According to a recent call for essays issued by the CAS, CIA, and SOA Joint Risk Management Section, systemic risk is the risk of the collapse of an entire financial system or market as opposed to risk associated with any one individual entity. As recent history has highlighted, the growing interdependence of entities in the North American and global financial system has made systemic risk a growing concern among the risk management community.

With this in mind, the CAS, CIA, and SOA Joint Risk Management Section Research Committee is interested in sponsoring one or more projects related to systemic risk.

The CAS, CIA, and SOA Joint Risk Management Section Research Committee is seeking researchers to explore systemic risk through a variety of perspectives. Below are three topics that examine systemic risk for which research proposals are desired. Research proposals on other topics related to systemic risk will also be considered and are encouraged. As far as the scope of the topics, the organizers are interested in research related to the insurance industry and/or companies.

Topic 1: The meaning of what is systemic risk and what it is not can be difficult to discern, at times. In this effort, the research team will develop scenarios to illustrate instances of systemic risk as opposed to other risks. The benefit of this effort is to further refine the meaning of systemic risk and enhance management of it.

Topic 2: For certain entities, the presence of systemic risk may be difficult to ascertain. For this effort, the research team will describe and/or construct methodologies or techniques and relevant data for determining if and when an entity is exposed to systemic risk as well as instigators or accelerators of systemic risk. As with Topic 1, the benefit of this effort is to lead to better management of systemic risk.

Topic 3: For this effort, the warning signals that are present when systemic risk is evolving would be explored. How can these warning signals be identified and then monitored?

Respondents to this RFP are free to submit proposals for any or all of the above topics, as well as submitting proposals for other related systemic risk topics.

To facilitate the evaluation of proposals, the following information should be submitted:

1. Resumes of the authors, including any graduate student(s) expected to participate, indicating how their background, education, and experience bear on their qualifications to undertake the research. If more than one author is involved for each report, a single individual should be designated as the lead researcher and primary contact. The person submitting the proposal must be authorized to speak on behalf of all the authors as well as for the firm or institution on whose behalf the proposal is submitted.
2. A description of the data to be used.

3. A description of the expected report and any supporting data, tools or other resources.

4. Cost estimates for the research, including computer time, salaries, report preparation, research costs, etc. Such estimates can be in the form of hourly rates, but in such cases, time estimates should also be included. Any guarantees as to total cost should be given and will be considered in the evaluation of the proposal. While cost will be a factor in the evaluation of the proposal, it will not necessarily be the decisive factor.
5. A schedule for completion of the research, identifying key dates or time frames for research completion and report submission.
6. Other related factors that give evidence of a proposer's capabilities to perform in a superior fashion should be detailed.

The CAS, CIA, and SOA Joint Risk Management Section Research Committee is responsible for the selection of the proposal to be funded. Input from other knowledgeable individuals may also be sought, but the CAS, CIA, and SOA Joint Risk Management Section Research Committee will make the final decision. The SOA's Research Actuary will provide staff actuarial support. A Project Oversight Group (POG) will be appointed to oversee the project upon selection of the proposal.

Any questions regarding this RFP should be directed to:

Steven Siegel
SOA Research Actuary
email: ssiegel@soa.org
ph: 847.706.3578
f: 847.273.8578

If you intend to submit a proposal, please email written notification
by November 1, 2011 to:

Barbara Scott
SOA Research Administrator
email: bscott@soa.org
f: 847.273.8592

Please email a copy of the proposal to Barbara Scott at bscott@soa.org.

Proposals must be received no later than November 15, 2011. It is anticipated that all authors who have submitted proposals will be informed of the status of their proposal no later than December 15, 2011.

Note: Proposals are considered confidential and proprietary.

The CAS, CIA, and SOA Joint Risk Management Section reserves the right to not award a contract for this research. Reasons for not awarding a contract could include, but are not limited to, a lack of acceptable proposals or a finding that insufficient funds are available. The CAS, CIA, and SOA Joint Risk Management Section also reserves the right to redirect the project as is deemed advisable.

The CAS, CIA, and SOA Joint Risk Management Section intends to copyright and publish the results of this research. The research will be considered work-for-hire and all rights thereto belong to the organizations. However, appropriate credit will be given to the researcher(s).