By Darrell Knapp
This November/December issue of Contingencies is a special one, celebrating the Academy’s 60th anniversary—six decades of faithfully fulfilling its mission to serve the public and the U.S. actuarial profession. It is a milestone that calls for celebration as well as some reflection on how far we have come. In 1965, the actuarial profession existed in a world of slide rules, adding machines, multi-column spreadsheets (on paper!), and commutation functions while we are now learning how to make use of artificial intelligence, big data, and an interconnected world including driverless automobiles. (See the cover story, “Sixty Years and Counting,” which features reflections from six of the Academy’s past presidents.)
With respect to public policy, the Academy has had the opportunity to offer its input on a number of cornerstones of the nation’s financial security systems, including the National Flood Insurance program, Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), Social Security reforms (see the Academy’s own Social Security Challenge), significant innovations in life and annuity products, the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act, the Affordable Care Act, Medicare and Medicaid managed care products, and risk-based capital requirements for insurers, to name just a few.
We have had the opportunity to comment on major changes in insurance accounting, including the codification of statutory accounting, International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) reforms, Sarbanes-Oxley, principles-based reserving (PBR), and standard valuation laws. We have, and will continue to, work with policymakers on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. (in part through the Academy’s “Hill visits” each spring); with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC); and with state legislators and regulators to provide unbiased input on questions they are trying to address.
From a professionalism viewpoint, the Academy has had a hand in the development and stewardship of the cornerstones of our profession—the Code of Professional Conduct, the U.S. Qualification Standards (USQS), the Actuarial Standards Board (ASB; which has issued almost 60 actuarial standards of practice [ASOPs] and revised many more), and the Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline (ABCD). These professionalism components have served actuaries well and should continue to do so in the future.
This momentous occasion also calls for some self-reflection. In the McCarthy boardroom in the Academy’s Washington, D.C., offices, there is a wall with photographs of all the prior Academy presidents—many great women and men who have served the Academy and the actuarial profession very well, some of whom I am proud to consider as friends. I am both humbled and honored to be included in that group, and it has been a pleasure to have the opportunity to serve and lead this great organization. As I reflect on my own actuarial journey, two actuaries immediately come to mind—Dr. Newton Bowers, my professor and advisor at Drake University, who taught us so much more about being an actuary than what was in the textbook (which he helped author), and Jim Roberts, who was a mentor and friend at several of my employers. I would encourage each of you to use this anniversary celebration as an opportunity to take a moment and reflect on actuaries who may have had a profound influence on your careers and lives.
As much fun as an anniversary celebration is, we can’t just look back. November brings new leadership to the Academy with a new president, Tricia Matson; a new president-elect, Frank Todisco; and several new vice presidents and member-selected directors. This leadership team—together with Executive Director Bill Michalisin and his team of highly competent staff—leaves the Academy well positioned to begin the next 60 years. The U.S. actuarial profession is deeply indebted to the efforts of these staff members and volunteers (as well as the 1,000-plus other volunteers) for their dedicated service to the public and the profession. As I pass the gavel to Tricia, I am as excited about the future as I am grateful for the past.
Since this is my last column, I wanted to also take a moment to thank the Academy communications team, which effectively keeps all of us informed about Academy activities through publications, emails, social media, and other channels.
Again, it has been an honor and a privilege to have been able to serve the Academy, an organization that has done so much for the actuarial profession and for the public on behalf of the actuarial profession for the last 60 years. Looking forward, I believe the best is yet to come!
Darrell Knapp is president of the Academy.