12 March 2008www.the-actuary.org.ukReady for the future Do you want to be part of a Profession that is seen as modern and dynamic, or to be associated with failure?The Profession8217s strategic aim is to support actuaries throughout their careers. The objective is to increase the contribution actuaries make and the value they add for their employers and their clients. This is not a matter of narrow self-interest but rather a desire to ensure that actuaries can make the fullest possible contribution to society, for the benefit of all. As long as we have two separate professional bodies we believe we make it harder for us to achieve our strategic aim. It used to be common to see references to the Actuarial Profession that described it as 8220small in numbers, but wielding influence out of proportion to its size8221. Such descriptions are nowadays rare. It is more common for actuaries to be referred to in somewhat disparaging terms 8212 8220number crunchers8221 or 8220backroom mathematicians8221. In the popular mind, if we are associated with anything at all, it is with failure: mortgage endowment shortfalls, pension scheme deficits, Equitable Life. In the language of marketing, our brand has become devalued. We are failing to attract our share of the most able among the new graduate population.Does any of this matter? It matters to us because we care about our profession and want to see it recognised for the unique contribution actuaries make across many fields. However, it matters much more if society is being deprived of some of the contribution that actuaries should be making because their potential is not properly recognised.Our brand is devalued, and there is confusion about it in the media, among opinion-formers and even among our own members. We have three identities: the Faculty, the Institute and the UK Actuarial Profession. Merging the Faculty and the Institute will create a new body with a single identity and give added impetus to the changes needed to put the new strategy into effect. It will give us the opportunity to develop and present a fresh, modern and clear view of the Profession both externally and internally. It will enable us to create an exciting brand that will help us to attract the very best into our ranks. The confusion about our brand contributes to confusion about who exactly is commenting on a particular issue, lessening the impact of what we want to say. A merger will create a single, stronger and more powerful presence and voice with which to engage with external partners. This will bring considerable benefits as we develop our public affairs responsibilities and seek to influence legislators and others at Westminster, Holyrood, Brussels and beyond. A merger will help us clarify our messages and the processes for delivering them.Are you brave enough to vote for change?A merger will enable us to update public perceptions of actuaries and to identify and develop a new purpose, role and objective for the new body. This will allow us to reposition the new body as the public and professional face of actuaries, to rekindle interest in actuarial practice and to raise the profile of actuaries and their contribution to business and society. The very fact that we are undertaking a merger (seen by many as long overdue) will of itself indicate to the outside world that actuaries are dynamic and positive 8212 they are looking to the future, embracing fresh approaches and moving in new directions. It will signal a real desire to change, when all too often actuaries have been seen as backward-looking and slow-moving.Will a merger bring other benefits? Of course 8212 there will be greater efficiency in the governance of the Profession, and there might even be some cost savings. Such benefits could be realised through ever closer co-operation between the Institute and the Faculty, without the complication and upheaval that a merger will undoubtedly entail. But without a merger we will fail to realise the full potential of our profession. We have a unique opportunity, at a time when we are driving forward our new strategy, to make a dramatic change both to the image and to the reality of our profession. If we fail to grasp this opportunity our successors will see us as having thrown away the chance to build on the strengths of the Profession and instead having allowed it to lose focus and lose influence, to the detriment of those we serve.The time is nowThe time has come for us to move forward together. In bringing about the merger we can draw on what is best about each of the Faculty and the Institute. This is not a takeover of one body by another. There is no desire to throw away 150 years of history and we can preserve the best bits while taking the opportunity to remove some of the clutter and bureaucracy. We can create a single body that speaks with one voice and of which we can all be proud to be members.When the time comes we urge you to vote for the merger.News focusProfession mergerThe way forwardAs the Councils of the Faculty and the Institute agree to put a merger proposal to the membership, two groups of members present differing viewsFOR187 If you would like to share your views on the proposed merger, please write to letters@the-actuary.org.uk. The letters page in the May edition of The Actuary will mainly feature comment on this issue. The deadline for inclusion is 28 March.187 For more information about the proposal, please visit the Profession8217s website www.actuaries.org.ukShare your views012+013_Actuary_Profession_0308.12 1219/2/08 14:01:39
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