IFoA news

LIFELONG LEARNING Proposed new CPD scheme: consultation open

We are consulting on a proposed new continuing professional development (CPD) scheme, which is intended to make IFoA requirements easier to fulfi l and return the focus of CPD to meaningful professional development and learning.

The proposals have been produced in response to member feedback on the existing CPD scheme.

The simplifi ed requirements place the same obligations on all members, regardless of membership category (with an exemption for non-practising members and students).

Under the proposed scheme, a greater range of activities will count towards the hours-based requirement, allowing members to participate in more varied opportunities, learning about subjects relevant to their current or future role. Recording and evidencing activities will no longer be required, and non-compliance won’t lead to disciplinary action (except in cases where the Actuaries’ Code has been breached). Instead, the IFoA will focus on supporting members’ professional development in a refl ective practice discussion. Learning needs and the outcomes of activities will be talked over, and suggestions made as to how members might continue to progress.

The proposed new CPD scheme is intended to make CPD a benefi t of IFoA membership, a method by which the IFoA helps its members to remain relevant in this ever-evolving, dynamic industry.

Review the proposals and share your thoughts before 17 April: www.actuaries.org. uk/cpd-scheme-review-2020

IN BRIEF...

Diversity of experience: benefi ting from role models Members of the IFoA can be inspired by, and gain so much from, each other: mutual support, powerful collaborations, and new and even disruptive thinking. The IFoA wants to celebrate role models within the profession. Actuaries at all stages in their careers have shared their thoughts and experiences to help and inspire others. Discover some of the ways you can learn from them at bit.ly/36woVm1

LIFELONG LEARNING Benefi ting from our CPD co-ordinators’ briefi ng 2019

Our CPD co-ordinator’s briefi ng was held on 7 November and attended by representatives from more than 60 employers of our members. It involved presentations on a range of topics, under the theme ‘Lifelong Learning – providing continuous development for our members’, and included a welcome by IFoA president John Taylor. Topics covered an update on the plans for the 2020/2021 CPD Scheme review, a presentation by Dr Helen Wright, chair of the IFoA Lifelong Learning Board, on strategic direction and adapting to your professional needs, and an update about the new Professional Skills Training resources.

The presentations were fi lmed, and the materials are available for members to access on the IFoA website. Log in and you can access them within the CPD co-ordinators’ annual briefi ng section of the virtual learning environment (bit.ly/2ZZv4ET). CPD can be claimed directly when viewing these presentations. You may also like to use the material to run a group session for colleagues or peers.

CPD co-ordinators play a key role in engagement between the IFoA and organisations that employ our members. They receive updates, key information and opportunities, which they share with colleagues. The IFoA maintains a database of all co-ordinators. Not all organisations are represented yet; if you would like to check whether yours is, or to volunteer to act as a co-ordinator for your organisation, contact Debbie Atkins, head of engagement, at debbie.atkins@actuaries.org.uk Find out what others say about the benefi ts of our CPD Co-ordinators’ Briefi ng and the benefi ts of becoming a CPD co-ordinator at bit.ly/2m2zxDI

Annual Report of the Practising Certifi cates Committee The Annual Report of the Practising Certifi cates Committee is now available on the IFoA website at bit.ly/2MYbeV9

The report provides an update on the annual review of the Practising Certifi cates Scheme and includes current statistics and further suggestions for applicants to help their applications go smoothly. The report should be of particular interest to Practising Certifi cate (PC) holders, and those who plan to become PC holders.

Please direct any queries on the report to practising. certs@actuaries.org.uk

PRESIDENTIAL VISIT TO CHINA Connections with members and stakeholders

From 4 December to 12 December 2019, IFoA president-elect Tan Suee Chieh visited Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing. This was Mr Tan’s fi rst visit to China in his current role. The IFoA delegation met with various stakeholders, including Ping An Insurance Group, Taiping Life, China Reinsurance, the China Association of Actuaries and the Insurance Asset Management Association of China.

At the member events in Beijing and Shanghai, Mr Tan presented awards to new qualifi ers, volunteers and Sir Edward Johnston Prize winners. The IFoA and Sunshine Insurance Group jointly hosted the Beijing member event on 12 December 2019. Mr Tan and Jihai Peng, vice president and CFO of Sunshine, co-presented the Sunshine Insurance Scholarships to the top actuarial

student members from the Central University of Finance and Economics and the University of International Business and Economics.

