation flows, Live trade simulation, API/technical integration training, Governance and escalation training, Board-ready reporting walkthrough
• Which communication channels should we use for real-time deployment coordination (select all that apply)? Options: Email, Secure Slack/Teams channel, Daily stand-up calls, Ticketing system (JIRA/ServiceNow), Phone escalation list

Start Here: Your Plan in One Short Story

• Briefly describe your plan (type, membership scale, and one-sentence mission for the portfolio).
• Which best describes your plan structure? Options: Public defined benefit (state/local), Corporate defined benefit, Multi-employer plan, Hybrid / DB+DC, Other
• How would you summarize your current governance rhythm for investment decisions (who meets and how often)? Options: Monthly staff reviews; quarterly committee, Quarterly committee, Ad-hoc / event-driven, Annual strategic review, Other
• Who are the primary advisers and operational partners currently involved (select all that apply)? Options: Internal CIO / Investment staff, External investment consultant, Actuary, Trustee committee, Custodian, Legal counsel, Third‑party administrator
• When was the last time your funded status assumptions (discount rate, payroll growth, mortality) were materially reviewed? Options: Within 12 months, 12–24 months, 24–36 months, Longer than 3 years, Not sure

Are We Mistaking Comfort for Control?

• How confident are you that your current asset mix will deliver the funding outcomes your actuary expects over the next 5–10 years? Options: Very confident, Somewhat confident, Skeptical, Not confident
• What signs in your reports or meetings make you second‑guess that confidence?
• Which of these is the single biggest practical barrier to aligning investments with actuarial assumptions? Options: Return expectations are unrealistic, Governance process is slow, Operational constraints / custody, Risk tolerance disagreement, Fee pressure, Other
• Describe a recent committee discussion where you felt the portfolio’s trajectory was unclear—what was the moment and what decision followed (if any)?
• How would you rate the board’s appetite for strategies that reduce funded‑ratio volatility but may change near‑term returns? Options: High appetite, Moderate appetite with caveats, Low appetite, Undecided / depends on evidence

What Keeps You Up at Night (Really)?

• If a surprise market event hit tomorrow, which consequence worries you most? Options: Contribution spikes for sponsor, Material drop in funded ratio, Regulatory / political scrutiny, Loss of trustee confidence, Pension expense volatility, Other
• How has that fear influenced past investment or funding choices—what did you do differently because of it?
• Which risk factors have been most damaging historically to your plan’s funded status (select up to three)? Options: Interest-rate shifts, Equity drawdowns, Inflation surprises, Longevity / demographic shifts, Sponsor covenant deterioration, Contribution timing / shortfalls
• When bad news hit, how quickly are trustees expecting an actionable plan or public response? Options: Immediate (days), Within weeks, Quarterly cycle, Wait for actuarial review
• Tell us about an episode where operational or reporting delays magnified stress—what broke and what was the impact?

Where Do Your Assumptions Crack Open?

• How closely do your investment return assumptions match the actuary’s discount rate today? Options: Aligned within 0.5%, Within 0.5–1.5%, Wide gap (>1.5%), We don’t compare them regularly
• Which actuarial scenarios are you running today (select all that apply)? Options: Deterministic baseline, Stochastic scenarios, Interest-rate shocks, Inflation stress, Cash‑flow matching tests, Custom sponsor scenarios, Not sure
• How actionable are the actuarial outputs you receive—do they tie directly to investable decisions (glide path, duration changes, hedging)? Options: Highly actionable, Somewhat (needs translation), Too abstract / not actionable, We rarely use them
• Give an example of an assumption you’ve been asked to accept that felt optimistic or politically driven—what was it and why did it feel off?
• What would it take for you to trust actuarial scenario outputs as the primary input to portfolio design (data, cadence, independent validation)?

If This Worked, What Would It Look Like?

