An Actuary Like Me – Maathu Ranjan
“I am proud to be an actuary because we provide valuable advice on risks with considered insights to support good decision making.”
Maathu is a Councillor of the Actuaries Institute and has been elected as 2025 Vice President of the Actuaries Institute, which means she will be President in 2027. An award-winning researcher and recognised leader in the Australian Public Service, Maathu is conducting doctoral research into the effects of government support systems on outcomes for people with autism and early-onset disability at the Australian National University’s Crawford School of Public Policy. Prior to this, Maathu was a Senior Actuary at the National Disability Insurance Agency, and previously held actuarial roles with Finity, TAL Insurance, Suncorp Group and the University of New South Wales.
What is the most valuable skill an actuary can possess?
Integrity.
What is your advice for younger/rising actuaries?
Read widely, stay curious and say yes to opportunities — you have valuable insights.
What’s something an outsider wouldn’t know about your industry?
I’ve often been asked if I am actor…
Any other cities/countries you have worked in?
Mostly Sydney, also Ann Arbor while on exchange, and Miami for a holiday program.
What’s the most interesting trend for 2023?
Generative AI.
Where do you see the biggest growth opportunities for actuaries?
Knowing how to use data analytics to add value, with consideration for the limitations around algorithmic automation.
What is your favourite random fact?
A human brain takes about 25 years to fully develop … it starts at the back with processing of auditory and visual information, and works its way forward to the frontal lobes, which control planning, reasoning and social behaviour.
What is on your bucket list?
To ride a hot air balloon in Türkiye at sunrise.
If you had millions of dollars, what would you do every day?
Outsource household chores, read everything on my book list, take long leisurely walks, go to plays and theatres, fly to a new destination for dinner.
If you lived 500 years in the future, what do you think your profession would be?
Providing governance, risk advice, policy evaluation, products and technical solutions around novel issues like the widespread use of robotics and robots in daily life, high speed travel, including recreational space travel, and sustainable agriculture and food chains in fields under the ocean.
What’s the phone app you use most?
Spotify and Google Maps (mostly at the same time).
What do you do to recharge each day?
Cryptic crosswords.
What do you like to do in your free time? What are your hobbies?
Cooking, baking, and watching and reading crime and mystery stories.
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