The Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) has announced that Louise Pryor has begun work as its new president after taking over from Tan Suee Chieh.
Pryor has been part of the IFoA's presidential team for the past year as president-elect, and has worked as an actuary, software engineer and academic.
She became a fellow of the Institute of Actuaries in 1987, and has a degree in mathematics from the University of Cambridge, and a PhD in artificial intelligence from Northwestern University in the US.
Pryor is also chair of the London Climate Change Partnership, and a non-executive director at the Ecology Building Society, and became a a fellow of the Institute of Environmental Management & Assessment (IEMA) in 2019.
“It’s a great honour to be chosen as the next president of the IFoA,” Pryor said. “We are living through a period of immense change which presents both challenge and opportunity.
“I want to build on the valuable work of my predecessors to ensure that the IFoA can survive and be sustainable. I believe the best way to do this is for actuaries and the IFoA to keep learning.
“Over the next year, my presidency will be focussed on supporting members to develop their skills so they can adapt to change in existing areas of work as well as move into new areas.
“I began my actuarial career 40 years ago at a time when climate-related risk was simply not on the horizon. I have believed for some years that this risk is the biggest problem facing the world and have watched climate-related risk become mainstream and even mandated by regulators in many countries.
“Assessing the impacts of climate-related risk is a relatively new field for actuaries and underscores the need to keep learning and adapting our skill sets. We already offer a broad range of resources to support our members in this area, and are constantly extending it.
“I am excited to announce that a pilot credential in climate risk is underway and we hope to be able to offer the full course later this year.”
Pryor was director of actuarial standards at the Financial Reporting Council, where she led the development of the Technical Actuarial Standards.
She has practised as an independent consultant in the areas of software risk and sustainability, and has worked on financial modelling for social security and pensions reform in a number of emerging economies.
“The IFoA’s Learning Change Programme will gather pace this year, aiming to modernise, deepen and broaden our actuarial qualifications and lifelong learning support,” Pryor continued. “We are reviewing the pre-associateship syllabus, and aim to broaden the portfolio of routes to fellowship.
“We are continuing to invest in our online exam platforms, and are working to ensure that lifelong learning meets the changing needs of our fellows and associates who cannot rely only on the skills tested at the start of their careers.
“Adapting to the many changes around us will be a learning process for both individuals and for the IFoA, but our shared goal will help to ensure the relevance and sustainability of the profession.”
For a copy of Pryor’s presidential address, please contact IFoA media relations manager Sonia Sequeira: [email protected]
Image credit: Peter Searle
Author: Chris Seekings