Equip Super on track to boost member engagement with super and advice

The $40 billion profit-to-member super fund Equip Super has expanded its association with Supercars to promote the value of financial advice and planning for retirement, through an ambassadorial arrangement with professional driver James Courtney.

Courtney, co-driver of the Team 18 Camaro ZL1 alongside David Reynolds in Sunday’s Bathurst 1000 race at Mount Panorama, is also a former Formula 1 test driver, and has been enlisted to help the fund grapple with one of the major issues reflected in its Financial Security Index research, showing that more than half of Australians do not have a formal financial plan in place.

The research found Gen X – now aged between about 45 and 61 – is the generation least prepared for retirement, with 63 per cent lacking a financial plan, well above the all-member figure of 54 per cent, despite their reaching the stage of life when decisions about retirement savings, investments and future work become significant.

Equip chief experience officer Carrie Norman tells Professional Planner that members commonly find that “super can be difficult to engage with because for much of our working lives retirement feels a long way away”.

“There is also a perception that retirement planning is complicated, or that you need to have everything figured out before you start,” she says.

“Our research suggests uncertainty about where to begin can itself become a reason people put planning off. That’s why we need to find different ways to make super and retirement feel relevant to people before retirement is immediately in front of them.”

Norman says the fund believes an association with Courtney can “help us do that because his own experience makes the idea of planning ahead much more tangible”.

“He began thinking about his financial future early in his racing career and has had to prepare for what life looks like beyond full-time racing,” she says.

“His story is a useful reminder that retirement planning doesn’t have to start with having all the answers. It starts with thinking about where you want to get to, understanding where you are today and taking the first step. If we can make those conversations feel more relatable and less intimidating, we have a better chance of getting people engaged earlier.”

Advice channels

Norman says Equip’s member research has found that more than half of Australians (52 per cent) want additional support or guidance to make confident financial decisions, indicating that there is “a real need to help people understand their options and take the next step”.

A member seeking advice from Equip may “access personalised guidance through our Retirement Centre, as well as tailored financial advice through Equip Financial Planning”, she says.

“We have an in-house intrafund and comprehensive financial planning capability, and work with referral partners where appropriate.

“That sits alongside our broader member support, including webinars, seminars, retirement tools and calculators that can help members understand areas such as contributions, projected retirement outcomes, drawdowns and the Age Pension.”

“The important thing for us is that advice isn’t viewed as something you only seek when you are about to retire. There can be real value in getting help earlier, when you still have time to understand your position and consider the choices available to you.”

Link started in May

Equip’s link with Supercars started in May, when it became the official superannuation partner of the Repco Sprint Cup Series, building on what Norman said was “strong overlap between Equip Super’s membership and Supercars fans”.

The 46-year-old Courtney – himself a member of Gen X – said in a statement that “I am probably more engaged with my super than most people, I check it every day”. 

“But for me, it’s always been about thinking ahead and making decisions now that give you more options later.” he said.

“As I’ve gotten further into my career, I’ve become even more grateful that I started thinking about these things early. In the last few years, I’ve had younger teammates and I’ve tried to pass on some of the advice people gave me when I was their age about planning ahead.”

Norman says Equip’s research suggests there is an intention to act among Gen X members: 41 per cent say they intend to create a financial plan, “the highest proportion of any generation”.

“The challenge is converting that intention into action, particularly when 22 per cent say they don’t intend to make a plan at all,” she says.

“For Gen X in particular, our message is not that it’s too late. It’s that now is a very important time to understand where you stand. Advice can help turn retirement from an abstract concern into a plan based on your own circumstances, goals and options.”

The move to raise member engagement on retirement and advice follows Equip’s decision to switch administrators from Mercer to Apex Group, in a transaction expected to be completed late next year.

Announcing the decision in May, Equip chair Michael Cameron said the switch would support the fund to deliver “the next evolution of experience for our 140,000-strong membership and their employers”.

And in July the fund appointed former Legalsuper chief executive officer Luke Symons as its new CEO, replacing Scott Cameron, who led the fund through its merger with Catholic Super and successor fund transfers of Toyota Super and BOC Super.