Actuaries

Definition:

• Mathematicians, actuaries and statisticians conduct research and improve or develop mathematical, actuarial and statistical concepts, theories and operational methods and techniques and advise on or engage in their practical application in such fields as engineering, business and social and other sciences.

Job Description:

• 1) Analyze statistical data, such as mortality, accident, sickness, disability, and retirement rates and construct probability tables to forecast risk and liability for payment of future benefits. May ascertain premium rates required and cash reserves necessary to ensure payment of future benefits.

Duties and Tasks:

• 1) Ascertain premium rates required and cash reserves and liabilities necessary to ensure payment of future benefits.
• 2) Analyze statistical information to estimate mortality, accident, sickness, disability, and retirement rates
• 3) Design, review and help administer insurance, annuity and pension plans, determining financial soundness and calculating premiums
• 4) Collaborate with programmers, underwriters, accounts, claims experts, and senior management to help companies develop plans for new lines of business or improving existing business.
• 5) Determine or help determine company policy, and explain complex technical matters to company executives, government officials, shareholders, policyholders, and/or the public.
• 6) Testify before public agencies on proposed legislation affecting businesses.
• 7) Provide advice to clients on a contract basis, working as a consultant.
• 8) Testify in court as expert witness or to provide legal evidence on matters such as the value of potential lifetime earnings of a person who is disabled or killed in an accident.
• 9) Construct probability tables for events such as fires, natural disasters, and unemployment, based on analysis of statistical data and other pertinent information.
• 10) Determine policy contract provisions for each type of insurance.
• 11) Manage credit and help price corporate security offerings.
• 12) Provide expertise to help financial institutions manage risks and maximize returns associated with investment products or credit offerings.
• 13) Determine equitable basis for distributing surplus earnings under participating insurance and annuity contracts in mutual companies.
• 14) Explain changes in contract provisions to customers.

Activities:

• 1) Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
• 2) Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
• 3) Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
• 4) Communicating with Persons Outside Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
• 5) Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
• 6)Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information — Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
  
• 7)Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates — Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.
• 8) Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
• 9) Training and Teaching Others — Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
• 10) Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
• 11) Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
• 12) Analyzing Data or Information — Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.
• 13) Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People — Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
• 14) Interacting With Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
• 15) Coaching and Developing Others — Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills
• 16) Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards — Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
• 17) Processing Information — Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
• 18) Thinking Creatively — Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
• 19) Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others — Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
• 20) Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings — Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
• 21) Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
• 22) Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others — Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
• 23) Provide Consultation and Advice to Others — Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics.

Abilities:

• 1) Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand
• 2) Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• 3) Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• 4) Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• 5) Category Flexibility — The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
  
• 6) Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• 7) Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• 8) Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• 9) Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• 10) Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• 11) Number Facility — The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
• 12) Mathematical Reasoning — The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
• 13) Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• 14) Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
• 15) Fluency of Ideas — The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
• 16) Originality — The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem

Knowledge

• 1) Computers and Electronics — Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• 2) Administration and Management — Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• 3) Economics and Accounting — Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• 4) Mathematics — Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
  
• 5) English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.