In the second edition of this series, we speak to Andrew Tang and Keri Lee, two Australian actuaries working in Asia. While Andrew and Keri work within companies that employ actuaries in core practice areas, they are both working in roles that actuaries are not typically placed in. Andrew’s career journey Andrew is currently the […]

In 2024, approximately 40% of members of the Actuaries Institute report their primary practice area to be outside of insurance. In the first article of this series that explores these members and their personal stories, we speak to Hugh Karp and Nafiz Farnaz, who are using their actuarial training in new and exciting ways. Hugh […]

The 2022 Diversity and Inclusion Working Group survey revealed a clear message: Institute members are seeking to understand unconscious bias to further enhance the integrity of their work. In this article, we explore unconscious bias, its impact on the actuarial profession, and strategies to mitigate it. As the “Becoming an Actuary” page on Actuaries Institute’s […]

You may have seen the Actuaries Institute use the phrase, ‘Actuaries use data for good’. Last year, I took a career break and had an unexpected opportunity to put this phrase to good use while volunteering at a refugee camp in Greece. Our profession has many opportunities to use our skillset across a vast range of disciplines and to work on truly important problems. The extent to which we create and take advantage of these opportunities will only increase as we get better at communicating and sharing our value with the rest of society.

When was the last time you used your bank account? An educated guess would be a few minutes ago. A bank account, like any financial product, entails a financial investment, management of financial risk, and even non-cash payments[1] offering society flexibility over how to view and control their finances. However, there was a time when […]

In this article, Lesley Traverso explores the nuanced issue of pay disparities within the LGBTQI+ community in the lead up to Mardi Gras celebrations, focusing on whether evidence exists of a wage gap that is influenced by sexual orientation alongside gender. There is considerable research, discussion and handwringing about the (very valid) pay gap between […]

This week is Inclusion at Work Week! #InclusionAtWorkWeek 2023, running from 6 to 10 November, is the Diversity Council of Australia’s annual celebration of diversity and inclusion in Australian workplaces. For this article, we talked to three individuals about the importance of diversity and inclusion in the actuarial profession. We discussed how to foster a […]

June is Pride Month, a time dedicated to recognising and celebrating the LGBTQIA+ community, and continuing to fight for equality. This Pride Month, the Diversity and Inclusion Working Group (DIWG) has created a quiz to highlight the issues that LGBTQIA+ people continue to face within the health and financial services sectors. Our aim is […]

In a world increasingly shaped by hybrid work environments, fostering diversity and inclusion within the actuarial profession has become a pressing concern. On the first day of the International Congress of Actuaries 2023, actuaries from around the globe met in person and online to take part in a Diversity Workshop to delve into this critical […]

In our last 2023 International Women’s Day Under the Spotlight Series, Sim Ng, Chief Financial Officer at Prudential Malaysia shares her career journey and offers her insights into women succeeding in the workplace. One of my favourite hobbies is cooking and baking things that cannot be brought. If I have a craving and can’t pop […]

In celebration of International Women’s Day, the Institute held a panel discussion chaired by President Naomi Edwards and special guests Charlie Hales, Managing Director of Watersons Australia (a global cyber and digital consulting company) and Louise Petschler, General Manager of Education and Policy Leadership at the Australian Institute of Company Directors. International Women’s Day (IWD) […]

In celebration of International Women’s Day, Ying Teoh, Global Head at HSBC Life features in a special Under the Spotlight series where she discusses her career journey so far, the importance of a diverse workplace and why women are just as capable as men. I would summarise myself as an actuary that enjoys working on problems, […]

With flexible working becoming more of a norm nowadays and more affordable childcare put in place, Yulia Lai looks at the actuarial gender pay gap to see if it has improved since Julia Lessing last analysed it in 2017. KPMG, the Diversity Council Australia, and the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) have been analysing the […]

In celebration of International Women’s Day, Susana Pui, Group Head of Reserving, Peak Re features in a special Under the Spotlight series to share her career journey so far and insights into how women can excel within their careers. If I had to describe myself in one sentence, I would say that I am […]

While the Actuary profession is well on the way to gender parity, more could be done to encourage female participation. The key to solving this is encouraging more female students to enter the field and providing a supportive environment to thrive within. In Australia, women make up 36% of enrolments in university STEM (Science, Technology, […]

Ahead of this weekend’s Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade, Arthur Dann (co-chair of the Actuaries Institute’s Diversity and Inclusion Working Group) goes Under the Spotlight to talk about his journey across multiple continents and what the #WorldPride festival means to him. If I had to describe myself in an elevator, it would be […]

Sydney WorldPride takes place from 17 February 2023 to 5 March 2023. What is this festival and how can we support diversity and inclusion in the actuarial profession? The city of Sydney has been chosen to be the host of WorldPride in 2023. Held every two years, WorldPride is a not-for-profit festival that promotes LGBTQIA+ Pride. […]

Biodiversity loss is a significant global risk and a growing topic of interest within the international Actuarial community. COP15, held in December 2022 in Montreal Canada, is one of a series of Conferences of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The Canadian meeting was actually the second part of […]