actuarial-analyst

name actuarial-analyst description Guides hands-on actuarial analyst work for insurance, reinsurance, and pension—reserving and loss development (IBNR, triangles, chain-ladder diagnostics), pricing and rate indication support (experience, trend, credibility, basic GLM at spec level), data validation and model I/O review, reporting packs and workpapers, assumption application under actuary direction, and statutory tie-outs at analyst depth. Use when the user mentions actuarial analyst, loss development, IBNR, reserve analysis, rate indication, pricing support, actuarial workpaper, triangle analysis, credibility, experience study, actuarial reporting, or reserve roll-forward—not actuary sign-off (actuary), consulting engagements (actuarial-consulting), assumption governance (assumption-setting), ALM strategy (asset-liability-management), P&C legal depth (property-casualty-insurance), charts only (data-visualization), or ETL-only pipelines (data-scrubbing). Actuarial Analyst When to Use Build or refresh loss development triangles and support IBNR / ultimate loss estimates Prepare pricing support : experience summaries, trend, credibility-weighted indications Validate, reconcile, and document actuarial data feeds and model inputs/outputs Produce reporting packs : exhibits, bridges, roll-forwards, and memo-ready tables Tie statutory or management reporting schedules to actuarial workpapers Apply approved assumptions in models under actuary direction (not set enterprise policy) Run reasonability checks and peer-review prep before actuary sign-off Support pension or group benefit valuation data prep and schedule tie-outs (analyst depth) When NOT to Use Appointed actuary opinions, statement of actuarial opinion, or final sign-off → actuary Engagement scoping, SOW, client decks, M&A consulting framing → actuarial-consulting Enterprise assumption governance, assumption papers, and change control → assumption-setting ALM strategy, duration matching, and investment policy → asset-liability-management P&C coverage legal wording, claims handling, or underwriting authority → property-casualty-insurance Life/health product design and reserving sign-off → life-health-insurance (line context); technical judgment → actuary Pension plan design, funding policy, or trustee advice → pension-retirement-funds (strategy); analyst prep stays here Chart design, dashboards, and visualization craft only → data-visualization Source-system ETL, deduplication pipelines without actuarial judgment → data-scrubbing Capital markets quant research and backtesting → quantitative-researcher Related skills Need Skill Actuarial judgment, sign-off, capital overview, governance memos actuary Consulting engagement, SOW, client communication, DD framing actuarial-consulting Assumption governance, papers, and enterprise change control assumption-setting ALM, duration, and asset–liability strategy asset-liability-management P&C products, claims, and underwriting context property-casualty-insurance Life/health benefits and product mechanics life-health-insurance Pension funding policy and plan design (overview) pension-retirement-funds Data cleaning pipelines and source normalization data-scrubbing Charts, dashboards, and visual design data-visualization Statistical/ML modeling beyond standard actuarial methods quantitative-researcher Core Workflows 1. Task intake and scope (analyst) Before opening triangles or models: Assignment type — Reserving, pricing support, reporting tie-out, model run, data prep Basis — Statutory, GAAP, IFRS 17, management; valuation date and cutoff LOB and segment — Direct vs assumed; reinsurance netting rules Deliverable — Exhibit list, workpaper IDs, deadline, reviewer (actuary name if known) Source of truth — Prior memo, approved assumptions version, model build ID Out of scope — Flag sign-off, legal interpretation, or assumption changes needing actuary / assumption-setting See references/actuarial_analyst_scope.md . 2. Reserving and loss development Pull paid, incurred, case , and count triangles by origin and development age Run diagnostics (factor stability, calendar-year check, paid/incurred divergence) Apply selected methods (chain ladder, BF, Cape Cod) per actuary instruction—document picks and alternatives Build IBNR and ultimate tables; reconcile to prior evaluation Prepare PYD bridge and reserve roll-forward exhibits Escalate tail, cat, or large-loss treatment questions to actuary See references/reserving_and_loss_development.md . 3. Pricing and rate indication support Aggregate experience by segment (exposure, frequency, severity, pure premium) Compute trend and on-level adjustments per documented methodology Apply credibility weights as specified; show gross vs credibility-weighted indications Summarize indicated rate change vs current; tie to loss ratio targets if provided Document data cuts , outliers, and one-time events in a support schedule Outline GLM or multivariate specs for actuary or modeler—do not present as final model without review See references/pricing_and_rate_indication.md . 4. Data validation and model I/O Reconcile premium, exposure, and claim feeds to control totals Validate triangle dimensions , accident/valuation dates, and duplicate keys Compare model inputs to source exhibits; log exceptions with $ impact where possible Review model outputs for reasonability vs prior run and plan metrics Archive run logs , parameter files, and data cut manifests for audit trail Route assumption changes to actuary; do not alter approved assumption tables without approval See references/data_validation_and_model_io.md . 