Description: In “Gearing up for Designing Your Future,” published in the May 2017 issue of Actuary of the Future, the author cited four heroes as his personal inspiration. This article is the successor, showing the glory of these heroes and how they can inspire us actuaries today, as we strive to live our best lives. Identifying your own Noble Purpose as an actuary and in your life makes creating a five-year plan for personal growth meaningful and motivating. What will you gain from reading biographies of famous people and the classics? To aspire, to approach eloquence, to emulate the poetry of how they put their ideas across to mobilize their publics, to elevate our own characters by their examples, to be fully equipped to make moral and ethical judgments, to master the primary tool, verbal communication.

Description: This article focusses on the results of a June 2020 survey by the Leadership and Development Section of the SOA on working remotely as an actuary. The article presents the questions and responses of the survey, and commentary on how to successfully navigate the remote work environment as an actuary - from the perspective of both a current organizational leader, and as a future organizational leader.

Description: We stand for respect and equality. We are committed to doing all we can to ensure that our profession reflects the diverse perspectives, cultures and backgrounds of the members and candidates.

Description: Read the September 2020 issue of The Stepping Stone published by the Leadership & Development Section. Newsletters provide practical information for the working actuary articles on trends that impact sections and news about section activities.

Description: When you hear the word 'feedback,' do you cringe? Do you want to give a colleague advice but don't want it to backfire? There are good reasons why no one likes to get or give feedback. But how do we deliver better outcomes at work without it? In this session, learn why legendary Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry was a master at driving excellence and what you can learn from his approach. You'll learn why traditional feedback methods fail and how criticism actually inhibits learning. We'll dig into recent feedback trends and the old standbys to understand why they might not work for you. Using coaching techniques and the latest thinking, learn how to talk through issues, share your reactions and inspire team members and colleagues to excel. You'll leave this session armed with tools and techniques to have more productive conversations with your boss, team members and colleagues.

Description: The SOA recently approved a new Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) initiative to be added to our 2020 Strategic Initiatives and we will continue that initiative into 2021 and beyond.

Description: We will demonstrate three analytical tools along with a sample case study showing how they might be applied to a fictional actuarial organization within ABC Life. The goal is to highlight how they might be applied to perform a health check of an actuarial function organizational design. This can measure effectiveness quantitatively via benchmarking how an actuarial function might stack up against the industry and management expectations. The tools and techniques are critical for actuarial leaders and managers but are also relevant to all actuaries, since we can all benefit from understanding how our individual work efforts fit into the bigger picture of an organization.

Description: Section member Greg Fann writes about his mid-career personal and professional reflections, paralleling the actuarial life experience with oceanic travel through the lyrics of the Jimmy Buffet ballad “A Pirate Looks at 40”.

Description: Career advice to young actuaries.

Description: Update on Council activities