Presidential Dialogue: March 2018 Council Report
John Evans presents his report to members from the recent Actuaries Institute Council meeting held on 5 March 2018, outlining key issues discussed and decisions made.
This was the first Council meeting of the year. The next Council meeting will take place on 13 June.
Your Council members discussed a wide range of developments. Importantly, the Institute’s new Strategic Plan 2018-20+ milestones and success measures and future state of the profession communication were approved by Council. These were sent to Members via email on 10 April.
The month of May is now upon us – as are two significant events for the Institute.
Our 2018 Financial Services Forum (21-22 May) is set to host a great line up of plenary speakers and concurrent sessions in Sydney. A number of new initiatives have been implemented in the organising of the event, including selecting top quality curators to oversee speakers/topics in their area. I’m sure the program innovations will make for a fantastic conference.
The second important major event for the Institute is the 2018 International Congress of Actuaries (ICA2018) in Berlin in early June. The Convenor of the ICA2022 Organising Committee, Daniel Smith, gave an update on past and future activities and initial budget considerations. Key members of the Organising Committee will attend ICA2018 to gain knowledge, speak to potential sponsors and promote ICA2022. We look forward to using these insights to inform our preparation for the International Congress of Actuaries coming to Sydney in 2022.
Education Strategy Review implementation plan and CPD plans
The Actuarial Lead Educator and two part-time Actuarial Educators have been appointed with their main focus being to improve the content and delivery of our Part IIIs. Past President Jenny Lyon has agreed to take on an Education Strategy Coordinator role that aims to help improve understanding across the Education Council Committee, Education Strategy Review Committee and Council now that we are moving towards transition.
There will be a special Council meeting in May to decide the high-level curriculum subjects for the new Fellowship and Associate programs and approve the first two Fellowship subjects to be developed for delivery in 2019.
Over 879 items of CPD content were produced in 2017.
Plans for 2018 include progressing the Content Repository System.
A CPD audit was completed in 2017 with satisfactory compliance. Full CPD audits will be conducted annually. Members who fail to produce records for the previous year within 14 days, or to provide a satisfactory explanation for failing to produce, will be sent a warning letter with follow up action as required.
On the rise
The Institute made an $18k surplus in 2017 compared to a $21k budgeted surplus. As at end of December, net assets were $4,479k. The audited financial statements for the Institute for 2017 were approved at the meeting.
At the end of December 2017, the Institute had 4,695 members, up 6% on the same period last year. Fellows numbered 2,254 (+5%); Associates 676 (+7%) and Students 1,593 (+7%).
To simplify our 15 membership categories and fees, Council supported a review of these and asked the Audit and Risk Council Committee to look at the principles that should be taken into account. The introduction of a late payment fee as of this year, similar to practices by other organisations, was approved by Council in order to reduce the significant workload involved in chasing up membership subscription payments.
Reviews and updates
Convenor of the Disciplinary Scheme Review Committee, John Trowbridge, briefed Council on the new Scheme proposal. It will be circulated for approval by Council, following some further discussion
The 2018 AGM will be held at 8.00am on Tuesday 22 May, Hilton Hotel Grand Ballroom, Level 3, 488 George Street, Sydney.
Public Policy Practice Committee Convenor Michael Rice briefed Council on the extensive activities of the committee. Notably, a working group has been set up to consider outcomes from the Royal Commission into Financial Services.
Life Insurance and Wealth Management Practice Committee Convenor Ilan Leas advised Council about the Committee’s focus on restructuring its subcommittees and working groups to put a greater focus on output and timeframes.
Professional Standards
Here’s a summary of the decisions that were made regarding professional standards:
Practice Guideline 499.04 Accounting for Superannuation and Long Service Leave Obligations Under AASB 119 will be withdrawn, with effect 31 March 2018; and
Practice Guideline 3: Actuarial Practice in Relation to AASB 119 Employee Benefits is approved with effect on actuarial services performed on or after 1 April 2018.
Practice Guidelines PG 699.00 (Definitions), PG 699.01 (Pricing and Financial Projections for Private Health Insurers) and PG 699.02 (Valuation of Health Insurance Liabilities) are approved with effect from 31 March 2018.
Feedback please!
If you would like to provide some feedback, please contact one of your Councillors below:
John Evans (President)
Nicolette Rubinsztein (Senior Vice President)
Hoa Bui (Vice President)
Andrew Brown
Ann-Maree Cook
Andrew Doughman
Jefferson Gibbs
Annette King
Bill Konstantinidis
Michael O’Neill
Chao Qiao
Barry Rafe
CPD: Actuaries Institute Members can claim two CPD points for every hour of reading articles on Actuaries Digital.
