Description: In today’s market of post-pandemic consolidation and org chart streamlining, we’ve observed significant changes to actuarial career development and advancement opportunities. But, those changes aren’t occurring in equal measures across the arc of the actuarial career. Our focus is on the impact felt by experienced reinsurance actuaries.

Description: In this third issue of International News in 2022, we feature a contribution by SCOR, a leading reinsurer, highlighting the Actuarial Awards that SCOR presents annually, since 1996, to the best academic work in actuarial science, with annual prizes in several countries throughout the world. We also feature an article by Jessica Leong, FCAS, on barriers that Asian women must overcome to become leaders. Jessica recounts her own experience and how in overcoming some challenges she became the first Asian president of the Casualty Actuarial Society.

Description: As product development professionals, we know that getting customer feedback is a key component of the product development process. If crafted carefully, these sessions can uncover true unmet needs, unlock the next product innovation, and create market share gains, all while creating something that contributes to society. As quoted during one of our last focus groups, “Magic stuff happens here.” When designing your research, are you doing all that you can to promote inclusive thinking? By focusing on the design of your study—through overall theme and by paying attention to the details in the process—you can uncover new perspectives that you may not have considered, if not for being deliberate in your actions. Instead of just avoiding structures that create biases, we need to actively incorporate inclusivity. Our team performed a study titled “Designing Solutions to Empower Women,” which focused on women’s viewpoints and how those could be incorporated into life insurance product development. I would love to share some of my experiences and tips collected along the way.

Description: Results of the 2021 SOA Life Reinsurance Survey

Description: The widening gap in life span between high- and low-income Americans may be eroding the progressivity of Social Security retirement benefits. Differential longevity trends have had the effect of raising lifetime benefits for high earners but not for low earners. Social Security’s long-term financial problems result in part from an increase in average life expectancy driven by wealthier people living longer, and, thereby, collecting more benefits. Policymakers should not use funding shortfalls attributable to these trends as an excuse to cut monthly benefits alike for those who have gained (high earners) and for those who haven’t (low earners).

Description: The August/September 2015 edition of The Actuary magazine—the Society of Actuaries’ flagship publication.

Description: The incoming E&R chair for the coming year reflects on past accomplishments of the E&R council, acknowledges with thanks contributors, and looks forward to continuation in the coming year.

Description: Find out what roles reinsurance and reinsurance intermediaries play for ceding companies in need of capital and the providers of such capital.

Description: As part of the 2019 Disruptions to the Actuarial Profession Contest, this essay posits that the actuarial profession should respond to other fields encroaching on its space, particularly software development and data science, not by a defensive reaction to establish a boundary between fields but instead by a welcoming attitude that seeks to utilize expertise from other fields while maintaining the actuarial role of comprehensive risk management and its hard-earned professional trust.

Description: Read the Quo Vadis Reinsurance.