Peer Intelligence 

Letter from the CEO

In this edition of Peer Intelligence, we are bringing you more focused insights based on your feedback – one key topic tailored for Investment professionals and another for Pension Administration leaders. 

But before getting into the topics of this issue, I want to remind our Investment Benchmarking and Defined Contributions clients that this year's surveys are live. We appreciate your participation as we continue to simplify data collection while adding depth to our reporting. And for our Pension Administration subscribers, we are also looking forward to unveiling our new dashboard at our upcoming conference in Columbus! 

In this edition, you will read or hear that: 

• REITs have outperformed over the past 25 years. Chris and Maaike share our U.S. REIT market findings on a podcast with the NAREIT team.  
• Pension Administrators continue to wrestle with system modernization. Insights from our 2024 survey highlight the ongoing modernization challenges administrators face. How are peers balancing high customization demands with operational excellence, and how does this shape vendor choices? 

Thanks, as always, for reading, 

Rashay Jethalal 

CEO, CEM Benchmarking 

Modernizing Legacy Pension Systems

Insights from CEM Benchmarking data

46% of global pension funds are replacing core systems. Our latest data uncovers the driving forces: ensuring long-term stability and meeting rising member expectations. Explore the shift to vendors and the customization realities you need to know.

Beyond Returns: REITs' 25-Year Outperformance and Portfolio Role

REIT Report: Chris Flynn, Maaike van Bragt

How have REITs stacked up against other asset classes over the past 25 years? Chris Flynn, CEM's Head of Research & Analytics, and Maaike van Bragt, Senior Research Associate, joined Sarah Borchersen-Keto on Nareit's REIT Report podcast to explore key trends, the influence of implementation, and investment correlations. Get data-driven insights from our published research—listen to the episode below or read the original paper.