Emerging Topics Community: LLMs – Separating the Models From the Applications

Join host Silver Zhou, FSA, Chair of YPAC, for a dynamic conversation with Matthew Duke, ACAS, a seasoned actuary, insurance industry leader, and longtime volunteer in various actuarial organizations. Duke shares the deliberate and strategic steps that shaped his career in both traditional actuarial roles and non-traditional industries. Along the way, he reveals invaluable insights on the impact of mentors and coaches at different career stages and why understanding people is key to success as a business leader. 

Listen in to get those professionalism CE credits with host Jackie Lee and guest Cathy Quock. They talk about the differences between actuarial communications in a consulting role or internal company setting. They reference the Code of Professional Conduct and ASOPs.

Roger Loomis talks with Eddie Armentrout of Actuarial Research Corporation about the SOA Research Institute’s LTC Population Research Model, which can be used to examine the impact of public LTC plans on beneficiary finances and service utilization.

In this podcast episode, join host Tiana Zhao, FSA, CERA and guests Dennis Li, Director of Business Development and Partnerships at Amplify Life Insurance, and Christopher Rzany, Vice President of Strategic Marketing Alliances at Fidelity Life Association and eFinancial, to explore the dynamic world of partnerships. This podcast delves into challenges, evolution and emerging opportunities in this critical aspect of insurance and financial services industries.

Nick Kocisak, FSA, in his final episode as host, speaks with Si Xie, FSA, FCIA, CERA, about her experience working as an actuary in international markets. Si provides detailed insights into her observations from working in international markets, describes challenges and opportunities presented by international work, and offers advice on how you can establish your international footprint. 

Join Anders Larson and Shea Parkes as they dive into the world of large language models (LLMs) again.  Actuaries are familiar with matrix multiplication, which is at the heart of most LLMs, but not all actuaries are as familiar with how complex software application components work together.  In this episode we tease apart the models from the applications and discuss which is responsible for what parts of the magic.

Join us for another exciting episode of YPAC podcast as host Ganiu Shefiu, FSA, FCA sits down with Yvonne Palm FCAS, FIA (African Actuary with a global mindset and a CAS board member) and Teju Scott ASA who had both trained abroad and have come back to Africa to contribute to the development of the Actuarial profession. They both share invaluable advice on how to navigate the new environment and what it takes to live in Africa and how they have contributed to the success of the local actuarial society in Africa. Finally, they spoke about volunteering and how that has impacted their lives. 

Join Dave Dillon as he interviews the authors, Rich  Junker and Curtis Robbins, of the new book, “Design Your Future with the Competency Framework”, inspired by the Society of Actuaries Competency Framework and published by ACTEX Learning. The authors share their personal career perspectives and celebrate the worldwide diversity of actuarial careers from over 26 successful actuaries contributing to the book.

In this video, we interview Chris Lombardi, FSA, MAAA, CERA Associate Director at WTW, and Jeanne Cho Stokke, FSA, MAAA, about goal setting and people management. They share techniques and tools for actuaries to become effective leaders in the profession. Jeanne's experience as a former Pro LPGA golfer and Chris's background in jiu jitsu highlight how these skills have contributed to their career success.

In this podcast episode, join host Tiana Zhao, FSA, CERA for an insightful exploration of distribution channels and how to choose the right ones for your business. We dive deep into the various ways products and services can reach customers, from traditional retail to cutting-edge digital platforms.