The IFoA also held university events at Fudan University in Shanghai and the Central University of Finance and Economics in Beijing, with more than 200 students attending. At Fudan, Mr Tan signed the accreditation agreement on behalf of the IFoA with Fudan University. Fudan is the fi rst top multi

disciplinary university to be accredited in mainland China.

The nine-day visit gave the IFoA’s president-elect and executives an opportunity to engage with stakeholders. To read more information in Mandarin, please visit the IFoA Offi cial WeChat at bit.ly/2QSjjfg

Strategic Partner:

IFoA Asia Conference 2020 24–25 June, CCEC Nexus, Kuala Lumpur

Join intellectual thought leaders, senior industry players, opinion formers, academics, actuaries and non-actuaries from across Asia and beyond at this landmark IFoA conference. Guest of honour: The Honourable Mr. Lim Guan Eng Finance Minister, Malaysia

Register before 1 March for early bird discount: bit.ly/asiaconference2020

A C T U A R I A L P R O F E S S I O N STANDARDS APS X2 – new materials published The IFoA has published a refreshed webpage on Actuarial Profession Standard (APS) X2: Review of Actuarial Work (bit.ly/2Tl25tC) to include a host of resource materials for members, including case studies, vignettes and an APS X2 quiz. The materials have been updated following the conclusion of a post-implementation review of APS X2, which looked at how the standard is working in practice and whether it is eff ective and achieving its objectives.

You can fi nd out more about the postimplementation review of APS X2 and access the full suite of materials by visiting the IFoA’s website, or by contacting the Regulation Team at regulation@actuaries.org.uk.

APS X4 – Social Security Programmes Actuarial Profession Standard X4 (APS X4) was published on 27 November, along with the feedback paper to the consultation. The standard will take eff ect on 27 February 2020. APS X4 applies to members carrying out actuarial work in the fi nancial analysis of social security programmes outside of the UK Geographic Scope. Members carrying out such work within the UK Geographic Scope must apply the Financial Reporting Council’s Actuarial Statement of Recommended Practice 1 (ASORP 1). APS X4 is available at bit.ly/3aC1OsA ASORP 1 is available at bit.ly/37iPQlG

Consultation on new APS X5 The IFoA is consulting on proposals to withdraw GN30: Compensation for Professional Shortcomings (bit.ly/37IyYV1) and replace it with a new APS implementing broadly the same requirements (bit.ly/2RkEk3y). The proposed APS X5: Compensation for Professional Shortcomings requires members who are principals in organisations that provide actuarial services to external clients to ensure that appropriate arrangements are in place in relation to compensation for loss caused by professional shortcomings.

The proposed APS is not designed to impose new obligations on members; rather, it aims to provide clarifi cation on current requirements and provide consistency. The proposal includes non-mandatory guidance to support APS X5, designed to help members meet their obligations. The consultation will close on 17 February 2020. The consultation package can be found on the IFoA’s website.

EVENTS AND CONFERENCES

24 02 20 Sessional: Impact of E-cigarettes Working Party ROYAL COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS, 9 Q U E E N S T, E D I N B U R G H This sessional meeting will be of direct interest to actuaries and others working in the health and care, life or pensions sectors, or actuaries with an interest in morbidity or mortality.

12 03 20 Data science – How actuaries can optimise usage of data science techniques within their sectors STAPLE INN, LONDON This is a working event for delegates to share progress and exchange knowledge about what data science techniques mean for the profession and, most importantly, what we can and should be doing to engage with data science as actuarial professionals.

19 03 20 Board agenda: Why responsible investing, ESG, and climate change matters to pension fund companies STAPLE INN, LONDON This timely event aims to explain why these issues matter and why they have become more relevant in recent years. It will also discuss what this means for NEDs and actuaries when it comes to exercising their responsibilities.

25 03 20 Spring Lecture 2020, Edinburgh – Vicky Pryce ASSEMBLY ROOMS 5 4 G E O R G E S T, E D I N B U R G H Please join us in Edinburgh for our annual Spring Lecture, presented by Vicky Pryce. Vicky is chief economic adviser and a board member at the Centre for Economics and Business Research, and will present her lecture on ‘What next in economic policy?’

