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News
Launch of the new Howells Associates Web site
January hails a fresh start for many different things. This is certainly the case at Howells and as such, we are happy to kick start the new decade with an all new Howells Associates web site.
We hope this site will serve to keep all of our clients updated on everything that is happening in the world of Howells Associates. Of course, we also hope that it will prove to be a worthy information resource for those organisations that are looking for information on share plan administration; and how Howells many share scheme services can make executive administration troubles a thing of the past.
In due course, we will be adding many more features to the site so watch this space!
The first Howells Global Group of 2010
Our friends at JPMorgan Cazenove have kindly agreed to host the first Howells Global Group of 2010, at their Moorgate office. The meeting is taking place on Thursday 28th January 2010 and as usual, attendees will meet at 10 am for a 10.30 am start. The meeting will be followed by a buffet lunch that all attendees are welcome to attend.
Invites have been distributed and places are limited so please contact Simon to secure your place at this event.
Howells successful Start to the year continues
Our successful start to 2010 continues with the appointment of new clients from both the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250. Whilst taking full advantage of the powerful benefits that the SchemeTrack share plan administration software provides, each organisation will also be utilising the IFRS 2 reporting facilities that are now available to them. These reports will be developed to meet their exact needs and will significantly increase the efficiency of financial report production.
Howells have also been successful in securing several new web development projects. Although each piece of work will be fully customised and branded to the clients requirements, core facilities that are common to each project include; full employee share plan portfolio and modelling facility, share plan information pages, and transactional capabilities. The latter can vary dramatically dependant upon our clients needs, however, usually this will include on-line grant / award, on-line release, and on-line exercise facilities.
If you are interested in finding out more about these or any other services that Howells can provide then please contact Simon.
Thank you to all those who attended the January Global Group meeting
January saw this year’s Global Group meetings get off to a fantastic start with many of our clients in attendance.
Many “hot topics” in the world off share based remuneration were discussed. At the top of the list were the current views on the impending 50% income tax rate from April 2010; and (further to the December Pre-Budget report) the temporary introduction of a 50% tax charge on bonuses awarded by banks and other financial institutions.
Other topics that were discussed included, an update on the impact of the Walker Report & the proposed changes to the combined code, Pre-Budget report, ABI position paper, and in year PAYE penalties.
As always, this discussion group proved to be incredibly useful for all who managed to attend and we would like to thank everyone involved for their continued support. The next meeting is due to take place in April with details to be confirmed closer to the time.
New FTSE 250 Client
To say that March has been a busy month at Howells would be an understatement! Further to the work we have been undertaking on behalf of our existing clients, March has also seen the appointment of a new FTSE 250 client.
The client in question will be working with Howells on a Co-Sourced basis; whereby they will be utilising the SchemeTrack share plan administration system to internally manage their share scheme data. The Co-Sourced element ensures that whenever required to do so, Howells are able to step in and provide additional, specialist share plan resources. A good example of this would be when assisting clients with the Granting of new plans & awards, providing additional assistance for the Release of shares, and providing additional staffing when there are high levels of share plan activity.
This arrangement is ideal for clients that wish to maintain a high level of ownership of the daily plan administration, whilst having the flexibility to effectively Outsource certain elements as and when required.
To find out more about our Co-Sourced share plan administration services please contact Simon to see how this can provide benefit to your organisation.
Thank you to our friends at Clifford Chance
April saw round two of our Annual Client Global Group sessions get underway. Taking place at their Canary Wharf offices , all Global Group members were very fortunate to benefit from the continued support of the team at Clifford Chance.
With our long history of providing specialist executive share plan services, Howells has gained the support of many organisations involved in the share pan life cycle; Clifford Chance being a very good example of his.
We believe that companies should be able to get the very best service from each of their service providers. Howells are able to do this by working with brokers, trustees, and all employee carriers to name but a few; all of us working together to achieve one common goal. To provide the best possible service to our clients. We call it Best of Breeds.
The Global Group is a fantastic example of organisations (clients and providers) coming together and working to tackle the ever changing challenges that the provision of share based remuneration can present. It is also a great opportunity for everyone to get together and have a good natter!
We look forward to seeing everyone at the next session that is due to be held on the 28th July 2010.
The Web Is The Way
2010 truly is turning into the year of the web portal! This year alone, Howells has increased the number of clients utilising our specialist on-line share plan web services by over 80%. Implementation of these services has been taking place since February and will continue throughout the year.
We believe we are at the cutting edge of share plan web technology with many clients now taking advantage of our on-line transactional functionality including; document storage, paperless granting, online exercise, and online award and release. Coupled with our secure electronic broker links, these services improves administration efficiency and share plan transparency.
This work has seen a significant recruitment drive within our IT teams and we welcome everyone, clients and staff alike, into the Howells family.
For more information on Howells Web Portal services please contact Simon on +44 (0)1423 812822.