We have been managing assets on behalf of Irish pension funds since 1939, developing a comprehensive range of strategies and services targeted at clients’ changing needs.
Our DB service offering provides trustees with a fully integrated investment framework under one roof – from risk modelling and portfolio optimisation, through to dynamic de-risking.
We can help you decide what's right for your pension plan. Our investment solutions provide you with a truly dynamic approach to managing your pension plan that links your investment strategy to your organisation's goals.
Our DB offering provides trustees with a robust portfolio modelling service to match your targeted return, yield and volatility objectives.
We work within your strategic asset allocation to deliver an efficient portfolio at each step of your de-risking journey, ensuring the optimal matching of assets with the profile of your liabilities.
As standard, we provide additional monitoring and implementation services designed to assist pension schemes in the efficient de-risking of their assets, taking advantage of market opportunities or improvements in solvency.
We work seamlessly with you the trustee, and your adviser, to achieve the most cost-effective solution. An overview of our approach is summarised below:
The key advantages of the service are:
- Strong governance – we address strategy and execution separately, enabling trustees to focus on key decisions.
- ILIM’s partnership approach is designed to ensure all relevant expertise is exploited, and conflicts of interest are avoided.
- An intelligent overlay, because opportunities to de-risk from equities do not always coincide with favourable bond yield levels.
- Our proven ability to execute promptly while minimising transaction costs.
- An automated process with strong controls and a low risk tolerance.
- Transparency of position, valuation and costs and bespoke reporting.
- Investment solutions that provide diversification across asset class, investment style and managers.
- Volatility and drawdown managed through innovative investment choices.
Our DB360° solution is a comprehensive product & service offering, centered on delivering on our clients’ key objectives.
ILIM will help you to identify and implement a unique solution for your DB Scheme using the following approach:
Step 1: Determining trustee requirements and preferences
The first stage in the process involves liaising with the trustees and their advisors to set parameters, such as the scheme’s required rate of return, preferences regarding risk appetite and liquidity, as well as implementation parameters. Our partnership approach to this process emphasises collaboration between all relevant parties.
We work with trustees and their advisors to assess the following:
Step 2: asset & liability modelling and strategy development
Asset and liability modelling is a core part in identifying how solvency volatility can be reduced. Importantly, our approach develops solutions that are specific to the duration of the scheme’s liabilities, rather than utilising generic spot rate duration funds. Based on an analysis of the scheme’s liabilities and current investment portfolio, we will work with you and your advisers to develop a bespoke investment strategy that supports this objective.
Our Quantitative Strategies Team is an integral part of DB360°. By analysing your specific scheme data (e.g. cash flow requirements), the team establishes the key risks the pension scheme is currently exposed to. We then develop a strategy to reduce those risks, and to manage the impact of these risks on member benefits and the company balance sheet.
The team is composed of quantitative analysts and mathematicians. The team reviews asset classes, their interactions with one other and how cash flow, risk and return requirements can be best matched, through optimised growth and defensive portfolios.
Whether you are looking to de-risk and move into a matched portfolio, or are just trying to get your assets to work harder for you, performing asset and liability modelling analysis is essential for your scheme.
Your portfolio manager will work with the Quantitative Strategies Team to develop an appropriate growth asset and liability matching strategy for your scheme. Diversification across asset class, investment style and manager is available, to ensure that we deliver a tailored solution to meet your individual preferences. Solutions are drawn from the following universe of all available asset classes and strategies including:
Step 3: Intelligent de-risking
As a scheme’s solvency improves through asset growth or declining liabilities, a systematic repositioning of the assets occurs in the form of a trigger point strategy. The trigger point strategy for the scheme is designed to signal appropriate exit points from the growth portfolio. Rather than allocating directly to the matched bond portfolio, our approach also identifies appropriate entry levels into defensive assets. This approach includes temporary tactical allocations to cash or short-dated yield funds, awaiting more attractive entry points into matching assets.
Our integrated service provides daily solvency, market and daily trigger-point monitoring with the execution of de-risking steps within 24 hours of a trigger being reached. As you would expect from ILIM , the execution of asset switches is carried out efficiently and with the aim of minimising costs. The process is subject to strict daily and weekly review and controls.
Our Defined Benefit team collaborates with teams across ILIM, helping our clients achieve their investment goals.
Our focus is on providing you with support across our full range of funds and services. To start or continue your conversation with us, please contact one of the team.
Key Contacts

Donal joined ILIM in 2020 and leads our corporate clients team managing our institutional relationships for DB, DC and corporate clients here in Ireland. He is a qualified actuary with over 25 years’ experience.
He works with clients to ensure the asset strategies for their pension arrangements are fit for purpose and aligned with their objectives. This includes all elements of journey plans for DB, including how de-risking interacts with future funding, developing dashboard reporting for Trustees and considering the potential impacts of any settlement options such as buy-ins or buy outs. He also ensures his clients’ wider strategic considerations are being met when they look at their investments which can often now include the role which responsible investing might play. On the DC side he is focussed on working with our clients and partners to develop investment solutions that deliver best outcomes for members and reflect our latest thinking in the area of defaults, drawdown and responsible investing.
Prior to joining ILIM, Donal was a Director in the Pensions Group in PwC where his clients included many of the largest employers in Ireland. He previously worked in Willis Towers Watson as an actuarial consultant where he acted as a Scheme Actuary for many years, delivering the full range of statutory services to Trustee clients.
He is a regular contributor on pension matters both on national radio and at industry events.

