Society of Actuaries

The Society of Actuaries is the research, educational and professional organization for actuaries. Also known by its acronym, SOA, the organization seeks to foster a high standard of conduct and competence for practicing actuaries. The SOA provides basic and advanced actuarial education as well as professional development for practicing actuaries. The Society of Actuaries also conducts research into best practices as well as creative solutions for complex problems such as determining the potential impact on health insurers of a health pandemic. The SOA’s stated vision is to promote actuaries to be the leading professionals in the “measurement and management of risk.”

SOA Offers Consumer-Oriented Content for Retirement Decisions

The Society of Actuaries (SOA) just published a series of short whitepapers or “briefs” that focus on some of the major decisions that are encountered by retirees.

This is a great resource for consumers who are seeking objective content produced by experts.

The Society has clearly made efforts to create content that is accessible to a non professional audience. The briefs are clear, short and focus on consumer-relevant topics such as “when should I retire.”

There are 11 briefs, and the topics include:

SOA Paper Examines Retirement Income Reality Gap

A recent paper sponsored by the Society of actuaries provides an impressive and comprehensive review of retirement income-related research.

The paper, titled Research and Reality – A Literature Review on Drawing Down Retirement Financial Savings, can be accessed by clicking here.

Anna Rappaport on Annuities and Planning for the Long Term

Anna Rappaport is widely recognized as a leading expert on retirement systems, workforce issues, the impact of changing demographics and women’s retirement security.

After a successful career with Mercer Consulting, Anna founded a consulting firm that specializes in strategies for improving retirement systems. Anna is a recipient of numerous awards and is a past President of the Society of Actuaries.

Lack of Financial Advisors Serving Mass Market

There is a factoid that stuck in my head after reading the recent paper on retirement income sponsored by the Society of Actuaries.

The paper references a finding from a survey of financial advisors (I think from 2004):

Retirement Planning Research from Society of Actuaries

There is a great research report that was just published by the Society of Actuaries.

Click here to access the report.

The bottom line: retirement planning for most people continues to be an ad hoc process at best. A more cynical take is the the general state of retirement planning in the United States is a complete mess.

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