SOA President-Elect Job Description

Position Summary:

Responsible in partnership with the other presidential officers and the Executive Director for shaping and leading the organization and the actuarial profession through implementation of the SOA strategic plan, assuring that the Board agenda addresses appropriate priorities and that the Board performs its fiduciary, strategic and policy responsibilities.

It is expected that a President Elect will devote time to learning and preparing prior to becoming President, the commitment during the Presidential year (which is substantial) may be less.

Internal Relationships— Work with the SOA Executive Director and other staff as necessary to fulfill responsibilities described below. Lead other volunteers, communicate direction and decisions to SOA members. Mentor future leaders.

External Relationships—Champion the SOA and the actuarial profession to all constituents and publics. Encourage cooperation among all North American actuarial organizations.

Same responsibilities as those of all Board of Directors members (see Vice President/Board Members job description):

• Prepare & Participate
• Set Direction
• Ensure Resources
• Provide Oversight
• Personal Management
• Adhere to SOA Policy on Responsibilities and Conduct of the Board of Directors

Responsibilities in addition to those of all Board of Directors members:

• Fulfill Leadership Team responsibilities which include a weekly conference call and attention to time sensitive materials.
• Effectively chair Board meetings which includes preparation time for conference calls and/or meetings.
• Deal with situations that are not productive for the Board.
• Lead the Board by modeling appropriate behavior and guiding others.
• Work with others and respect different opinions

Meeting Requirements:

• Weekly calls with Leadership Team
• Three SOA Board meetings per year (meetings are 1½ days in length plus approximately a ½ day to read meeting material):
• March
• June (held in conjunction with the SOA spring meeting)
• October (held in conjunction with the SOA annual meeting)
• Four to five conference calls that are one hour long in the months that don't have a meeting
• Orientation Meeting: October ½ day Friday afternoon and ½ day Saturday morning prior to the SOA Board Meeting
• Leadership Meeting: November in Chicago, including a reception with staff at the SOA office

Other Related Commitments:

See attached presidential commitment chart

Financial Support:

Finance 330 Policy

Qualifications:

• Fellow and active member of the SOA
• CPD compliant
• Demonstrated commitment to the SOA via leadership participation on the Board, Sections, or committees in the previous five years
• Exhibits appropriate professional behavior as the representation of the SOA

Recommended Skill Sets (skills with ( ) asterisks are most important):

• People Management
• Dealing with and confronting non-productive situations
• Leadership skills, including ability to respect the historical perspective, credibly assess the current environment, and set and communicate an inspirational future direction that engages and motivates positive changes in the organization
• Performance management skills, including goal setting, feedback, evaluating and rewarding; an ability to get things done through others, hold people accountable, and focus the organization on projects that support the strategic plan
• Recruiting / team building skills - ability to identify and recruit talent, and organize teams with the correct balance of talents
• Training and development skills - ability to identify and correct skill gaps
• Building a culture that fosters creativity, open dialogue, and thoughtful risk taking
• Ability to work with volunteers

 

• Business Management
• Effectiveness in chairing executive-level Board meetings
• Structuring effective organizations and processes
• Change management, including ability to recognize paradigm shifts
• Leading non-profit organizations
• Project management skills
• Decision-making skills
• Strategic planning / thinking skills
• Marketing skills

 

• Personal Skills
• Broad contact throughout the actuarial profession and other organizations
• Networking skills / organizational savvy - ability to build / leverage a network of relationships and resources
• Respectful of others
• Time management
• Organizational skills (being organized)

 

• Communication Skills
• Presentation / oral skills
• Listening skills
• Writing skills

 

• Interpersonal Skills
• Influence/persuasion skills
• Negotiation skills
• Conflict resolution skills, including facilitating diplomatic solutions