SIO News

SIO Introduces new Membership Options

Since it’s inception, Scottish Investment Operations offered a single type of membership. Board Membership provides the opportunity for organisations to have a seat at the table and to directly influence the agenda and direction of SIO.

Taking into account the time commitment placed on the Board Member alongside the additional cost, we know this is not for everyone.

For that reason, SIO is now offering two new Membership Tiers.

Associate Membership provides all the same content and resources as Board Membership without that direct influence over the agenda.

Individual Membership provides people, whose organisations are not corporate members, an opportunity to join by themselves. Some premium content may be chargeable.

Click on the links to find out more about the benefits of membership and membership options available.

18th July 2024 - SIO Offers Free One-to-one Coaching

Professional coaching offers numerous benefits that extend beyond career advancement and skill development. At Scottish Investment Operations and alongside our normal programme of webinars, we have introduced a pilot programme offering one-to-one Mental Fitness Coaching for member firms.

Coaching is widely considered to be the most impactful form of development so why not elevate your people leadership with Mental Fitness Coaching. If you are looking to create a supportive and productive work environment where everyone can thrive, this may be just for you.

Enhance self-awareness and emotional intelligence
Master stress management for you and your team
Improve communication skills and team morale
Develop conflict-resolution skills
Boost resilience

Spaces are strictly subject to availability and will be allocated on a first-come first-served basis.

Don’t underestimate the power of a conversation, addressing what is real and in the moment, finding insights and challenging perceptions.

Two women sitting at a dining table smiling and talking, one is wearing a floral blouse and the other has a colorful scarf and short hair, in a bright room with large windows and plants.

A man giving a presentation in a conference room with a slide about chronic stress, a window with a stone building outside, and an audience of professionals.

8th May 2024

On 8th and 9th May, SIO hosted the first sessions delivered by Dr Rob Archer from Cognacity.

The Sustaining High Performance workshop uses the latest in cognitive behavioural science to help participants sustain high levels of performance, even when working under pressure. It has been shown to produce tangible benefits to health, wellbeing and performance across many different industries, particularly financial and professional services. This interactive workshop is based on performance psychology principles frequently used by elite sports teams.

Dr. Rob Archer is a Chartered Psychologist specialising in helping organisations and individuals build resilience, improve mental health, and sustain high performance.

The session was extremely well received by the participants which, over the two days, was over 65 attendees. Further sessions will be held in September and November 2024.

“Great session!”

“This gave me new ways of thinking about how to manage my day”

“Fascinating session and so well delivered by Rob”

18 May 2023

Following on from the success of our Glasgow Canal Clean, and to mark KeepScotlandBeautiful Week, another amazing group of volunteers joined the SIO to clear the beach area at Silverknowes, Edinburgh. The turnout was incredible with 30 volunteers joining us on what proved to be a mild, clear day!

I believe we left that beach area squeaky clean, having collected over 20 bags of rubbish. Scottish Investment Operations also committed to donating £10 for each person that attended to KeepScotlandBeautiful, bringing our total donation to £300.

I want to thank those that worked so hard on the day itself. I have listed all attendees below.

abrdn Baillie Gifford Blackrock BNP Paribas BONY Mellon

Alysha Herd Janine Hutchinson Andrew Morrison Cheryl Reid Aileen Ford

Amie MacGruer Julie Paul Emily Boorman Forsyth Henderson Gary Rintoul

Andrew Gellatly Lindsay Cockburn Emma Miller Freya Marshall Stephanie Edwards

Calum Wallace Lyndsay Cooper Isabel Sheldon Kevin Tait

Dayna Clark Selva Kumar

Ellie Simmerson

Emily Lucy King

Kasim Mustafa

Kyle Pearce

Laura Simpson

Lindsay Reed

Martin Kwaitkowski

Rohit Salian

Scott Downie

Three people in yellow safety vests holding trash bags and trash pick-up tools standing on a path near a body of water, with a cloudy sky overhead.

Two people hiking on a grassy hillside, one wearing a high-visibility vest and the other in gray, with cloudy skies above.

A large group of people gathered outdoors near a body of water on a cloudy day, with some trash bags and cleanup supplies on the ground nearby.

Three men wearing yellow reflective vests participating in a shoreline cleanup, holding trash grabbers and trash bags, on a cloudy day near a body of water.

Four women in casual clothing and yellow safety vests holding trash bags and litter pickers, standing on an open paved area near the water, participating in a beach cleanup.

20 April 2023

To mark WorldEarthDay 2023, an amazing group of volunteers from BNP Paribas, Blackrock and Morgan Stanley came together at Speirs Wharf in Glasgow, to clear litter. The group were equally delighted that we had chosen a day that turned out to be bathed in glorious sunshine!! We met at Ocho and from there disbanded armed with litter pickers, bin bags and incredible enthusiasm given the task ahead! We covered an area of just a mile, along the canal and were shocked at just how much litter was collected.

As you can see from the pictures, everyone remained in high spirits and we were incredibly proud of our small, yet important, contribution to our city. In addition to the clear-up, Scottish Investment Operations also committed to donating £10 for each person that attended to KeepScotlandBeautiful, bringing our total donation to £180.

I want to thank everyone that helped to organize the event but especially those that worked so hard on the day itself. I have listed all attendees below.

