SOA Podcasts - Society of Actuaries

Mark Shemtob, FSA, MAAA, CFP®, sits down with Dario Fusato, Co-Founder of Savvly. Savvly has registered its new security offering with the Securities Exchange Commission. Mark and Dario's conversation includes a description of the security, why it was developed, where it will be available and future related securities.

Host Danny Moore, FSA, MAAA, CERA and guests John Nolan and Marc Marion from Octaviant Financial discuss the challenges of specialized high-cost drug treatments, their efficacy, and potential vehicles to manage the unique risks involved with these treatments.

The Young Professional Advisory Council's Justin Le speaks with Gouri Kumaran, AVP at Kuvare, about her challenges and triumphs as a career changer into the actuarial profession and her experiences along the way.

In this episode, host Ankit Nanda, FSA, MAAA, FCA, speaks with Dr. Mei Sum Chan, Head of Medical Analytics, R&D at Pacific Life Re, about the science of biological aging and what it means for actuaries. The conversation covers how biomarkers of aging are measured, what real-world data can (and cannot) tell us about health and longevity, and how these developments are beginning to shape actuarial work in health and longevity risk.

The Young Professional Advisory Council's Adam Krompiewski speaks with Cristi-Alice Danielson, Director of Individual Products & Pricing at Wawanesa Insurance, about building a unique actuarial career with a smaller company in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and the lessons she has learned along the way.

Host Ankit Nanda, FSA, MAAA, FCA, speaks with Paul Skrtich, ASA, MAAA, ACIA, Senior Vice President, Accident and Health at OdysseyRe, about how health insurance looks from the reinsurer's seat, where the tail of the claims distribution drives the economics. The conversation covers lasers on known high-cost claimants, emerging cost drivers from skin substitutes to GLP-1s and cell and gene therapies, and how ACOs and provider-payer alignment of interests reshape the risk reaching the excess layers.

Jeff Dunn, President and CEO of Cooperative Benefits Group, joins host Ankit Nanda, FSA, MAAA, FCA, to map the U.S. payer landscape and the forces reshaping it. Drawing on a career that runs from managed care pharmacy into benefits consulting, he sets out how employers, health plans, pharmacy benefit managers, providers, and consultants fit together, where incentives genuinely align and where they only appear to, and what the fiduciary and transparency environment means in practice. The conversation closes on where the market is heading over the next three to five years and what health actuaries should do differently in trend, pricing, and plan design work.

Cori Uccello, FSA, MAAA, FCA, MPP joins host Ankit Nanda, FSA, MAAA, FCA for a tour of the U.S. health insurance coverage landscape, including Medicare, Medicaid, and the ACA marketplaces. Drawing on a career as the senior health fellow at the American Academy of Actuaries, MedPAC commissioner, and Congressional Budget Office panel of health advisers member, she discusses how actuarial analysis enters policy debates, where it carries weight, and what actuaries should understand about the programs shaping the market they price in.

Coaching Actuaries has become a familiar name to actuarial candidates around the world—but how did it all begin? In this episode, we sit down with Dave Kester, founder of Coaching Actuaries, to discuss the journey of building the company, the evolution of actuarial education, and what the future may hold for aspiring actuaries.

What happens when actuaries move beyond the model and into the heart of business strategy? In this episode of The Strategic Pivot, Jundie Wei, FSA, MAAA, and FP&A leader John Visicaro explore how actuaries are becoming essential partners in forecasting, capital management, and executive decision-making. From translating complex assumptions into business impact to answering the critical "so what?" behind the numbers, this conversation highlights the growing role of actuaries in shaping the future of finance.

Young Professional Advisory Council's Chris Pellegrino discusses working remotely as an actuary with Chris Olechowski, Partner at Actuarial Resources Corporation. Listen in to hear about the evolution of remote work in the actuarial field through from the perspective of an actuary in leadership.

The SOA is evolving – and so is the way members connect. This episode explores the shift from the traditional SOA Section model to a new community engagement approach, unpacking what it means for members across the organization and, in particular, for those in the Life and Annuity space. Whether you've been an SOA member for decades or are just getting started, tune in to hear how this change opens up new ways to collaborate, grow, and shape the profession.

