Council met virtually for its second meeting of the sessional year on 24 November 2021. The day before, Council had met virtually for its annual strategy day.
At the strategy day, Council discussed the progress that has been made against the strategy agreed in 2020 and the key things that need to happen in 2022 to continue to move it forward (bit.ly/IFoA_Strategy). Council also took the opportunity to begin discussions about the IFoA’s membership model to ensure it is fit for the future, and to input into the horizon-scanning work being carried out across the organisation to inform strategic thinking.
At the full meeting we focused on the areas of activity that are under way to deliver the IFoA’s strategic objectives and improve member experience. We received an update from our CEO Stephen Mann on the projects and initiatives in place to increase member engagement levels, including the launch of our Banking Pathway (bit.ly/IFoA_Banking) and the Frank Redington Prizes (bit.ly/Redington_Prizes). We will continue to keep you updated on all we are doing to improve the experience of our members.
Management Board chair Grahame Stott updated us on the ongoing review of the effectiveness of the IFoA’s Practice Boards.
He set out how we propose to implement what we have learned from the two pilot Digital Communities (Banking and Data Science) to enhance the value that the Practice Boards deliver to members.
Detailed recommendations in this area will be presented to Council’s next meeting in March 2022, and we will let you know the outcome as soon as we can.
We also heard from Kartina Tahir Thomson, Council member and chair of the IFoA Foundation, on the work the Foundation is doing to support actuaries across the world. If you would like to find out more about the Foundation, or donate to it, visit bit.ly/IFoA_Foundation
To support our purpose to ‘champion and embody the benefits of a globally diverse and inclusive profession’, Council approved the IFoA’s new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Policy. We hope the actions outlined in this policy will mean the IFoA is recognised as a leader in this area, supporting the actuarial profession to attract a diverse range of talent. Look out for more information in the coming weeks.
On the regulatory front, we received an update on the UK government’s review of actuarial regulation and discussed the IFoA’s position in relation to that review. We also explored the findings of an independent review into events at another professional membership body, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, and what the IFoA can learn from it. In addition, we received our first annual report from the IFoA’s Regulatory Board following changes to our regulatory governance arrangements, which Council agreed last year.
Council’s next meeting will take place on 10 March 2022. The minutes of our meetings are available at bit.ly/IFoA_council and you can contact us at [email protected]
