Description: To better understand the product development process and practices currently used at insurance companies, the Society of Actuaries Marketing and Distribution Section Council initiated a Product Development Survey in the summer of 2006. The goal of the survey was to identify company practices for product development by asking individuals with product implementation responsibilities about the process followed at their companies. For this survey, the “product development process” was viewed holistically – encompassing everything from how ideas are generated through to how products are monitored post-launch. Also, all aspects of the product development process were considered – marketing, actuarial, underwriting, finance, customer service, IT, legal/compliance, etc.

Description: The insurance industry has a lot to learn from academia's missteps. With predictive analytics assuming an ever-expanding role in risk modeling, carriers would be well-served to establish practices that mitigate the creation of faulty models. Hear practical advice on how to mitigate the risks of overfitting, with a focus on how to translate complex policyholder behavior experience data for long-term products into behavioral models using company- and industry-level data.

Description: This appendix II Report on the Life and Annuity Living Benefits Survey provides supplemental information for the Report on Life and Annuity Living Benefit Riders: Considerations for Insurers and Resinsurers. Appendix A gives a list of 34 participants and Appendix B provides a glossary of terms used in the report. The report utilizes a literature review, company survey, company interviews and/or other methods to catalog a listing of common living benefit riders. It was sponsored by the Product Development and Reinsurance Sections along with the Committee on Life Insurance Research.

Description: This report is a summary based on current actuarial practices around the development and use of policyholder behavior assumptions including the use of dynamic modeling approaches. The research team surveyed and evaluated current practices in the industry; and highlighted current thinking on modeling human behaviors outside the life insurance industry. This project was sponsored by the SOA’s Financial Reporting Section and the Committee on Life Insurance Research.

Description: This paper is a literature review of available papers, publications, articles, and presentations on the topic of longevity risk.

Description: Chairperson’s column likening product development to campaigning.

Description: This session from the 1983 SOA Hollywood, Florida Meeting covers organizational structure, the attributes that facilitate changes in strategic direction and changing the organization to support the business. From Record of Society of Actuaries Vol. 9, No. 4

Description: The growing aging population presents unique challenges and opportunities, especially for the financial services industry. Presenters will explore the issues with particular focus on demographic challenges, such as age dependency ratios and implications for sovereign debt and public policy. They will also compare and contrast private sector offerings across the globe. In particular, as an example of a super-aging society, presenters will describe how Japanese insurers and pension funds tackle longevity risk.

Description: Presented at May 1986 Spring Meeting. This session discussion is about types of products involved, accounting alternatives, federal income tax considerations, status of FASB proposal, requirements of SEC, and asset/liability matching requirements of regulators.

Description: This is the tenth experience study conducted by the SOA’s Committee on Life Insurance Company Expenses on inter-company expenses. Contributions of individual life and annuity expense data were received from 13 US life insurance companies.