Wherever we’re located, we’re focused on service
When the pandemic hit, we were committed to maintaining the level of service that our clients have come to expect from OPB.
In March, we enabled employees to provide client service from home, initially by phone, mail or email, but were soon able to offer advisory services through secure video conferencing.
We established secure work-from-home protocols and introduced a number of digital services which are now available on our secure member and employer portals. We also adjusted our client surveys to include feedback on our communications support during the pandemic and to find out what we could do better. Additionally, we continued to offer ‘value-added’ services such as online member education services and retirement workshops.
OPB and IMCO: Partners in performance
IMCO continued to grow in 2020. OPB worked closely with IMCO, providing oversight on asset management and guidance on their development. With our input, IMCO restructured the Canadian, Global and Emerging Markets equity portfolios as well as the Global Credit portfolio.
IMCO’s approach to investment in private assets (i.e., Private Equity, Infrastructure and Real Estate) also evolved in terms of strategy and how it works with key partners and fund managers. IMCO’s size and focus give it a market presence that allows it to leverage relationships that were not easily accessible to OPB.
In November 2020, IMCO launched its first structured pool of assets, the IMCO Canadian Public Equity Pool, with approximately $3.5 billion in assets. The pool provides IMCO clients with operational efficiencies that individual clients, like OPB, could not achieve when investing on their own.
