Actuaries - A Learning Profession?

Like all professions, the world of actuarial employment is changing rapidly, as are the skills and competencies actuaries will need for successful and sustainable careers. But what are these competencies, and are actuaries members of an appropriately ‘learning’ profession which can easily adapt to this new world? Futurologists Susskind and Susskind in their book ‘The Future of the Professions’ addressed some of the challenges professionals such as actuaries will face in a world where knowledge becomes even more commoditised, technical tasks become automated, and artificial intelligence systems provide increasing levels of ‘professional advice’. So how will actuaries respond to such a ‘brave new world’?

We have carried out a major piece of independent Horizon Scanning with our global membership to identify their individual readiness for such change, the skills and competencies they and their employers will require, and how individual actuaries will go about such ‘reskilling of the skilled’.

This presentation/paper will present the outcomes from this work. It will include an overview of key issues such as:

• The drivers of change
• Future skills and competency mix
• How will actuaries access reskilling
• The role of professional bodies in reskilling the skilled.

This work shines a light on the historic culture of actuarial professional learning, and perhaps its over-focus on initial qualification and post-qualification regulation.

It points to the need for a different, more holistic Career-Long view of professional Learning, significant changes in post-qualification ‘continuing professional development’, and recognition of the value of multi-professional learning around many of the skills and competencies actuaries will need for success in their future careers.

Thankfully evidence from this work shows that IFoA members are already recognising significant parts of this agenda, and are seeking to take individual ownership of their own career-planning and Career-Long Learning.

Find the Q&A here: Q&A on 'Actuarial Education and the Future'