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Spring 2018 MeetingAll photos courtesy of J. Fiereck Photography
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ACHS Club Meeting
Meeting offered up to 6.30 continuing education credits
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MassMutual’s deputy Chief Investment Officer Cliff Noreen will give an overview of the current key economic and financial data which impacts financial markets. He will cover global GDP, global interest rates, corporate profits, equity market valuations and government debt data. Come hear about the challenges and opportunities businesses face in our constantly evolving world.
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Cliff Noreen
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Afternoon General Session
3:45PM - 5:00PM
Communication Breakdown, moderated by Kelly Hennigan
3:45PM - 5:00PM
Communication Breakdown, moderated by Kelly Hennigan
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Kelly Hennigan, VP, Actuarial Transformation
Steve Bochanski, Director, PwC Dave Karo, Director & Actuary, Prudential Financial Mitch Stephenson, Director & Actuary, Prudential Financial Presentation Slides As communication skills are essential to all actuaries and business leaders, panelists will speak to the importance of verbal, nonverbal, and written communications skills. Whether you are presenting to a large group, collaborating in a small meeting, making a recommendation to your colleagues, or sending out an email update to senior management, effectively communicating your message to the audience is critical to an actuary’s success.
Your communication style affects how others perceive you, how well you can accomplish your day-to-day work, and how influential you can be inside and outside your organization. Topics covered will include: do’s and don’ts of verbal, non-verbal, and written communications, ways to most effectively communicate with senior management, common communication pitfalls actuaries face and how to avoid them, and ways to enhance your personal verbal and written communication style when working with different audiences. The “Communication Breakdown” session was awarded one of the five “Outstanding Session” awards for the 2017 SOA Annual Meeting & Exhibit, based on multiple criteria, including, but not limited to, topic importance and relevance, evaluation ratings and comments and attendance. |
Kelly Hennigan
Steve Bochanski
Dave Karo
Mitch Stephenson
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Breakout Session #1
10:45AM - 11:45AM
A) Impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on
Insurance Companies
10:45AM - 11:45AM
A) Impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on
Insurance Companies
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Jeffrey Stabach, Manager, Ernst & Young
Fred Campbell-Mohn, Tax Managing Director, KPMG, LLP Jeffrey Stabach Slides Fred Campbell-Mohn Slides The session will focus on the impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1) on insurance companies and insurance products. The revised tax code raises numerous issues regarding the calculation of tax reserves for insurance companies and the admissibility of deferred tax assets under NAIC statutory accounting. In addition, several of the more general provisions have specific impact on insurance business models and tax calculations.
During this session, we will discuss the new tax reserve methodology, the impact of principle based reserving, changes in the taxation of investments, the impact on statutory accounting and other provisions. |
Jeffrey Stabach
Fred Campbell-Mohn
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B) Retirement Plans: Leveraging Behavioral Economics & Data Analytics
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Amanda Hug, Actuary, MassMutual
Felix Okwaning, VP & Consulting Actuary, Prudential Andrew Porter, Director of Behavioral Finance, Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Amanda Hug & Andrew Porter Slides Felix Okwaning Slides Ensuring clients retire with adequate savings is an ever increasing challenge. In this session, the presenters will highlight key insights from the fields of behavioral economics and data analytics that can be used to better prepare clients for retirement. The first half of the session will cover inherent biases that customer’s exhibit and how 401(k) providers can use knowledge of these biases to design smart products and solutions to nudge their customers to save more for the future.
