From Scottish Widows pensions leader to one of the industry’s most influential figures, Jackie Leiper has earned something of legendary status over more than three decades at the heart of pensions and financial services. Starting out at just 17, Jackie went on to become Managing Director of Workplace Pensions, Individual Pensions & Investments at Scottish Widows, with her career spanning a period of significant change across the pensions landscape. In this episode of the Scottish Widows Workplace podcast, Jackie looks back at that evolution, from major changes such as automatic enrolment to the continued transformation of workplace savings. She also reflects on the experiences behind the industry milestones: the people who opened doors, the decisions that took her in new directions and the opportunities she chose to take. Jackie shares her perspective on leadership, spotting potential and creating opportunities for others, alongside the lessons she has taken from more than three decades at the heart of the industry. And when it comes to the advice she would pass on, Jackie’s message is simple: take a risk on yourself and grab the opportunity. Now retired from her executive career, Jackie reflects on how pensions has changed, what she has learned along the way and what could come next for the industry.

Technology is changing how people engage with their finances, and retirement planning is no exception. The latest Scottish Widows Retirement Report 2026: Part 3 explores how technology, from pension dashboards and open finance to AI-powered support, could help people better understand their pensions and make more informed retirement decisions. The research found growing openness to AI, with around one in three people saying they would trust AI tools to help with pension decision-making and 42% comfortable using AI to explain pension jargon. In this episode, Robert Cochran is joined by Derek Shanks, Technology Director, and Leslee Ross, Business Platform Lead, to discuss the findings and explore how AI could help tackle some of the key challenges facing consumers today. From improving financial education and confidence to narrowing the advice gap and lowering barriers to engagement, the conversation looks at how technology could support people throughout their retirement journey. Scottish Widows are the first workplace pensions provider to put conversational AI into savers' hands through Invest AI, and the only provider participating in the FCA's Anthropic Supercharged Sandbox, so Derek and Leslee take listeners behind the scenes to discuss the early learnings, how AI tools are tested, governed and trained, why trust remains central to successful adoption, and what the growing use of AI by consumers and advisers could mean for the future of financial services. The discussion also explores the wider implications of the Mills Review and where AI-powered financial support could go next. Read the report: Scottish Widows Retirement Report 2026: Part 3

Retirement is entering a period of significant change. As government, regulators and providers grapple with the challenge of turning pension pots into sustainable retirement income, important questions are being asked about support, engagement and what the future "default retirement" could look like. In this episode, Robert Cochran is joined by Pete Glancy, Head of Pensions Policy at Scottish Widows, to discuss the findings from Part Two of the Scottish Widows Retirement Report 2026. The report found that around 40% of pre-retirees have little or no knowledge of the options available to them at retirement, despite the importance of the decisions they face. Together, Robert and Pete explore the gap between retirement expectations and reality, why many people engage with support too late, and the growing complexity of retirement income decisions. They also discuss the policy reforms, guidance frameworks and innovations that could help people navigate retirement with greater confidence and achieve better outcomes. Read the report: https://expertise.scottishwidows.co.uk/retirement-report/retirement-income-decisions-and-support/retirement-income-decisions-and-support/