The very first actuarial conference ASymposium was made possible after eight months of preparation, organised by the Sunway Actuarial & Financial Excellence (SAFE). Themed “Pioneering Actuarial Revolution”, this event sought to serve as an extraordinary platform to expose the participants to the technological revolution in the actuarial industry. 10 experienced speakers were invited for keynote sessions, plenary talks and panel sessions. ASymposium also held a Case Study Challenge with its strategic partner, Great Eastern Life Assurance (Malaysia) Berhad. 

Professor Ho Chee Kit, Dean of School of Mathematical Sciences (SMS), addressed that the world is full of uncertainties due to the advancement of technology during his welcoming speech. The role of actuary has become more sophisticated now. Hence, he advised the audience to learn, use and share their knowledge in order to cope with the ever-changing environment.

“If you make money, you might not make meaning,” Dr Elizabeth Lee, Chief Executive Officer of Sunway Education Group quoted Guy Kawasaki to remind the audience to avoid letting success and money ruin our lives by staying humble. She urged the audience to be concerned about the issues around them and to make a positive impact within the community.

The symposium continued with keynote sessions, panel sessions and plenary talks. In one of the plenary talks, Nicholas Yeo, founder of Nicholas Actuarial Solutions, gave a talk about the IBNR Robot, an Artificial Intelligence that helps insurance companies complete menial tasks within seconds. During the question and answer session, many were curious about the issue of unemployment due to the possible implementation of inquired but not responded (IBNR) which then led Yeo to answering, “There are still many tasks that require human judgement which the Artificial Intelligence can not yet achieve.”

The case study challenge was divided into two categories: Life Insurance and General Insurance. Participants were given 10 days to analyse the questions and prepare presentation slides. The slides were submitted to Great Eastern to shortlist the teams during the conference. Six teams for each category competed on the event day by presenting to the panel of judges from Great Eastern. 

A total of four teams from BSc (Hons) Actuarial Studies were awarded for the two categories: Life Insurance and General Insurance. The champion for Life Insurance was Team Asperiment, first runner-up was Team Imagination, while Team Angel of Death, was named second runner-up. “It was really an eye-opening experience for all of us. We learnt beyond the topic given. This includes the development of our soft skills. All in all, we enjoyed ourselves during the process of learning new things while making new friends,” said Team Asperiment, the champion winner. A big shout out to Great Eastern Life Assurance (Malaysia) Berhad for the collaboration on the case study challenge. The Institute and Faculties of Actuaries (IFoA), Society of Actuaries (SOA) and the Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS) were the main sponsors of ASymposium.

This article appeared in Blaze (Issue 51)