Drawing on the work of recent Nobel Prize laureate Richard Thaler and his research partner, Shlomo Benartzi, the session will provide an academic perspective on why customers act in certain ways, and how to influence their behavior, particularly through designing smarter online solutions. The second half of the session will discuss how to use big data to more accurately predict a client’s retirement behavior for the purpose of informing plan sponsor decisions. |
Amanda Hug
Felix Okwaning
Andrew Porter
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C) A Solution for Funding Special Education in Connecticut
Jay Vadiveloo, Professor & Director, Goldenson Center, UConn
Martha Deeds, Senior Policy Analyst, Connecticut School Finance Project
Presentation Slides
Martha Deeds, Senior Policy Analyst, Connecticut School Finance Project
Presentation Slides
Currently, Connecticut is one of only four states with no system for funding all of its roughly 77,000 students who require some special education services. As a result, special education costs for Connecticut’s public schools have become unpredictable, making it difficult for districts to plan budgets that meet the needs of all the students they serve. This unpredictability is why Connecticut must improve how it funds special education, and implement a system that benefits all students and ensures adequate funding for students with disabilities—no matter what their needs are.
Our solution to Connecticut’s special education funding challenges is the development and implementation of a Special Education Predictable Cost Cooperative. The Co-op is a special education finance system that allows the state and local governments to share in special education costs. Using a cooperative-type model, the Co-op makes special education costs predictable for districts and towns, allowing for better budget planning.
Our solution to Connecticut’s special education funding challenges is the development and implementation of a Special Education Predictable Cost Cooperative. The Co-op is a special education finance system that allows the state and local governments to share in special education costs. Using a cooperative-type model, the Co-op makes special education costs predictable for districts and towns, allowing for better budget planning.
D) A Post-Mortem on Repeal & Replace
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A look back at the state of the individual health market from the beginning of the ACA until now, and the various legislative efforts that were attempted in 2017.
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Nick Zornosa
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Breakout Session #2
1:00PM - 2:00PM
A) The Evolution of the Health Actuary
1:00PM - 2:00PM
A) The Evolution of the Health Actuary
Joan Barrett, Senior Consulting Actuary, Axene Health Partners
Olga Jacobs, Vice President and Actuary, UnitedHealth Group
David Liner, Principal, Consulting Actuary, Milliman
Presentation Slides
Olga Jacobs, Vice President and Actuary, UnitedHealth Group
David Liner, Principal, Consulting Actuary, Milliman
Presentation Slides
What an exciting time to be a health actuary. In this session, presenters will discuss the major disruptors to the health insurance landscape, including its impact on the profession, the analytical challenges and the impact on stakeholders like consumers, and employers and health plans. This session is based on a recent strategic initiative chartered by the Health Section Council.
B) Group Long Term Disability Credibility Study
Group disability insurers use historical experience to inform their pricing and underwriting decisions. Understanding the statistical credibility of the experience is crucial to making well-informed decisions. In this session, Paul will discuss credibility applications in the pricing of long term disability insurance, and will review the results from recent SOA research on the topic.
C) Retirement Readiness in Three Countries –
Who is ready to retire?
Who is ready to retire?
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A recent survey, conducted jointly by the American Academy of Actuaries, the Actuaries Institute of Australia, and the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (U.K.), uncovered some interesting findings about how residents in the U. S., U.K., and Australia are (or are not) preparing for their retirement.
This presentation will share the main findings of the survey, including: how the changing social, demographic, and economic landscape has transformed retirement expectations; the strategies and level of success of accumulating wealth to prepare for retirement; and the ability of individuals to consider and plan for the unexpected events that may occur during retirement. |
Ted Goldman
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D) PBR – The Latest Developments
Kimberly Steiner, Director, Willis Towers Watson
Linda Lankowski, VP and Actuary, Prudential Financial
Kimberly Steiner Slides
Linda Landowski Slides
Linda Lankowski, VP and Actuary, Prudential Financial
Kimberly Steiner Slides
Linda Landowski Slides
Principle-Based Reserves are not a new topic. Actuaries have been dealing with AG-43 and asset adequacy analyses for many years. What is new is the Valuation Manual, and VM-20 for life products in particular. Some companies have now completed their first life insurance PBR reports, and this session will provide an update on issues those taking full advantage of the three year implementation window may experience and recent and upcoming changes to VM-20.