5. Reporting and workpapers Build exhibit index aligned to filing or management pack structure Produce bridges (reserve change, premium earned, claim counts) with footnoted definitions Tie external schedules (statutory blanks, management reports) to internal workpapers Draft memo support tables (facts and exhibits)—not full executive narrative unless asked Version files: YYYYMMDD_basis_LOB_vNN with change log tab or README row See references/reporting_and_workpapers.md . 6. Quality review and documentation Complete analyst checklist before actuary review (below) Ensure formulas trace and no hard-coded plugs without comment Cross-foot subtotals and tie to GL or bordereaux where required List open items with owner and target date Package review folder : inputs, outputs, diagnostics, reconciliation, change log See references/quality_review_and_documentation.md . Analyst checklist (before actuary review) Analyst QA: - [ ] Valuation date, basis, and segment definitions match memo / prior period - [ ] Triangles tie to source data; paid + case = incurred (where applicable) - [ ] Development factors documented with $ impact of alternative picks (if material) - [ ] Reserve roll-forward reconciles opening + movement = closing - [ ] Pricing experience A/E and exposure bases foot to bordereaux - [ ] Credibility and trend applied per approved assumption memo - [ ] Model run ID and assumption version recorded - [ ] Exhibits numbered; cross-references in memo outline updated - [ ] Open questions listed for actuary (not buried in cells) Key metrics (analyst must define each time) Metric Analyst responsibility Earned premium Match earning pattern to loss basis in exhibit footnote Loss ratio State numerator (incurred vs paid) and denominator Development factor Age-to-age vs cumulative; calendar vs accident year IBNR Definition (incurred vs paid basis); split case/IBNR if required Pure premium Exposure unit documented (car-year, member month, payroll) Indicated change Gross vs credibility-weighted; constraint notes from underwriting PYD Bridge to prior quarter/year with volume vs rate vs development split Tool patterns (agnostic) Task Typical approach Triangles and factors Spreadsheet triangles; SQL/R aggregation; actuarial reserving tools Reconciliation VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP keys; SQL joins; Python pandas groupbys Version control Dated folders; change log sheet; avoid "final_final" without version ID Model runs Parameter export; diff prior vs current outputs; checksum on input files Documentation Exhibit index; definition tab; color only for review flags, not logic Prefer reproducible steps actuaries can re-run; avoid opaque manual cell edits without audit trail. Line-of-business notes (analyst) LOB Analyst focus P&C Class/territory splits; cat and large-loss flags; long-tail tail factors Life In-force census reconciliations; experience study tables—not product filing Health Seasonality in monthly data; benefit change flags in A/E Reinsurance Ceded vs net triangles; treaty mapping; clash aggregates if instructed Pension Census and liability roll-forward data; tie to actuary valuation file Deliverable standards (analyst) Deliverable Minimum content Triangle workbook Data tab, triangle, factors, ultimates, diagnostics, reconciliation IBNR support Method, selections, ultimates, PYD bridge, open questions Pricing support Segments, experience, trend, credibility, indicated change table Model run pack Inputs manifest, parameters, outputs, reasonability vs prior Reporting tie-out Schedule line ↔ workpaper cell map; unexplained differences listed Review package QA checklist, change log, exhibit index State limitations (data gaps, one-time events, immature years). Do not present analyst work as opinion , legal advice , or filed regulatory submission without qualified actuary and counsel review. Assignment type matrix Trigger phrase Primary workflow Lead reference triangle analysis / loss development Reserving support reserving_and_loss_development.md IBNR / reserve analysis / reserve roll-forward Ultimates and bridges reserving_and_loss_development.md rate indication / pricing support Experience and indication pricing_and_rate_indication.md experience study (tables) A/E prep; assumption change → actuary pricing_and_rate_indication.md actuarial workpaper / actuarial reporting Exhibits and tie-outs reporting_and_workpapers.md model run / model output review I/O validation data_validation_and_model_io.md credibility (application) Weighting per memo pricing_and_rate_indication.md When tasks span reserving and pricing on the same block, separate workpapers and flag independence concerns to the actuary. Ethics and reliance (analyst) Label work as draft or analyst support until actuary review Cite data limitations , restatements, and one-time events in open items Do not change approved assumptions locally—request update through actuary and assumption-setting Distinguish technical indication from implemented rate or posted reserve Refer legal or filing questions to counsel; refer sign-off to actuary When to load references Scope, boundaries, ethics → references/actuarial_analyst_scope.md Reserving and triangles → references/reserving_and_loss_development.md Pricing and indication → references/pricing_and_rate_indication.md Data and model I/O → references/data_validation_and_model_io.md Reporting and workpapers → references/reporting_and_workpapers.md QA and documentation → references/quality_review_and_documentation.md