BWD - Pensions Actuarial Market Update

JUNE 2021 PENSIONS ACTUARIAL MARKET UPDATE A RECRUITER'S TAKE ON THE PENSIONS ACTUARIAL MARKET & THE CHALLENGES A MODERN-DAY ACTUARY FACES.

CHALLENGES IN THE PENSIONS SECTOR The Pensions sector has its well-publicised challenges; It is important to see this as an opportunity to broaden the simple fact that the media and people are taking more your horizons and skillset and reshape the future of of an interest in pensions is the first and most important pensions provision. step to turn these challenges into opportunity. Interestingly from a recruitment angle over the last 2 The last 12 months and the economic impact they have years, I have seen a trend change; more commonly you had across the globe has seen clients closely assess the would see pensions actuaries move into life or financial implications and risks associated with their insurance as it was considered an exciting change and pensions funds and the value pensions actuaries had you still do on occasion – that will never stop. (now I do not think anyone has ever really questioned the impact the pensions actuary has within its own “bubble”) However, what I am now seeing is those shifting away but now more so than ever, people are aware what a from GI and Life into Pensions because actuaries are Pensions Actuary does and how much responsibility they recognising opportunities to shine within a very topical hold. and visible sector. The more traditional roles we have become used to are I anticipate this will only gather pace in the years to evolving, as more and more final salary schemes close come. The stigma that “pensions are boring” seems less this is going to a natural knock-on effect – indeed, the and less accurate by the day – this is down to more and “pensions are dead” mantra I hear on occasion is a lazy more people understanding the complexities that exist, interpretation of how the role as we used to see it has and the opportunities continuous change can drive. changed. 01 | PENSIONS ACTUARIAL MARKET UPDATE

THE FUTURE OF PENSIONS Anyone got a crystal ball? Actuaries are going down a multitude of different career paths, and more commonly combining them. Whilst your buy-out or longevity specialists still exist; it is more common practice to have those skillsets as part of an actuary’s armoury instead of its entirety. This ability to advise clients more holistically feels like a more complete service offering than teams of siloed specialists. I am seeing a demand for those who are less technical but have strong management skills, those who enjoy the fast- paced nature of project management alongside the sales aspect of the role which in turn is an indicator of the proposed roads firms are thinking of travelling. I suspect these individual specialist teams will always have a place but within a more fluid capacity across all actuarial functions. 02 | PENSIONS ACTUARIAL MARKET UPDATE

SOMETHING FOR THE GRADUATES… Graduates now have a tough decision to make; the comfort of working from home 3 or 4 days a week or the arduous commute into the offices which can cost time and money. Whilst in the short term the former may sound very, very appealing, I implore them to seriously consider the latter. Actuarial techniques are continuously evolving and being applied in more sophisticated ways – the best way to learn is first to watch and then to do, you cannot watch whilst sat at home behind a monitor. Your clients expect you to have in–depth understanding of your specialism and whilst sitting and passing your exams will give you a solid grounding, it will pale in comparison to watching how your more seasoned colleagues go about implementing ideas and interacting with others. Communicating issues and providing solutions is an art that a modern-day actuary must learn and master – some will tell you it is a natural personality trait that cannot be taught but this is fundamentally untrue. It can be taught but only to those who are willing to completely immerse themselves in the Pensions world: you can’t communicate and advise about a topic you have limited understanding about, particularly in an age where the answer to a question is only a couple of clicks away. Actuaries earn their corn by interpreting the numbers these days, rather than in the production of the numbers themselves. 03 | PENSIONS ACTUARIAL MARKET UPDATE

THE MARKET – RECRUITMENT Pensions Actuaries have usually always been in hot demand; anything from 2years+ up to 3 years post qualified typically is where the bulk of the consultancies typically recruit. That changed in March 2020; instead of growth, firms focus switched to retention and management of workflow in a new working from home model, many of which seamlessly moved into given Pensions Actuaries typically did not work from the office 5 days a week. The slowdown in recruitment affected graduates the hardest, with many struggling to find a role coming out of university, thankfully in 2021 the sun is now shining, and we are in full flow. The trends now are less so for “specialist actuaries” but for more rounded individuals who are comfortable being uncomfortable; whether that is becoming more client-facing, getting involved within investment, buy out, longevity or de-risking; the need for a more complete actuary is at the top of the recruitment agenda. 04 | PENSIONS ACTUARIAL MARKET UPDATE

THE MARKET – RECRUITMENT It is critical now more so than ever that actuaries push the boundaries and develop a 360-degree view and veer away from the safety net of “this is what I’ve always done”. From a financial perspective, actuaries are less inclined to make a move that gives them purely the greatest financial gain; greater focus is weighted towards the mid/long term opportunities to develop throughout an organisation. Let’s face it, if you a Part Qualified Actuary with 9 exam passes, what you are on in the short term will pale in comparison to what you could be on in 3 – 4 years’ time, but only if you are in a company that allows that progression to take place. Counteroffers are rife, they always have been, the war on talent hasn’t changed. Opportunities are everywhere across the UK. Whether it’s working from home or in the office, the iron is hot, and long may that continue. 05 | PENSIONS ACTUARIAL MARKET UPDATE

GET IN TOUCH TO FIND OUT MORE H . McNeill HARRY MCNEILL Senior Consultant | Pensions Actuarial & DC 07983 855320 [email protected] HEAD OFFICE LONDON OFFICE BWD Search & Selection Ltd. BWD Search & Selection Ltd. St. James House Fox Court 28 Park Place, Leeds 4 Gray’s Inn Road LS1 2SP WC1X 8HN 0113 274 3000 [email protected] @BWDSearch /company/bwd-search-and-selection