View all of our workshops, seminars, webinars, events, and conferences at www. actuaries.org.uk/event

QAS Zamara receives QAS accreditation

Congratulations to our most recently accredited organisation, Zamara Actuaries, Administrators & Consultants Limited (Actuarial Division). This is the fi rst accreditation to be awarded in Africa. See below for what the QAS accreditation means to the organisation.

“The QAS accreditation represents a huge milestone in our business and reaffi rms our commitment to the highest standards of quality in our work. We are immensely proud to be the fi rst actuarial fi rm in Africa to be accredited. Our clients, employees and regulators can take comfort in knowing that our actuarial division has been independently reviewed and confi rmed to comply with our quality standards which uphold best international practices.” – Adil Suleman, head of Zamara Actuaries, Administrators & Consultants Limited (Actuarial Division)

For more information about the Quality Assurance Scheme, please contact the QAS team at qas@actuaries.org.uk

IFOA STRATEGY Council update

Council held its second meeting of the 2019/20 sessional year in London on 29 November. The afternoon prior, Council members met to discuss the progress made since our meeting in September towards developing a new strategic direction for the IFoA, focusing on two key areas:

The development of our pre-qualifi cation (Associateship) and advanced (Fellowship) curricula, to ensure that these curricula appropriately refl ect the evolving profession and market demand Defi ning the direction in which our international strategy should evolve, and understanding both the requirements and implications of those choices.

At our regular meeting, we agreed how each of these strategic imperatives should be taken forward, and how they will take shape in the form of a fi nal Strategic Plan, to be approved at our next formal meeting (5 March 2020) and shared with the membership soon thereafter.

On the subject of our Associateship qualifi cation, we looked at a proposal to modernise the assessment and marking of our Associate examinations. This work, which will be led by our Lifelong Learning Board and overseen by our Management Board in the coming months, aims to improve the effi ciency of these processes and, in doing so, allow us to refocus resources on the development of our educational and lifelong learning off erings in line with our strategic imperatives. We held our annual review of our Regulation Board, which centred on: the Board’s work towards delivering its outputs as defi ned in the current regulatory strategy; its current priorities, challenges, and opportunities; and its engagement with IMAGES: ISTOCK

the strategic priorities set by Council. The review covered a number of important topics, including: the Kingman Review and the future of UK actuarial regulation arrangements; the IFoA’s international regulatory strategy; the ongoing review of our Continuous Professional Development Scheme; and the role of regulation in supporting and assisting members, including how we can better promote the value of being a regulated professional.

We received an update on ongoing work towards developing a value proposition for our members. We also considered an update from the chair of our Management Board on the work that it has carried out in recent months, and approved the appointment of Trevor Spires, the lay chair of our Audit and Risk Committee, as a lay non-executive member of that Board.

We approved two proposals to change our constitutional documents, which intend to help modernise the appeal of the IFoA and streamline its operations. Both of these proposals – broadening the scope of our Affi liate membership category, and simplifying the process for appointing Honorary Fellows of the IFoA – will require the approval of our members before they can be implemented. More information on each proposal will be shared with you soon, along with a third proposal (also recently approved) to change requirements around Council members’ tenure on Council.

Our next regular meeting will take place on 5 March 2020, with an extraordinary meeting to elect the president-elect of Council for the 2020/21 sessional year taking place the afternoon before. The minutes of our meetings are available at bit.ly/2u1gmx9 and you can contact us at Presidents@Actuaries.org.uk

New IFoA CEO

In January, the IFoA welcomed its new chief executive, Stephen Mann. Mann originally qualifi ed as a lawyer, and has worked extensively with the actuarial community throughout a career in fi nancial services. He has been a board director of the Aviva Life business, responsible for strategy, business services and major capital projects. More recently he served as chief executive offi cer at the Police Mutual Group.

Mann has also been chair of Aviva’s With-Profi ts Committee and UK retail investment business, a non-executive director at ALICO UK and the independent member of the Audit and Risk Committee at The College of Policing.

He is a Fellow of the Institute of Directors and the Pensions Management Institute, and a trustee of the Police Arboretum Memorial Trust.

You can read a Q&A with Stephen Mann in the March issue of the magazine.