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Colin Wilson, new president of the IFoA, talks to Richard Purcell and Stephen Hyams about his varied career, becoming president and the importance of thought leadership We meet Colin Wilson at the London offices of the IFoA in the run up to his term as president. Friendly and assured, he describes how his actuarial career had an unconventional start. Armed with a maths degree from Cambridge University, he initially spent 10 years in operational research within the defence industry. He summarises his change of career succinctly: “It was the time of the so-called ‘peace dividend’, when people thought the defence industry was going into a decline.” It seemed the right time for him to move on to life as an actuary. A decision, he says, he has never regretted. After joining Prudential, initially on the life insurance side, he moved to risk consulting at Barrie & Hibbert before joining the Government Actuary’s Department seven years ago, where he now resides as the deputy government actuary. Looking back, Wilson says: “It is fair to say I have had a varied career, which has been great fun.” This leads us neatly on to our first topic of conversation – wider fields. He firmly believes: “We are better at moving into non-traditional roles than a lot of people think. What brings this home to me is the number of people who start their conversation by saying ‘I am not a typical actuary’. To some extent, it reinforces
the stereotype of someone working in traditional fields. I think there are far more people working outside these areas and being more innovative than that would imply. If I could, I would ban the phrase ‘I am not a typical actuary’,” he says. Referring to the IFoA’s vision, he continues: “It does not say the work of actuaries has to be insurance, pensions, investments or health and care.” When it comes to driving greater activity in non-traditional areas, Wilson believes that we have to be prepared to move out of our comfort zones, asserting: “I am a strong believer in the portability of the actuarial skill set.” In addressing some of the potential barriers to this, we begin with regulation. Wilson agrees that “it provides a greater overhead”, admitting: “There are some things it will not be worth employing an actuary to do, because actuaries are highly skilled, and highly paid. Clearly, the upside of regulation is the quality and reassurance that goes with it, and the value that brings.” He continues: “It is undoubtedly true that actuaries may need to take a pay cut when moving into other areas,” noting his own experience of taking a 50% pay cut when he made the move to begin his actuarial career. “It is a reason why it’s easier for younger members of the profession to think about these things than those already wellestablished in their careers. I see the younger members of the profession as key resources that we have in achieving a broader spread more generally.” He firmly believes: “If you have the right sort of consulting mindset and say ‘what I am really here to do is to add value through advice based on judgment’, you can apply what you already know in other areas quite readily without losing too much of the value in the process. In practice, I don’t think the hurdles are big, albeit there may be a short-term step back for some individuals. On a net present value basis, it should be a net
gain. So my advice is take the long view – that’s what we, as actuaries, should be doing.”
Route to the top On his route to becoming president, Wilson explains he has long been active in the profession, “immediately on qualifying, my boss at the time suggested I might like to join the Investment Committee”. Personally, he has thoroughly enjoyed the experience of volunteering and found it helpful in his career. “That is why I have continued to do it,” he says. As president-elect, he explains: “You join a presidential team of three and, together with Derek Cribb, the chief executive, it forms the leadership team of the profession. You spend one year each as president-elect, president and immediate past president. The international links are also on a three-yearly basis, so I cover China and South-East Asia, which I have been doing since becoming president-elect and will continue for a further two years, so that gives you time to build up some relationships and actually get to know the people abroad, and for them to know you.” With the presidency come additional responsibilities, such as chairing Council, and the opportunity to set the agenda through the presidential theme. For Wilson, his interest in research meant that the theme of ‘thought leadership’ was a natural one. He believes it is closely linked with one of our core values – progress. Under this theme, Wilson sets out three objectives: “First, to be seen as a dynamic and forward-looking profession, so people can see actuaries have something exciting about them. Next is for people to be demonstrably talking about ideas that have come from within the profession. The third stage is when they proactively come to us saying: ‘we know you can help because of your forward-looking thinking’.” A key part of the thought leadership theme
OF PROGRESS PHOTOGRAPHY: TOM CAMPBELL
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July 2016 • THE ACTUARY 13 www.theactuary.com
28/06/2016 11:40