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

Description: Innovation has become a fashionable concept, but what does it really mean? Are the concepts of innovation and invention synonyms? Is innovation a good thing? If so, why so many oppose it? If we want to become innovators, what considerations should be kept in mind? Are there examples of innovative thought in the actuarial field? If so, can you think of some of them? If you want answers to these questions please read Jay Jaffe’s article, Becoming a More Effective Innovator. Innovation is a big idea in the business education, so much so that many MBA programs are including courses on the subject, so much so that, as we know, our Section is called Entrepreneurial & Innovation.

Description: What does “accountable” mean? You will see how the accountability culture can transform spectators into protagonists following the Four Steps to Accountability.

Description: This article highlights the importance of communicating concisely and effectively through email and other written forums, and when/when not to use written vs. other forms of communication.

Description: This presentation proposes a solution to the student actuarial paradox “I mastered the syllabus but failed the exam,” by utilizing the two-dimensional syllabus vehicle which pedagogically focuses on the two dimensions of content and problem difficulty. This presentation advocates the PMR characterization of three levels of problems difficulty: Plug-ins (easy), Monkey-wrench (intermediate), and Research-type(hard) questions. PMR was developed by examining difficulty levels in SOA exams, and problems of various software vendors. The author's students routinely score high on the SOA FM exam; it is hoped that these methods will assist other instructors in their quest for good pedagogy. Very briefly: “Plug-ins,” refer to multi-part problems, for example, calculating the price of an annuity that is first increasing and then level; “Monkey-wrench” problems specifically refer to plug-in multi-part problems where one component is a monkey-wrench, an issue the candidate has not previously encountered. It might be a non-typical modeling or it might be a non-typical algebraic simplification or it might be an unexpected integration of distinct modules in a manner that the candidate has not yet seen. “Research-type questions” refer to problems requiring some type of experimentation for example, looking at initial cases, seeing a pattern and then applying methods

Description: metadata for the entire issue

Description: The August/September 2014 edition of The Actuary magazine—the Society of Actuaries’ flagship publication.

Description: Discusses the direction for actuarial research in the areas of experience studies, theory, and practice.

Description: The February/March 2016 edition of The Actuary magazine—the Society of Actuaries’ flagship publication.

Description: This articles showcases the principles of effective servant leadership.