Yes, in what will be my first foray into blog writing, and likely a collector’s edition in years to come, I am going to open my new blog series by talking about the dichotomy that is actuaries and creativity – and how bringing them together is vital for innovation. While data modelling and creative flair may not seem like natural bedfellows, I believe the preconceptions of the actuarial trade sells many of us short.

Not just data crunchers

Actuaries are often treated as the mushrooms of the insurance world. We flourish when we are left alone in a dark corner of the office to happily crunch our numbers. Or so the perception goes. Confined to the back-office tasks of data analysis and risk assessment, in many organisations, I and my fellow spreadsheet junkies’ roles would be narrow, the parameters clear, the potential untapped and the contribution which actuaries and data modellers can make to the strength and evolution of our market unrealised.

I am the Head of Pricing and Analytics. I lead a team of actuaries and data scientists. In some organisations that would be all I do. But, not at Tokio Marine Kiln. Company promotion achieved; I will now carry on.

I can bring my passions to work. And, I have the opportunity to execute ideas and take them to fruition. I have the freedom and empowerment to do creative things. My team and I do all of the things you would expect from our job titles, but we also do a lot more.

Cyber hackathon

Well that all sounds very nice, but “can we have an example”, I hear many of you cry. Sure. A few weeks ago, we ran a three-day hackathon where we cobbled together the bones of an AI-powered end-to-end underwriting model for cyber underwriters to better understand risks and price them accordingly. The ambition was lofty—as one participant described it —to create the ‘RMS of the cyber world’ - no mean feat.

We closed down a section of our office and over three days people from across our business and some of our partners, built a tool which we will be using in the near future. Why was I there? Because it is an area in which I am interested. Hackathons and app design are not in my job description but that doesn’t matter. And, by removing the guardrails for actuaries and professions across our business we are the better for it.

Delivering the results of the cyber hackathon--to a rapt audience!

Bringing innovation to life

I like to explore the big projects that will determine how we as a society address the biggest challenges we face For example, social impact initiatives that are too big or too unproven to initially attract commercial investment. Insurance will be key to taking these initiatives from idea to reality and all of us at Tokio Marine Kiln, have license to look at how we can facilitate them.

Actuaries are one of the few skillsets which insurance does not struggle to attract. Yet when we join, we can sometimes be curtailed. Typically, these smart people are instructed to focus on the numbers, the data. This is an opportunity missed and many of my counterparts will not have the opportunity to develop fully. But not at Tokio Marine Kiln.

So, would the creative actuaries please stand up? Because we want to hear from you.