As long as companies continue to focus on offsetting financial risk, job security and career growth for actuaries is assured. Innovation is creating more and different opportunities for candidates who are open to change and willing to expand their statistical knowledge to new applications. The increasing competition between insurance companies and consulting firms will continue to provide a fertile landscape for job growth and expansion into 2016 and beyond.
Property & Casualty
P&C insurance companies have been at the forefront of advanced statistical techniques and predictive modeling. Along with consulting companies, large personal and commercial lines carriers are advancing the field of actuarial science by adding actuaries with stronger statistical modeling capabilities. Programs like SAS, R, and SQL are beginning to play a larger part as organizations are finding new ways to leverage the endless supply of consumer data.
Health
The health field has seen some enormous growth over the last several years due in part to healthcare reform. Whether working for an insurance carrier or for a consulting firm, the need for actuaries with pricing, product development, or risk aversion skills are highly desirable. Specific areas of expansion are centered on the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid and Medicare. These areas are also seeing an increased need for actuaries with advanced statistical programming skills.
Retirement
The retirement field is growing, but at a much slower pace than either Health or P&C. Its no secret Defined Benefit plans are giving way to the more popular D/C model, but opportunities still exist with the largest need in consulting, centered around plan transition and augmentation. The retirement field has also seen a small increase in hiring around ancillary retirement businesses such as Longevity and Risk Transfer.
Life & Annuities
The life and annuity market has experienced slow but steady growth over 2015, a trend which is expected to continue into 2016. Part of the reason for slower than normal growth stems from the lack of innovation, something insurance carriers are fighting hard to remedy. Product development roles will continue to provide opportunity across the industry.
With thirty years of experience in predictive modeling placement, Smith Hanley Associates can help you expand your company’s actuarial skill set or advise you on your personal development. We would love to help you with your hiring needs or your job search. 2016 should be an exciting and innovative year for the actuarial science field.
Rory Hauser, Actuarial Practice Lead, rhauser@smithhanley.com
Annie Coolidge, Executive Recruiter, acoolidge@smithhanley.com
203-319-4300