The Associate Edition: Crochet and curiosity

The Associate Edition celebrates the people behind the credential — the careers, passions and life experiences that make our Associates who they are. This edition features Simran Chaturvedi, Senior Pricing Manager at IAG, who built her actuarial career across two countries, balancing exams with full-time work, a new country and major life changes along the way. Beyond the pricing spreadsheets, you'll find crochet handbags, school volunteering and a belief that curiosity shows up everywhere — just in different forms. 

Beyond the job title, who are you? We want to know the person behind the Associate!

Beyond being an actuary, I’m someone who gets a lot of joy from building things, whether that’s solving complex problems at work, creating crochet handbags or building memories with my family. I have two young children (9 and 6) and a lot of my time is spent doing activities with them or for them.

I also volunteer at my kids’ school, helping teach scriptures and encouraging children to stay connected to values and community. That side of my life keeps me balanced as actuaries spend a lot of time thinking about the future, but children have a great way of bringing you back to the present.

People at work probably know me as someone who is quick to solve problems, hardworking and resilient. What they may not expect is that I’m equally happy sitting with yarn and turning it into a handbag. I think curiosity and creativity show up everywhere in my life — just in different forms.

Can you share your journey in becoming an Associate actuary?

My journey into actuarial science started with equal parts practicality and curiosity. Growing up in India, I knew early that I wanted a career with global recognition — one that could travel with me, because Australia was always part of the plan. Actuarial science combined everything I enjoyed: mathematics, problem solving and a profession known for being demanding and respected, which honestly made it more appealing.

At the time in India, qualifying wasn’t integrated into university, so actuarial exams happened alongside full-time work. One early milestone was taking three exams at once, passing and securing my first actuarial role soon after. I continued progressing through the exams while working full time.

Then life became more interesting - I moved to Australia, adapted to a new country, learned different ways of working (and yes, understanding the accent!), and navigated newly married life.

Looking back, what I’m most proud of isn’t just the Associate qualification. It’s building a career while adapting to a new country and growing through major life changes at the same time.

Simran with her family and holding one of her crochet handbags.

What is the most rewarding aspect of being an Associate?

For me, the most rewarding aspect is being able to influence decisions and see my work create real-world outcomes. Early in your career, you often focus on getting the analysis right. As you grow, you realise the real impact comes from helping shape decisions and making complex ideas understandable and actionable.

Becoming an Associate also gave me more confidence in my own thinking and a stronger sense of credibility with peers and stakeholders. I particularly enjoy working in pricing and transformation because they are forward-looking by nature. You’re not just analysing what happened, you’re helping design what comes next. That combination of challenge, impact and building something for the future is incredibly rewarding.

What advice would you to give to those who are contemplating qualifying as an Associate?

There will always be busy periods at work, life changes and competing priorities. Success in actuarial studies is less about being naturally gifted and more about showing up consistently. Hard work, discipline and persistence matter far more than some idea of being “genetically smart”.

How does being an Associate enhance your professional practice and development?

Being an Associate has shaped the way I think as much as what I know. The actuarial journey develops structured thinking, critical thinking and resilience, skills that continue to be valuable long after the exams are over.

In my current transformation role, the technical foundation from insurance and actuarial training is important, but resilience has probably become just as valuable. Transformation work rarely follows a straight line.

And, if I’m being completely honest, there’s also an interesting side effect of being an actuary. People often assume you’re smart before you’ve said anything. The opportunity (and responsibility) is then using that credibility to communicate clearly and create value.

What has been the most important lesson you've learned or the biggest influence on your career and why?

Two of the biggest influences on my career have been my father and my husband,  for slightly different reasons.

My father was a businessman and what I mostly observed growing up was consistent hard work. There wasn’t a lot of talk about shortcuts or overnight success; effort was simply expected. That shaped my own approach to work and achievement.

My husband added another dimension.. He’s incredibly hardworking, but what has always stood out to me is his strategic thinking. He wouldn’t describe himself as the stereotypical “smart kid” growing up, yet he’s built success through making thoughtful decisions, focusing on what matters and playing the long game.

That combination shifted how I think about achievement. I used to believe success was mostly about working harder and meeting traditional definitions of accomplishment. Over time, I’ve learned that success looks different for everyone. For me, success today is growth, meaningful work, family and continuing to stay curious.

What specific trends or technologies do you believe will shape the future of the actuarial profession in the next decade?

AI is the obvious headline and I’m optimistic about it. I don’t see AI replacing actuaries. I see it changing where we create value.

 As technology automates more of the technical and repetitive work, actuaries will have greater opportunities to focus on judgement, strategy, decision-making and solving more complex business problems.

At the same time, I think future actuaries will need to become more technology-enabled and increasingly strong communicators.

If you could pick any superpower that would enhance your abilities as an actuary, what would it be and why?

I’d pick the ability to simplify complexity with a bonus power of instantly understanding other people’s context.

A lot of actuarial work isn’t actually about the maths; it’s about turning complexity into decisions and helping different groups move in the same direction. Being able to immediately understand what matters to stakeholders and explain complicated ideas in a way that clicks would probably feel like a superpower.

Although if that superpower also came with instant school lunch packing and zero unread emails, I wouldn’t complain!