The IFoA is a member organisation, so it’s important that we find out what our membership wants from us – which is why we recently surveyed all members. Many thanks to everyone who participated. The feedback that you have given us will help to shape what the IFoA does for its members, for the industries in which they work, and for wider society.
As I said in my presidential address, I believe it is important that the IFoA is a ‘learning society’: we must learn as an organisation if we are to survive, and must support our members’ learning if they are to be successful. It was heartening to find out from the survey that what our membership most values is the delivery of the actuarial education and lifelong learning, keeping pace with your businesses’ and organisations’ needs. Judging by the proportion of employers that pay the IFoA membership fees for our members, this learning activity is valued by them, too, which is really encouraging.
And there’s a lot going on in the learning area. The IFoA Learning Change Programme is considering new pathways to Fellowship (following on from the introduction of the banking pathway), as well as recommendations for a new online delivery platform for our exams, which will enable us to implement objective-based assessment. It is also carrying out ongoing horizon-scanning, which is going a long way to ensure the IFoA achieves being a learning society. Finally, I’m thrilled that the Climate Risk and Sustainability course is starting its first session this month.
The member survey is one of many ways in which the IFoA can learn about how best it can be the voice of our members and support them throughout their careers – not least by providing the learning opportunities that you value.
Louise Pryor is the president of the| Institute and Faculty of Actuaries
