E-LEARNING MODULES

Module: Decision Making and Communication

Section 3: Build Team

Ask an Actuary: Effective Teams

Actuaries often work in groups but are not always effective within teams. We asked an actuary to describe a group in
which he worked and to describe his specific role. We also asked the actuary to describe the areas in which that group
functioned well.

Response
I worked in a group assigned to the task of implementing new products. The company created a team that crossed all
functional areas of the company. These teams are generally led by a project leader and contain representatives from all
areas that will be affected by the new product. Some of the areas would include marketing, administrative systems,
accounting, valuation, product development and compliance.
My responsibility within the group was to make sure that our company could appropriately reserve for this product.
This would include an initial review of the product to determine the reserve implications for the product pricing, assist
with reserving issues during the product filing and ensure the system feeds for the valuation system would contain all
the information needed to calculate the reserve for this product.
Part of the success of the group was attributable to the clear division of responsibility. Each person had an area of
responsibility that they were representing in the group. If there were a question, everyone knew whom to ask.
Even though everyone had their specific area of responsibility, there was also the freedom to raise questions and
concerns about issues that could affect other areas. This was highly beneficial as everyone brought their own
perspective to the group and saw the product and issues from a different perspective. There were several times that a
valid issue affecting valuation was raised by someone other than me.
The group functioned well once it was put together. There were several reserving issues that needed to be discussed
early in the product development process. After working through a few product designs with this part of the group, I
suggested that the product development actuaries meet with some of the major stakeholders (including valuation).
This allowed us to avoid some major (and minor) issues before the product was presented to the whole group.
One thing that I have learned from my group work over the years is that an actuary should never work in isolation.
An actuary works best if there is someone there to bounce ideas off of and discuss issues. You will find it beneficial to
discuss ideas with someone who sees things from a different perspective.

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