Description: The February/March 2014 edition of The Actuary magazine—the Society of Actuaries’ flagship publication.

Description: Uncertainty of a predictive model is a fact of life that many insurers could be overlooking at their peril without a framework for assessing it. The article provides a framework to understand the prediction uncertainty, which can be critical for the insurance operations using predictive models. Coin toss example explains model uncertainty and randomness inherent in making predictions to the number of heads expected. A mortality analysis case study illustrates how the Bayesian methodology can be used to develop the prediction uncertainty. In particular, the article shows that the Bayesian framework is a way to combine historical data and actuarial judgment, and directly address the model uncertainty through its posterior distribution.

Description: Actuaries understand the technical benefits of converting their models to a modern actuarial system, such as new capabilities and upgraded technology. This article highlights additional, non-technical benefits that also come with model conversion. These benefits include advancements in attitudes and capacities among the team and across the company.

Description: The April/May 2013 edition of The Actuary magazine—the Society of Actuaries’ flagship publication.

Description: The current coronavirus pandemic has caused a number of challenges for life insurers and this article summarizes the operational challenges, namely in two areas. First, the article will discuss the challenges companies are facing to collect traditional underwriting evidence and potential short-term solutions used to overcome these limitations. Second, the actions companies are taking to alleviate the financial difficulties customers may have paying premiums will be addressed.

Description: Discussion of the selling of life insurance to the middle income market through banks and with the support of new technologies and underwriting processes.

Description: How adopting a risk champion model can help insurance companies, create a clear distinction between the first line and the second line of defense and ensure proactivity in identifying and addressing risk

Description: The Federal funds rate increased by 4.25% in 2022 with further increases in 2023, which have already resulted in a liquidity crisis for a few banks. As the rapid increase of the interest rates pushed the new money rates above the yields of many life insurers’ investment portfolios, insurance companies are facing a dilemma between compressed margins from peer pressure and the concern with liquidity shortfalls and realized capital losses should mass surrenders happen. This paper discussed main emerging risks under rising interest rate environment, and several ways to mitigate these risks.

Description: How adopting a risk champion model can help insurance companies, create a clear distinction between the first line and the second line of defense and ensure proactivity in identifying and addressing risk

Description: A paper demonstrating how to obviate the need for market timing strategies in variable annuity products by judicious use of product design. The paper presents the premise behind the product design, provides numerical examples, then explores possible extensions of the concept to produce more sophisticated variable annuity plans based on guarantees of investment outcomes.