Pioneers of the Profession

A Pioneer is an actuary who has blazed a trail for actuaries by creating a new application for actuarial science, or one who is among the first to apply the actuarial skill set in a non-traditional setting. Are you an actuarial Pioneer?

Rudy Karsan
"The business world for me encompasses the ability to negotiate, to have intellectual warfare with my competition and to make a positive impact on the world. There are tremendous ways to have fun in business. If you’re not having fun along the way, something is not right with the way you’re running the show."

Larry Bader
"Look for opportunities to incorporate viewpoints from outside the profession into your actuarial education."

Fred Sievert
"Being able to understand and communicate difficult actuarial issues and the logic behind product and financial decisions to agents, employees and to outside parties was a skill that many top executives do not possess and served me extremely well." 

A. Haeworth Robertson
"I believe the actuarial profession is not only a very honorable one, but one that is essential in today's society."

Charles McClenahan
"It’s not the accomplishments I find memorable. It’s the people I have been privileged to work with over the years ."

Laura Bennett
" ... the smallest kindness in business goes an incredibly long way and it more often than not brings you benefits you could never have planned for."

Linda Springer
"One of the hallmarks of the profession is work product credibility. ... this attribute is increasingly desirable."

Steve Vernon
"When I started in the mid-1970s, the FSA credential was all you needed for guaranteed employment. Now you need more—you actually have to be a nice person, a good communicator, an effective manager and salesperson."

Ian Duncan
"The lessons of advancing in one’s career boil down to three simple rules that you could carry in your wallet: Identify who in the organization has the power (and budget) and figure out how to work for that individual or organization; Define your own value proposition carefully so that you can convince those in the organization with the power to use you; and Get profit and loss management experience as early as you can." 

		Kim Johnson “Business success is all about people. So it’s important to pick your work associates, and your company, wisely.”
		Dave Ingram “I’m very proud of the quality of the profession, but at times I’ve really felt challenged over my career—especially when it comes to the inaccurate stereotyping of actuaries. We’re so much more than number crunchers and human calculators.”
		Phil Gold “Plan your own career. Decide what you would like to do and go for it. It's the only way you're really going to be happy.”
		Shane Chalke “Business to me is like a complicated form of chess. Every day you wake up and you face a set of problems that are intricate, sophisticated and complex.”
		Dr. Phelim Boyle "Do not be afraid to challenge conventional wisdom, particularly if it comes from on high."
		Ron Gebhardtsbauer "I found that being an actuary wasn’t totally dominated by the business world (we are the academics in the business world) … we also work with others to help people and society."
		Jim Tilley "Innovate—especially when someone tells you that you can't or shouldn't."
		Anna Rappaport "Working hard is very important, but it is not enough. Successful people plan well and set up their lives to engineer a number of good options."
		Thomas S. Terry "We will take a principle or a trend and we'll attempt, from imperfect data perhaps to extrapolate it into the real world, so that individuals and businesses can meaningfully make decisions on the basis of that scant data."
		Prakash Shimpi "I never thought about it as ERM ... I think about it as normal business to which we are applying a little more analytic discipline."
		Todd Bault “Too often, I have seen actuaries do great work that goes unrewarded, simply because the actuaries are not effective at presenting their results.”
		Craig Raymond “Opportunities may fall in your lap, but they also can be created by being prepared and seeking them out. Don’t be afraid to take some chances.”
		Stephen Goss “… remember that communication is essential. We are all “selling” our ideas, and if you cannot convince others of the relevance and logic of your propositions, you will not be able to influence outcomes.”
		Francois Bourdon “The typical actuary needs to be open to opportunities, not be afraid to try new things and be proud of the knowledge he acquired throughout his career and education."