Description: The author has gathered a variety of resources, general theories, and specific practices concerning spreadsheet errors and their avoidance.

Description: Contains two separate articles, called notes. The first note, “A note on correlation in mean variance portfolio theory,” is an elementary discussion of how negative correlation coefficients can be, given any set of N random variables. The second note, “Two essential formulas in actuarial science and financial mathematics,” gives a more or less self-contained introduction to Jensen’s inequality and to another formula, which the author decided to call the “survival function expectation formula.”

Description: In this article, Extraction, Transformation and Loading tools are discussed and information on what makes a tool successful.

Description: This paper discusses the Total Career Benchmark Model, consistent with Retirement 20/20 principles, focuses on reconstructing and maintaining a consistent and reasonable sharing of risks and rewards amongst the four stakeholders: Individuals, Society, Employers and the Markets. Modern technology provides the necessary tools. A series of benchmarks are used for tax limits, target pensions, accrual to date etc. The self adjusting, consistent benchmarks under the TCB Model, means that all stakeholders speak the same language. Individuals and Employers can easily compare what they have to what they need – and more importantly can see how to accrue what is needed. An individual’s ability to tax shelter income over a career is not dependent on the design of any employer pension plan. All funds allocated to an individual remain the individual’s and are not used to subsidize another person – except for the inherent risk sharing of an annuity – by hidden transfers of value.

Description: For establishing the ongoing adequacy of claim reserves for blocks of long-term care insurance, retro testing is a blunt tool, the results of which are not conclusive. Claim reserve retro tests should be reviewed by claim duration, include the impact of interest consistently, and include updated assumptions that can have an impact on claim termination rates or other factors. The new NAIC LTC Experience Reporting Forms estimated to arrive for reporting year 2008 will help modernize LTCI retro tests, providing additional accuracy and standardization. Actuaries should not wait for these forms, but rather ensure that any claim reserve analysis moves beyond a basic calendar year retro test.

Description: Pitfalls with long-term care experience studies and tips for dealing with them.

Description: Second article in a series on how to use predictive analytics to improve the development of long-term care projection assumptions.

Description: NewsDirect article that discusses the benefits of automating the underwriting process. Underwriting speed, the east of case submission and sales support stand out as the most important factors.