BNP Paribas Morgan Stanley Blackrock

Mark Daisley Rob Crawford Tracy McFadyen

Morven Campbell Anton Caballero

Patricia Donnelly

Lorinc Kovacs

Kavitha Hendricks

Shona Newlands

Shabana Afzal-Malik

Laura Bruce

Claire Hunter

Kate Jones

Julie Mullaney

Bryan Greenock

Siobhan Fearon

Amanda Byrne

Marie Louise Carrick

A group of people standing outside a building with a blue storefront and a small balcony. They are gathered around tables on a cobblestone sidewalk, with some wearing matching white T-shirts. There is a large black planter with greenery in the foreground.

Group of people standing outside a building with stone walls and blue windows, some wearing matching T-shirts, with tables, chairs, and a large planter with green plants in the foreground.

Two volunteers wearing yellow safety vests and gloves picking up trash by a canal on a sunny day.

Two men wearing yellow reflective safety vests and gloves, working outdoors in a garden or yard, holding trash bags and trash pickers for cleanup.

Two people in yellow safety vests cleaning up litter along a fence on a sunny day.

A group of people standing outside a building with blue framing and a stone facade, some wearing matching shirts, and a large planter with green plants in the foreground.

Bright yellow high-visibility vest with black text reading "STOP VOLUNTEER" and a star symbol above the text.

Two women in casual clothes and sunglasses, wearing yellow gloves and reflective vests, holding trash bags, standing on a sidewalk during a park cleanup on a sunny day with trees, grass, a canal, and buildings in the background.

SIO is delighted to announce the appointment of Jamie Drysdale as our new Non-Executive Director. Jamie is a Director in the Insurance and Asset Management consulting team at PwC with over 20 years advisory experience. Jamie leads their operations transformation practice in the sector. His current focus is on Next Generation Productivity, Sustainable Cost Transformation and Process Excellence working across Life & Pensions, Commercial Insurance and Asset Management.

“We are delighted to welcome Jamie to the Board of SIO and look forward to benefiting from his extensive industry expertise.” Denise Thomas, SIO Chair.

15 NOV 22

A man with short gray hair, glasses, wearing a white collared shirt and a blue zip-up sweater, standing in front of a large window with an urban cityscape background.

1 NOV 22

SIO is focused on enhancing the diversity of talent coming into our sector. In that regards we are proud to announce our partnership with The Robertson Trust.

The Robertson Trusts' "Journey to Success" programme was devised to offer self-development opportunities and financial support to 16-25 year olds in Scotland who face barriers to higher education. They are particularly interested in supporting students from backgrounds currently under-represented in higher education, including those who are from: schools with low progression rates to higher education; households with low income; black and minority ethnic groups; disabled; care background; carers; estranged from their family; Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities or from military families.

SIO will provide mentoring support to The Robertson Trust Scholars in order to provide assistance as they progress their journey through university.

16 NOV 22

SIO launches its new website design today, including more interactive and informative content. In todays digital world, it is more important than ever that we provide an experience which enhances connectivity and collaboration. Recognising our latest strategy evolution, we have ensured that the website provides all the latest information on our initiatives including additional Wellbeing content regarding the menopause and how it affects our community. Our Programme Director, Richard Leigh, has also created a new video, talking about his own mental health challenges and experience, as part of our Leader Interview series. You will also enjoy the new section that captures some of the latest news and articles as it pertains to the Investment Operations sector, alongside the usual members only content. We hope you enjoy the new website!

1 FEB 23

SIO has undergone a number of Board changes which we wanted to share with our community. Back in August 2022, we welcomed Ryan Mitchell as the new Director for First Sentier Investors, following the retirement of Nicola McIntyre. As reported in November, we were also joined by a new Non-Executive Director from PwC, Jamie Drysdale. Elspeth Henderson, from BONY Mellon, announced her retirement at the end of 2022 and we are delighted to announce that Kevin Liddle has joined the Board in January 2023, to replace Elspeth. Most recently, SIO is also delighted to be joined by Stacey Kirk, who is the new Board Director from HSBC, replacing Steven Forsyth. Kevin and Stacey have worked within the Scottish Operations community for over 20 years and bring a wealth of experience to our group. On behalf of everyone at SIO, we wish our new Board members a very warm welcome and thank their predecessors for their support and wish them well in their future endeavours. Meet the Board here.

10 March 23

Scottish Investment Operations hosted two events looking at T+1 and the wider impact of reducing settlement dates in Q1 2023. In February, ISITC Europe ran a workshop at which participants discussed the challenges associated with global markets moving towards shorter settlement cycles. Whilst the backdrop was the expected announcement from the SEC on T+1 go-live for the U.S market, discussions were focused on the progress, intentions and potential pitfalls of global markets following suit. The event was well attended by 10 different Scottish-based FS firms, alongside participants from Goldman Sachs, SWIFT and AccessFintech. Read the research output from this session here. In March, DTCC came to Edinburgh to focus that discussion purely on the U.S market, post the announcement from the SEC of the May 2024 go-live. With over 40 attendees and 11 firms represented, this was an informative session with many questions, feedback on the upcoming changes and a great opportunity to network with peers. A big thank you to ISITC EU and DTCC for their support in tackling a topic of great interest and concern to the SIO community!