Hymans Robertson, Mazars and Spence & Partners are among the first organisations to receive Quality Assurance Scheme (QAS) accreditation from the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA).
Hymans Robertson, Mazars and Spence & Partners are among the first organisations to receive Quality Assurance Scheme (QAS) accreditation from the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA).
The QAS is a voluntary scheme for institutions that employ one or more members of the IFoA. It has been established for firms that wish to promote effective quality assurance at an organisational level, and indirectly, promote confidence in the quality of actuarial work.
The IFoA said the 22 organisations had all passed a rigorous independent assessment of their working environment, culture and procedures.
Speaking at a ceremony in London, IFoA president Fiona Morrison said: "For some time we've been conscious of where our members' abilities to uphold their professional responsibilities sits.
"It doesn't just rest on their personal integrity and competence. It's also heavily reliant on the culture and environment in which they operate."
Tim Bateman, partner at Mazars, said: "It is a recognition of the standards and approaches taken by our whole team and should give our clients increased confidence in the quality of our work with them."
Martin Potter, partner at Hymans Robertson, said the achievement would give clients independent assurance of the quality of the services provided by the firm.
He added: "The QAS recognises that the quality of actuarial services is contingent not just on the professional integrity of individual actuaries, but also the quality, culture and environment of the firm they represent."
Scott Cameron, actuarial function head at Spence & Partners, said: "Quality assurance is a central part of our ethos and the principles of QAS fit very well with our overall strategy.
"We wanted to be at the forefront of this new initiative and it is an honour to be amongst the first tranche of organisations to receive this independent recognition that demonstrates the procedures we have in place deliver quality outcomes for our clients."
Organisations accredited to QAS:
Aon Hewitt - Retirement & Investment Consulting Business
Atkin Trustees
Barnett Waddingham
BBS Consultants and Actuaries
Buck Consultants - Retirement Practice
Capita Employee Benefits & Capita Employee Benefits (Consulting)
Deloitte, Deloitte MCS and Deloitte Total Reward & Benefits - Actuarial, Reward and Analytics Function
First Actuarial
H&C Consulting Actuaries
Hughes Price Walker
Hymans Robertson - Investment, Actuarial Benefits and Consultancy, Risk Modelling and Consulting practices
JLT Benefit Solutions - Trustee, Corporate and Investment Consulting divisions
Lane Clark & Peacock
Mazars
Mercer
Milliman and Milliman Financial Strategies - Life & Financial Services Consulting; Property & Casualty Insurance Consulting; and Financial Risk Management practices
Premier Pensions Management - Actuarial Function
Punter Southall & Punter Southall Investment Consulting
Quantum Actuarial
P-Solve Investments - River and Mercantile Derivatives division
Spence and Partners
Towers Watson