Description: An update on the activities of the JRMS Council.

Description: This article looks at critical points in my life, offers a very brief bio, and then explains how I used the experiences to learn decade by decade. It is motivated by wanting to tell the story of how able I am to contribute to the SOA and other activities at the age of 85. It is motivated by offering this story as a way to motivate others.

Description: We discuss an event that was hosted on the Georgia State University campus with the support of the Society of Actuaries. The purpose of the event was to introduce nearly 300 high school students, teachers and career counselors to the actuarial profession through presentations, an industry panel, and fun activities.

Description: Stefanos Orfanos shares his perspective and priorities for this year as the incoming chair of the SOA Education and Research Section.

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: A reflection on the successes of the Actuary of the Future section and a look to the future as the Career Development community.

Description: Significant progress has been made in transforming the actuarial profession but it remains untransformed. Universities have been instrumental in training future actuaries and this article is about how the University of Cape Town has been addressing transformation in the actuarial program. The school system in South Africa has struggled to produce the required quality and quantity of school leavers prepared for higher education. This has led to universities having to develop ways to manage this problem. The article discusses the effectiveness of some of the initiatives introduced at UCT.

Description: A brief overview of last year's Education & Research Section Council work, accomplishments and challenges from its outgoing chair.

Description: An update to the risk management readers on what the JRMS is planning to do over 2023 to serve its membership.

Description: It was an honor, for Dr. Tianyang Wang, Co-Eeditor of Expanding Horizons, to have this Fireside Chat had a great conversation with Dr. Guillen Guillen Estany in January 2023, and invited her for this featured Fireside Chat interview which resulted in a great conversation.