Host Ryan Kiefer, ASA, MAAA speaks with guests Ryan Holt, FSA, MAAA and Kelly Rabin, FSA, MAAA

Relevant Links:

Introducing SOA Communities

Life and Annuities Community

AI is changing every industry—and insurance is no exception. In this episode, we discuss how artificial intelligence could reshape actuarial work, risk management, and the future of the insurance industry, while also exploring how AI is affecting our personal lives and everyday decision-making.

The Young Professional Advisory Council's Ben Tolzmann sits down with Doug Norris of the SOA's fellowship education department to discuss the recent changes to the FSA pathway and how the transition has been going through 2 exam cycles.

Young Professional Advisory Council's Jake Davis discusses exam education and career development with Eddie Smith, Director of SOA Exams at The Infinite Actuary and FSA exam instructor. Learn about Eddie's transition from practicing actuary to exam educator, effective study strategies for FSA exams, and how exam preparation has and will continue to evolve.

This episode of the Society of Actuaries' Professional Development Edge podcast features Dave Dillon, Senior Vice President and Principal at Lewis & Ellis; entrepreneur and founder of Cost Plus Drugs, Mark Cuban; and Jon Forster, the SOA's Director of PD Learning and Content Design.

Together, they explore entrepreneurship, artificial intelligence, and the evolving healthcare landscape. The conversations move from what it takes to be successful in business, the current healthcare landscape, and the state of AI in Actuarial work. Mark shares the origin and mission behind Cost Plus Drugs, underscoring the critical role of price transparency and trust in improving healthcare access and affordability.

Listeners will gain practical insights and forward-looking perspectives relevant to actuaries, business leaders, and anyone interested in the future of healthcare and innovation.

Contributors: Mark Cuban; Dave Dillon, FSA, FCA, MAAA; Jon Forster, ASA, MAAA

Join us for a discussion about the SOA and why you should care about the SOA, its purpose, and its strategic plan! In this episode of the Young Professional Advisory Council podcast, YPAC member Carolyn Ellis and guest Gabi Dieguez, SOA board member, discuss the SOA as a professional organization, the roles of employees, members, and volunteers, and dive deep into why the SOA is important to us as actuaries and the critical role volunteers play in the SOA's success now and into the future.

Anders Larson, FSA,MAAA and Shea Parkes, FSA, MAAA provide a clear, approachable look at how modern AI systems really think, act, and respond. They dive into the hidden machinery behind today's GenAI applications – exploring how agent frameworks guide LLMs through structured, choose‑your‑own‑adventure–style decision loops. Using practical examples from Microsoft Copilot and actuarial workflows, they break down how middleware, tool calls, and general context transform raw models into useful business assistants.

The podcast features Jon Forster interviewing Aree Bly, founder of Alignment Ally and author of "The Sustainable Brain," focusing on the importance of developing comfort with ambiguity for actuaries and other professionals. Aree shares practical examples from her career, such as handling ambiguous data formats in healthcare analytics, and discusses strategies for determining when work is "good enough" without sacrificing quality. The conversation covers tools like the RACI framework for clarifying roles and responsibilities, and offers advice for navigating ambiguity arising from organizational changes. The episode emphasizes the impact of ambiguity on career sustainability and personal well-being, encouraging proactive communication, expectation-setting, and self-awareness.

Contributors: Aree Bly; Jon Forster, ASA, MAAA

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About Us:

With roots dating back to 1889, the Society of Actuaries (SOA) is the world's largest actuarial professional organization with more than 32,000 actuaries as members. Serving as the SOA's research arm, the SOA Research Institute provides objective, data-driven research bringing together tried and true practices and future-focused approaches to address societal challenges and your business needs. It provides trusted knowledge, extensive experience and new technologies to help effectively identify, predict and manage risks.

● Learn more about Influence and other engaging topics relevant for actuaries on the Professional Development Edge Subscription product. https://www.soa.org/prof-dev/pd-edge/

Exploring Fraud, Waste & Abuse (FWA) in U.S. healthcare—key trends, AI's impact, and how actuaries and data professionals can drive smarter detection and prevention.