Data for good

Actuaries take great pride in understanding a problem’s context. In our mastery of data, we always come back to the bedrock that has shaped us since we began: professional integrity.

While we’re sure of the value we bring to the table, we haven’t always succeeded at sharing that value with people outside our profession.

When we are clear on our impact, others will better understand what we do, and how we contribute. Students will see all that they can accomplish and will be inspired to practice as actuaries. Clients will feel compelled to seek our advice. As we strengthen how our profession is perceived and understood, we will unlock more opportunities to solve the most pressing problems that face organisations, industries, and our society today.

As actuaries, we practice in such diverse fields that we need a statement of purpose to draw us together. Whether we’re shaping strategy, valuing assets, designing better data models, or advising on government benefits, we need one strong statement that stands for us all.

The Actuaries Institute embarked on rigorous research to uncover that statement of purpose, which we’re very proud to share with you now.

How we answered the question

We began by seeking to understand where we’ve come from. We analysed previous research and consulted focus group and survey data. We reviewed previous efforts to explain the value of an actuary. And with an international lens, we saw that the way our profession speaks about itself is often fragmented and overly specific. There was nothing memorable enough for actuaries to take up and own — let alone offer a clear statement of purpose to the people we serve.

So we reached out to the profession. We interviewed actuaries from across our membership to hear the benefits individual actuaries bring. We listened to their language and, through this dialogue, learned how a strong, clear, and succinct statement of value would help them.

Actuaries emphasised the importance of staying true to what has made our profession strong: the rigour of our approach, our unique ability to put data in context, and our many years of supporting financial services. At the same time, it became very clear that we must look to the future. The field of data science is attracting increasing interest. Actuaries need a way of demonstrating what sets us apart and explaining how our contributions shape emerging fields. In short, we need a galvanising statement of purpose with a message that stands for us all, and which all of us can get behind.  Through our research, we arrived at one simple and succinct truth:

Actuaries use data for good

We use data for good by harnessing the evidence to navigate uncertainty and make a positive impact. We think deeply about the problems and questions we face, whether it’s advising on commercial strategy, designing new products, or tackling societal issues. As we’re called upon to give intelligent answers to complex problems, we look at the full picture, through sophisticated data analytical techniques. With this approach, we form the robust and outcome-centred advice for which we’re known.

Because actuaries use data for good, we guide the people we advise towards the better future they desire: one that’s fairer and more financially sustainable. 

Through our research, we identified three key professional domains in which actuaries excel. Some actuaries work brilliantly across all three domains. Others have a clear preference at this stage in their career and become niche specialists.

We’ve mapped these domains as: Actuaries use data for good by harnessing the evidence to navigate into the future and make a positive impact. 

We think deeply about the issue at hand, whether it’s advising on commercial strategy, influencing policy, or designing new products. Actuaries are adept at balancing interests of stakeholders, clients, and communities. 

We’re called upon to give insight on complex problems, we’ll look at the full picture. We analyse the data and model scenarios to form robust and outcome-centred advice.

In our research, we determined that actuaries use data for good in three key domains: