Description: Commentary about the articles published in the current issue.

Description: LON-CAPA is a full-featured course management, learning content management, and assessment system. It was initially developed by Michigan State University under several National Science Foundation grants. You can run LON-CAPA for free on your own dedicated server. Purdue University has used LON-CAPA to create a robust online homework system for the Financial Mathematics material of the FM Exam. This homework system is in the public domain and may be used by any university running LON-CAPA. This session will provide additional information and include a demonstration of the system.

Description: Editor’s note: This is the first article in a series of three covering the Society of Actuaries (SOA) Competency Framework. The subsequent articles will appear in future issues of the Actuary of the Future newsletter. The Society of Actuaries (SOA) Competency Framework is a powerful tool to enable you to design your future. Though it has been the SOA’s instrument for prioritizing continuing education and support to members since 2010, many actuaries are still not fully aware what a potent tool it can be to them in planning their personal careers.

Description: As actuaries, we’re trained to see patterns in numbers and to design solutions that mitigate risk. But I can tell you from experience that while quantitative analysis and modeling are critical actuarial tools, looking at the numbers alone can lead to insurance products that don’t succeed in the real world the way the math says they “should.” With new digital technologies, we have more data at our fingertips than ever before, but I believe it’s equally as important to bring qualitative research methodologies into your product development process if you want to design solutions that meet real needs in the market. In this article, Amanda Turcotte shares what happens when qualitative research is neglected or ignored, what happens when you incorporate it into the product design process, and how to implement qualitative research practices in your organization.

Description: As the insurance industry continues to evolve due to a pandemic and rapidly changing economic and regulatory conditions, the role of data scientists and actuaries has become increasingly important. In an interview with the Atidot data science and actuarial team, we discuss what it is like to work at an InsurTech, how data scientists and actuaries can collaborate, and look at some concrete technical examples of where the innovation is having an impact. This article explores what collaboration can look like and how the role of data science and actuary may evolve in the InsurTech industry in the future.

Description: This article will further discuss decentralized and centralized model development frameworks and provide tips and rationale for transitioning toward centralized model development.

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 paper describes the history of the first United States Government Actuary, Ezekiel B. Elliot and his successors, including the types of services these actuaries performed. This article is followed by a discussion by several authors.

Description: Join this interactive session and increase your creative confidence. Design pros from University of Toronto Rotman School of Management will discuss how to use design thinking to solve problems big and small. Be prepared to roll up your sleeves and do some hands-on exercises to help unlock your innovative thinking. Who knows what creative solutions we might come up with! This session will be of interest to actuaries of all experience levels and disciplines. Don't we all have problems to solve?

Description: This year’s Life Meeting was unable to take place in person as planned in New York City. We are looking forward to the Life Meeting returning to New York City in 2024!