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: Chapter 4 states that greater male mortality is almost universal throughout the world, although the difference between male and female mortality varies from country to country and region to region. From Why Men Die Younger: Causes of Mortality Differences by Sex, M-LI01-1.

Description: Elderly women living alone experience some of the highest poverty rates in the United States. One reason for their financial frailty is that they face more longevity risk than men. Existing financial products that can mitigate this risk are not attractive to many people. Can alternative vehicles for pooling longevity risk be developed outside the insurance market that would appeal to these individuals? This paper suggests some risk-pooling approaches and compares their effectiveness and viability.

Description: This 1997 presentation from the 32nd Actuarial Research Conference is about the challenges of an aging population on retirement, Social Security, Medicare and long term care. From Actuarial Research Clearing House 1998, Vol. 1.

Description: Elizabeth Wells describes the fundamental underpinnings and processes that can help reduce the risk of inequitable division of retirement benefits between divorcing couples.