As part of ILIM’s investment development team, Brian is responsible for delivering investment strategies and complementary services that meet the objectives of both occupational pension scheme clients and investment consultants.
Brian has over 15 years’ industry experience. He previously worked with Kleinwort Benson Investors and FBD Investment Services, holding a number of key roles focused on both institutional and private clients.
Brian holds a first-class honours primary degree in Business Studies, an MBS in Management Information and Management Accounting from University College Cork, and is a Qualified Financial Advisor (QFA).

Padraic is a member of ILIM’s Distribution team. He is responsible for managing Defined Benefit corporate pension scheme relationships and developing investment solutions for clients, including investment strategy, asset allocation and risk management.
Padraic has 30 years’ experience in pension investment management. Prior to joining ILIM in 2015, he worked for eight years as a senior investment consultant/principal at Mercer, where he provided the full spectrum of investing consulting services to trustees of Defined Benefit and Defined Contribution pension schemes. He also spent 17 years as a senior client portfolio manager with AIB, Ulster Bank and KBC Asset Management. Padraic has been an adjunct third-level lecturer for 14 years, teaching investment management.
Padraic earned a BComm and MBS in Banking and Finance from University College Dublin. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation, the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designation and the CFA Certificate in ESG Investing and the GARP Sustainability and Climate Risk (SCR) Certificate. He is a Qualified Financial Advisor (QFA), Retirement Planning Advisor (RPA) and Pension Trustee Practitioner (PTP) through LIA Ireland, and is an IIPM Qualified Pension Trustee (QPT).

Elaine is part of the Defined Benefit Client Relationship team in ILIM.
Prior to joining ILIM, she spent 14 years with Danske Bank, initially as money market manager of the then National Irish Bank balance sheet, taking responsibility for the bank’s funding and liquidity requirements whilst managing the bank’s interest rate risk. More recently Elaine developed and managed the Fixed Income & derivative sales desk at Danske, dealing mostly with institutional and large multinational corporate clients. In this role, Elaine gained experience working with Irish pension funds offering risk modelling, LDI and sovereign annuity portfolio construction services. Elaine served as a trustee of Danske Bank Hybrid pension scheme. Previously, Elaine also worked for Pfizer corporate treasury, MeesPierson Investor Services and AIB Security Services. Elane earned a master’s in Real Estate from DIT and also studied the MSc. Investment & Treasury at DCU.

Louise joined ILIM in 2001 as a Senior Business Development Manager, and assumed responsibility for all aspects of the Irish Life Assurance retail relationship in 2008. In 2013, Louise took on the role of Senior DC Relationship Manager, assuming responsibility for servicing the investment needs of our institutional DC clients. Louise holds an honours degree in International Commerce from University College Dublin (UCD) and a Master of Business Studies from the Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business, UCD. More recently, she completed a Diploma in Strategic Marketing in the Irish Management Institute. She also holds the Certificate in Investment Management and the Associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers.

Mariette joined ILIM in 2024 and forms part of the Corporate Clients relationship management team. She is responsible for delivering investment strategies and complementary services to our Institutional clients across the Irish market.
Mariette has 12 years’ industry experience. Prior to joining ILIM she worked as an investment consultant at Mercer where she provided the full spectrum of investment consulting services to trustees of DB and DC pension schemes. Mariette started her career in South Africa and has experience in relationship management in both the retail and institutional markets.
Mariette earned a BComm Honors in Investment Management from the University of Pretoria. She holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation, the CFA Certificate in ESG Investing and is a Qualified Financial Advisor (QFA).

As an Assistant Relationship Manager within ILIM’s Distribution team Philip is central to the delivery of investment services to our DB, DC and Institutional clients across the Irish market. He is also responsible for delivering complementary services to investment consultants and clients.
Philip has a breadth of experience across the financial services sector prior to joining ILIM in 2022 where his clients included some of the largest companies in the International Funds sector and Retail Banking market in Ireland.
He holds a first-class honours at both MSc and Higher Diploma level in FinTech from Dublin Business School. Additionally, he holds a Certificate in Responsible and Sustainable Finance, a QFA Diploma and a Certificate in Consumer Credit all attained through the Institute of Bankers.

As a Senior Relationship Manager in ILIM, James has responsibility for developing and managing a number of ILIM’s key clients, as well as the development of new client strategies and solutions.
James has almost 12 years of investment experience. Prior to joining ILIM, he was a Director and Senior Consultant in WTW’s Investments business. James worked with delegated/OCIO and advisory clients across teams in Ireland, the UK and Europe. His experience spans investment strategy and journey planning, portfolio construction, liability hedging and structured products, investment manager selection, and governance and implementation/execution advice for institutional investors.
James has an BSc in Actuarial and Financial Studies from University College Dublin. He is Fellow of the Society of Actuaries in Ireland and is Vice-Chairperson of the Society’s Finance and Investment Committee.
How can we help?
Irish Life Investment Managers (ILIM) is the appointed asset manager to Irish Life Group Limited. ILIM is committed to innovating and leading the market with best in class investment solutions designed to meet the specific investment needs of our clients. Call us at: +353-1-704 1200 or email info@ilim.com.