While VM-20 did not change annuity reserving, regulatory changes are brewing there, too, and the session will provide attendees an overview of expected changes in both variable and fixed annuity reserving practices.
While VM-20 did not change annuity reserving, regulatory changes are brewing there, too, and the session will provide attendees an overview of expected changes in both variable and fixed annuity reserving practices.
Breakout Session #3
2:15PM - 3:15PM
A) The Stories We Could Tell: Case Studies
From the ABCD
2:15PM - 3:15PM
A) The Stories We Could Tell: Case Studies
From the ABCD
In the United States, the actuarial profession is a self‐policing one. The Code of Professional Conduct and Actuarial Standards of Practice define standards of professionalism for actuaries delivering services. The profession looks to the Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline (ABCD) to respond to questions regarding whether practice complies with these guidelines.
David Driscoll, a member of the ABCD, will talk about the work of the ABCD and review case studies based on issues raised in matters considered by the ABCD.
David Driscoll, a member of the ABCD, will talk about the work of the ABCD and review case studies based on issues raised in matters considered by the ABCD.
B) Agile for Actuaries Panel Discussion
Moderated by Phil Rant
Moderated by Phil Rant
Phil Rant, VP & Actuary, Prudential Financial
Lu Ma, Director, Actuary, Retirement Risk Strategy & Analytics, Prudential
Stephen Brown, Modeling Development Lead, Voya
Laura McKiernan Boylan, Product Owner – Algorithmic Underwriting, Haven Life
Presentation Slides
Lu Ma, Director, Actuary, Retirement Risk Strategy & Analytics, Prudential
Stephen Brown, Modeling Development Lead, Voya
Laura McKiernan Boylan, Product Owner – Algorithmic Underwriting, Haven Life
Presentation Slides
“Agile” has become ubiquitous in the software industry, and has become so pervasive in other fields that it has now reached fullfledged buzzword status. But what exactly is Agile, and how can the framework help you be more agile? Attending this session will help you get past the endless array of jargon (“user story,” “velocity,” “MVP,” “burn down,” etc.) and explore principles and ideas that can turbocharge the way you work and maximize the value you deliver to your customers.
C) Life and Annuity Product:
The View From the Other Side
The View From the Other Side
Rob Stone, Financial Advisor, Northwestern Mutual
Actuaries often are asked to view product from a technical standpoint, whether in pricing, valuation or modeling. Often the ways products are positioned in the marketplace focuses entirely on everything BUT the technical aspects of product.
In this session you will hear from someone who has been hip-deep in both worlds: 25 years as an actuary and now a year as a financial advisor. In this session the process of marketing as an advisor and the ways products are positioned to clients will be contrasted with the technical view of creating and pricing product.
In this session you will hear from someone who has been hip-deep in both worlds: 25 years as an actuary and now a year as a financial advisor. In this session the process of marketing as an advisor and the ways products are positioned to clients will be contrasted with the technical view of creating and pricing product.
D) Post-Model Transformation...
Transformation! Day 2 Considerations
Transformation! Day 2 Considerations
Bryan Lindsley, Senior Consultant, Oliver Wyman
Lei Rao-Knight, Vice President and Actuary, Prudential
Presentation Slides
Lei Rao-Knight, Vice President and Actuary, Prudential
Presentation Slides
Many insurers and reinsurers have modernized/converted their models over the last five years to meet new financial reporting requirements and strengthen efficiency, controls and governance. Conversion projects are often subjected to timeline and data constraints that limit the end-state model from meeting its full potential. The speakers will facilitate an interactive discussion with the audience through a live survey and address key items that can often be improved upon on post-conversion.
Networking Reception
5:00PM - 6:30PM
Event Photo
Gallery
ACHS Officers from left to right: Mitch Stephenson, Amanda Hug, Lisa Larsen, Sarah Waldo
