Pension Consultant

☛ Tell me about yourself.

☛ What is your greatest strength?

☛ What is your greatest weakness & how can you overcome it?

☛ Why are you leaving or have left your job?

☛ How do you handle stress and pressure?

☛ Describe a difficult work situation/project and how you overcame it.

☛ Why do you want this job?

☛ Why should you be selected over other candidates?

☛ What are your goals for the future?

☛ How do you evaluate success?

Skills required to become actuarial is

☛ Good understanding of statistics and math’s

☛ General knowledge of business and finance

☛ Basic knowledge of programming languages, statistical analysis programs, spreadsheets and databases

☛ Good communication skills which include preparing reports and giving presentation

☛ Good analytical and problem-solving skills

Part of the reason for asking this question is to gain an idea of how the actuary interacts with peers and managers – whether that’s developing or assessing a junior colleague, or responding to the demands of a superior. However, very often simply calling on actuaries to relay this information is a test of their communication skills.

“Employers want to see evidence of healthy working relationships, but half the point in asking it is to see how actuaries respond when they’re required to tell a story for five minutes,” he says. “Increasingly, it’s important for actuaries to be commercial as well as technical and communication skills are integral to this.”

Before I started working at my last job, there was no referral program in place. They mostly relied on cold-calling to get new clients, so I recommended to my boss that we should offer incentives to current clients if they refer someone over to us. It took some convincing, but he agreed to try it out. We ended up getting a lot more business out of the system.

Employees who do not complete their required payroll forms make the payroll administrator's job more challenging. Asking this question allows the applicant to explain how she would handle this to ensure the worker still gets paid.

I get on extremely well with my colleagues and those that work around me. We are always bonding with each other via team lunches and events, as well as the regular Friday evening at the pub.

With regards to their backgrounds, because my area of business is quite mathematical there isn’t a huge range of different courses represented. However there is a common misconception that my role is only open to those studying mathematics at university, which is not true. Other courses represented around me include Physics, Engineering and Economics amongst others.

You do not need a mathematics degree but you may need a mathematical element to your degree.

Once I was discussing a potential pension plan with a client. She had done her research and had acquired information from a different company. I tried explaining all the benefits she would get from us, but she countered that the other company offered the exact same benefits at a lower rate. I looked into the situation and found that the client was right, so I explained that going with another company was the right move, but if it ended up not working out, we would be there to assist her. A few months later, the client came back saying she was unsatisfied with the services she was getting from the competition, and wanted to work with us.

Even though overqualified can be shorthand for "old" or "expensive", it’s important to stay positive. Express your enthusiasm for the job and pride in your qualifications. Explain what makes you interested in this position at this point in your career — such as wanting to apply your skills to a new field, not wanting any management responsibilities, or to achieve more flexibility and work-life balance.

This question illustrates whether the applicant has experience changing employee income tax withholding amounts. The applicant should be able to describe the necessary forms to use and the process for changing the information in the payroll system.

Chief actuaries act as an actuary head or supervisor for the government organization as well as corporate. They keep an eye on other actuaries and distribute and direct assignments. Also, they prepare reports and reviews of business functions like budgets and mergers. Further, they implement policies and guidelines relating to actuary risk analysis.

To become a successful actuary, you must have a good hold on

☛ Calculus

☛ Linear Algebra

☛ Differential Equations

☛ Probability & Statistics

☛ Regression Analysis

☛ Time series Analysis

☛ Accounting

☛ Finance & Management

☛ Economics

☛ Computer science & communication

Special pay items are not processed in the same manner as regular payroll. These items include pay for incentives and bonuses, as well as pay for work completed by contract specialists.

As a property or casualty actuary, responsibilities includes

☛ Conducting studies and analyzing of rates according to geographical area and type of insurance, such as homeowner rates or automobile rates

☛ Preparing materials or evidence that tells the changes in the rate for insurance is legitimate

☛ Developing plans for the company to enter a new line of insurance

☛ Conducting research on new statistical models and methods for estimating claims

The job of pension’s actuary is to help pension’s providers to set the pension rates and craft retirement policies that minimize risk. They apply their skills to the creation and maintenance of sustainable retirement plans. Majority of the pension actuaries work in a pensions actuarial firms while others work in government bodies.

At the moment in five years time I can see myself progressing along my chosen path and currently I would like to progress into a managerial role. But, if in two to three year's time a better, more suitable opportunity shows itself, then I would give it my consideration. Actually I would like to have won the pools and be sitting on a boat drinking wine in the Med. (Humour can sometimes help.)

Payroll administrators process payroll tax information. IRS forms W-2 and W-4 provide employers with the information needed to withhold income taxes from employees' wages. Familiarity with these forms ensure the candidate understands how to properly prepare these documents.