• What funded‑ratio level or range would you call a successful hedge against future shocks? Options: >110% funded, 100–110% funded, 95–100% funded, Target depends on sponsor covenant
• Which success signals matter most for you and the board (select up to three)? Options: Stable contribution path, Reduced funded‑ratio volatility, Lower pension expense volatility, Improved downside protection, Regulatory compliance, Positive stakeholder communications
• How would achieving those signals change conversations with trustees, sponsors, or legislators—what would feel different emotionally and practically?
• What time horizon do you expect for seeing meaningful progress (and what would you accept as interim milestones)? Options: 6–12 months, 12–24 months, 2–5 years, Longer than 5 years
• If we delivered a stress‑tested glide path that hit your signals, what would you want public-facing materials to highlight first? Options: Funding improvement trajectory, Risk reduction metrics, Cost/fee transparency, Operational readiness, Independent validation

Who Decides — And How Fast Can They Move?

• Who are the individuals or bodies that must sign off for a mandate change (select all that apply)? Options: CIO / Investment Staff, Investment Committee, Full Board of Trustees, External Consultant sign‑off required, Sponsor approval, Legal/Compliance
• What does a Go / No‑Go look like for each decision maker—what specific concerns or thresholds trigger a No‑Go?
• What is your typical decision timeline from proposal to execution for a new manager or strategy? Options: < 1 month, 1–3 months, 3–6 months, 6+ months
• Have any past approvals failed because of missing evidence or reporting? If so, what was missing?
• How do political or legislative calendars influence your ability to implement changes? Give specific examples if possible.

The Tricky Ops Reality — Can We Execute It?

• Which operational constraints would most likely delay onboarding (select all that apply)? Options: Custodian connectivity, Data / accounting feed gaps, Trade permissions setup, Cash transfer timing, Compliance or legal review, Staff bandwidth
• What systems and reporting formats must we integrate with (custodian platforms, actuarial outputs, consultant databases)?
• How do you prefer performance & funded‑status reporting to be delivered and how often? Options: Quarterly board packets, Monthly staff dashboards, Ad-hoc deep dives, Real‑time dashboards + quarterly summaries
• Tell us about a past onboarding that went well—what processes or owners made it seamless?
• Which operational owner on your side will be accountable for deployment tasks and who will be the escalation contact?

What Evidence Will Make the Board Say Yes?

• Which pieces of evidence carry the most weight during due diligence (select up to three)? Options: Historical performance vs benchmarks, Actuarial scenario demonstrations, Peer plan case studies, Operational readiness / custodian attestations, Fee transparency, On-site due diligence reports
• If we provided an actuarial‑driven demo showing your fund’s funded‑ratio under our glide path, what would you look for to be convinced?
• Are independent validations or third‑party attestations required before approval? Options: Yes — required, Preferred but not required, Not necessary, Undecided
• What references or peer examples would help win trustee confidence (select all that apply)? Options: Plans of similar size, Plans in same sector/region, Plans with similar funded status, Independent consultant endorsement, Regulatory or auditor references
• What would be the minimum set of deliverables (documents, models, meetings) you need before recommending us to the board?

Signals of Success — How Will We Know We Get There?

• Which quantitative metric would you name as the primary signal that deployment is working? Options: Reduced funded‑ratio volatility, Improved projected funded ratio, Lower sponsor contribution volatility, Better downside protection in stress scenarios, Improved pension expense predictability
• Which qualitative signs would indicate success to trustees (select up to two)? Options: Fewer urgent board questions on funding, Positive sponsor engagements, Clear, concise board materials, Stronger trustee confidence in strategy
• What acceptance criteria should performance attribution, funded‑status reporting, and actuarial outputs meet before you consider them 'board‑ready'?
• How would you like exceptions or 'near misses' to be communicated and remediated? Options: Immediate alert + remediation plan, Quarterly exception log, Board memo on material items only, Other
• Who should own the post‑deployment review and when should the first success check occur? Options: CIO / investment staff, External consultant, Joint client‑manager review, Independent auditor

Next Steps Together — What Would Make This Easy and Fast?

• What is your preferred next step after this discovery (select one)? Options: Deep actuarial scenario demo, Operational readiness review, Draft mandate & commercial terms, RFP/RFI response, Introductory trustee briefing
• What timeline would feel realistic for progressing from discovery to a commercial proposal? Options: 2–4 weeks, 1–2 months, 2–3 months, Longer than 3 months
• Are there any hard constraints or blackout periods (e.g., fiscal year, elections, audit) that would block movement?
• Who on your team should we include in follow‑up workshops, and what role should each play?
• Finally, what would make you feel the most reassured about moving forward after this discovery conversation?