Ian Bell
Biography
Ian has a dual role at RSM UK as Head of Pensions and Head of Travel and Tourism. In the former role he leads a national team responsible for over 400 pension scheme clients. Ian has over 30 years' experience of pension scheme audit and advisory and is currently responsible for some of RSM’s largest pension scheme audits, several with assets exceeding £1bn.
Ian holds the Retirement Provision Certificate with the Pensions Management Institute and has passed all modules in the Pensions Regulator toolkit. He was instrumental in the design of RSM’s suite of advisory and risk management toolkits for pension scheme trustees, together with our governance benchmarking tool. Ian has led our fraud awareness program for pension scheme trustees and is a regular speaker at industry events on fraud and governance matters. He is also an independent Trustee for a defined benefit scheme.
In his role as Head of Travel and Tourism at RSM UK Ian leads the firm’s national sector team and is on the Leadership Team of our wider Consumer Markets Group. He is responsible for some of RSM’s largest travel sector audits and is authorised by the CAA as an ATOL Reporting Accountant. He leads our relationship with the UK’s largest travel association ABTA and is a regular speaker and attendee at industry events.
Ian says:
''As an accountant, no two days are the same and increasingly we need to adapt the way we deliver our services to suit our clients’ needs. Focusing on two sectors allows me to understand the commercial issues facing our clients and develop our team and services to help clients in the right way. Feeling part of an industry, seeing our team develop and adding value to our clients as a valued advisor is fulfilling for me.''
Outside of RSM, Ian enjoys his family life with three adult children, sharing a competitive interest in sport, particularly football and golf. Ian says: "My more recent hobby of growing vegetables in the back garden makes my golfing ability look good!"
Ian’s RSM timeline:
- 2020: Appointed Chair of Partnership Council
- 2016: Appointed Head of Travel and Tourism
- 2000: Appointed Head of Pensions
Press and appearance highlights:
- Travel Weekly – Furlough scheme used by majority of travel companies, October 2020
- Accountancy Daily – Lack of Covid support schemes hits travel sector, October 2020