When Leah Evans first applied for a job as an actuary, she wasn’t sure what to expect.
Today, as a partner with global professional services firm Aon, she’s discovered that what she should expect is variety and – sometimes – the unexpected.
“I've never been a scheme actuary or a traditional investment actuary,” she says. “I've straddled different practice areas throughout my career, so it’s been very varied.
“Even my current role has a lot of strands. On the client side, I help trustees and sponsors who want to move their pension scheme to insurers. On the people side, I'm involved in leadership and management, formal and informal mentoring.
“On the business side I work in development, identifying opportunities and preparing proposals and pitches. I also sit on the professional standards group. We review policies and standards, and act as the go-to people for actuaries in the business if they've got a potential dilemma.
“Plus I'm quite involved in intellectual capital development, looking at the ideas we're bringing to our clients and how we present them, participating in some of the marketing, presenting at conferences, webinars and so on.”
Despite juggling her many roles and life as a working mum of young children, Leah also finds time to be actively involved with the profession outside her job.
“I was the chair of the IFoA pensions board for a couple of years, and I sit on the exec committee of the CMI,” she says. “But it's the things I do directly for the IFoA that have given me opportunities I never expected when I first started as an actuary.
“I’ve given evidence to the Work and Pensions Select Committee more than once. One of those sessions was following the gilt crisis in September 2022 when pensions were suddenly front-page news. There was a massive focus on what the pensions profession and industry had done or not done.
“Contributing to that discussion was really interesting, and something I'd never have thought I’d be doing when I first applied for actuarial jobs.”
Another unexpected benefit, Leah adds, was the international aspect. “I spent a long time with Mercer,” she says. “That gave me the chance to work in New York for a couple of years.
“The opportunity for international travel at Mercer interested me. But so did working for global organisations.
“I've done a lot of projects with global clients and colleagues. Again, that's perhaps something you don't necessarily realise you’ll be able to do when you choose an actuarial career.”
“It’s a very high bar, and it’s helpful to have a way to identify those who have passed that bar. Being chartered is a way to do that.” – Leah Evans, Chartered Actuary (Fellow)
One of those projects involved supporting a multinational firm that was splitting its business, and had to find a way to split pension liabilities or find ways of removing them from the balance sheet.
“My role was to project manage and coordinate specialist teams across different countries,” Leah says. “I had to be the bridge between the actuaries, the experts on the ground and the client. It was almost like being a translator.
“Say we were looking at Brazil. I didn't know anything about pensions there. But I could apply my actuarial knowledge and work with the people there, then translate that to the client.
“In the end we separated the companies without pensions being an issue. That was the ultimate goal.”
International working has highlighted to Leah the differences between actuarial qualifications and working practices around the world, and the importance of differentiating between them.
“There's quite a bit of variation,” she says. “I feel the IFoA is leading the way for the global actuarial community in its qualification standards.
“It’s a very high bar, and it’s helpful to have a way to identify those who have passed that bar. Being chartered is a way to do that.
“It implies you've done something to get the designation. It signifies the education and qualification you've earned. It distinguishes you among actuarial professionals around the world. And that’s something anyone who’s earned IFoA qualifications has a right to expect.”
We’ll be sharing member stories from around the world on a regular basis, so keep an eye out for updates. If you’ve chosen to adopt Chartered Actuary status, or if you’ve employed an actuary who is helping to transform your organisation, we’d love to hear from you.
