As described in the Strategic Plan: 

[The CAS] will be expanding our footprint to be ready to serve our members working in these regions [internationally], to raise awareness of our credential with key stakeholders, and make our credentials more accessible for those who seek the premier general insurance¹ actuarial education. (Property and casualty insurance is referred to as general insurance or non-life insurance in most of the rest of the world. 

Of the three pillars, Expanding Globally is the one that receives the least attention from most of our members. The majority of our members live in the U.S. and Canada, and as a result may not see the need to focus on global expansion. That had been true of my thinking for much of my nearly 30-year career in the U.S. My international experience was limited to brief discussions in the Australian market, a short-term collaboration with actuaries in the United Kingdom and one client project with a South African company. Having been involved with CAS leadership in some capacity since 2006, I knew the international market was important to the CAS, but for most of my career it never rose to a significant level of importance to me. 

That has all changed in the last two years. As president-elect and president, I have travelled internationally and interacted with actuaries abroad, both CAS members and members of other actuarial organizations. I truly believe, now more than ever, that expanding globally is important not only for CAS members outside of North America, but also for actuaries in North America. 

As a reminder, our Envisioned Future states: 

CAS members are sought after globally for their insights and ability to apply analytics to solve insurance and risk management problems. 

The vivid descriptions of our Envisioned Future related to expanding globally are: 

CAS members and candidates have a pronounced and measurable advantage in the job market; there is a global demand for the services and expertise of CAS members as evidenced by requirements for CAS credentials in hiring decisions. 

CAS members and candidates are growing in numbers around the world, with more rapid growth in the geographic areas where the CAS is focusing its international strategy. 

CAS members advance the theoretical and practical applications of property-casualty actuarial science and are on the forefront of new techniques to solve global insurance and risk management problems. 

These vivid descriptions highlight several important aspects of what it means to expand globally. One obvious aspect is the growth in the number of CAS members and candidates internationally. We are seeing this happen, as current rates of growth of international members and candidates are higher than the rates of growth of members and candidates in North America. A second aspect is the expansion or demand for services of CAS members. This will involve ensuring that global employers and regulators understand the value that CAS members bring to general insurance. 

I attended the Singapore Actuarial Society Annual Conference last September. As part of this visit, I met with employers of CAS members and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), a group responsible for regulating insurance companies in Singapore. Employers conveyed to me the high value of the CAS credential and the expertise of CAS members related to general insurance. MAS thought so highly of CAS members that they were then looking to hire a CAS member for their regulatory team. The more we are able to demonstrate the value of CAS members to employers and regulators around the world, the more the demand for services of our members will continue to increase. 

However, there is a third aspect to expanding globally that is not focused on as often: The CAS also has the chance to influence the use of general insurance actuarial solutions around the world. Myriad challenges are facing general insurance companies, and as the only actuarial organization in the world that focuses exclusively on P&C insurance, we can take a leading role in developing solutions to these challenges. Our international team of CAS volunteers and staff have done an excellent job of helping to establish our expertise in global markets, including China, Singapore, India, Thailand, the Caribbean, Mexico, Taiwan and Brazil.  

Now, you may still be wondering why this should be important to you. I offer four reasons for you to consider. 

1. We have members and candidates worldwide. As is true with all our members and candidates, we are committed to supporting our members and candidates who live outside North America. This includes membership services, continuing education, research and basic education. However, this requires us to be deliberate as we consider our international members. Attending most of the CAS webinars will not be convenient to a member living in Australia. Attending an in-person CAS meeting is a more costly and time-consuming endeavor for our international members than it is for those of us in North America. More than 30% of our members volunteer for the CAS, and many of these volunteer activities will have international implications. If you serve on the Exam Working Group, you are writing or grading exams that will be taken by international candidates. If you are planning continuing education events, there may be international considerations for accessing the educational content.
   Our international team does an amazing job supporting our international candidates and members. Some recent initiatives include hosting an annual Course on Professionalism in Asia as well as an international webinar series at times that are convenient for members outside of North America. CAS members also engage in local volunteer opportunities like the East Asian Student Summer Program, which is helping to shape the next generation of CAS members.  
2. More and more our work is globally connected. This is also true of the actuarial community. There are companies that our members work for in North America that are part of international groups. As such, these members may need to know more about international issues in order to do their jobs. 
   

   …we can take a leading role in developing solutions to these challenges.
   

3. Opportunities in general insurance are expanding. This is especially the case in developing countries. As insurance markets grow, the role of general insurance actuaries in these markets will also grow. This presents an important opportunity for CAS members to work in these developing areas and influence the work done in these countries. We have developed a significant amount of general insurance expertise, and by partnering with those in these regions, we can advance the state of general insurance internationally. 
4. We can learn by collaborating with other actuaries. Some of the actuarial issues we face in North America are the same for actuaries in other countries. For instance, the market penetration of electric vehicles is higher in China than it is in the U.S. As such, the Chinese Actuarial Association has completed an analysis of private passenger automobile experience of electric vehicles relative to non-electric vehicles. This is an example of data that would be valuable to U.S.-based actuaries as the proportion of electric vehicles on the road increases. 

The value of the international actuarial community was driven home for me at the 2023 International Congress of Actuaries (ICA), which was held in Sydney, Australia at the end of May. At this gathering of 1,500 actuaries from around the world, I had the opportunity to present to the Strategic Planning Committee of the International Actuarial Association (IAA) on the impact of artificial intelligence on the actuarial profession. AI is an issue we are all facing around the world, and it is an opportunity for collaboration on a matter that will have global implications. 

At ICA CAS representatives also had the opportunity to participate in bi-lateral meetings with leaders of other actuarial organizations. We discussed a number of common issues, including the impact of data science, the actuarial candidate pipeline, and diversity, equity and inclusion. CAS representatives shared their insights and learned from other organizations. We were also able to promote the advances of the CAS and our members to countries through collaboration. 

I experienced at ICA all of the things that highlight why international issues should be important to us all. I met and got to know CAS members who are living abroad. Hearing their experiences was beneficial for me, and it was a great reminder that our international members bring viewpoints from different perspectives. I met members who are employees of global groups that are exposed to issues that cross country borders. I talked to actuaries and regulators from countries with developing general insurance, and these conversations reinforced that there is a significant opportunity for the CAS to influence the future of P&C work worldwide. And I was reminded of actuarial issues that both our community and other actuarial associations are heavily involved in and that are ripe for collaboration, such as climate risk and IFRS-17. 

Ultimately, we face a risk if we do not pursue these global opportunities. The general insurance needs of employers and regulators globally will not decrease. And as these needs will be critical and will have to be met, someone will step up to meet them. Given our exclusive focus on general insurance, the CAS is uniquely qualified to meet these needs. If we do not, we risk ceding territory in which we should be active. As we are the premier organization credentialing general insurance actuaries, we believe we should not be ceding this territory. 

So, what does this mean for individual members? How can you get involved? 

1. Volunteering may have international implications that you have not considered, which can help you think internationally where you are volunteering. 
2. Every CAS member is a member of the IAA. Learn more about what is going on internationally by getting connected with the IAA. Visit https://www.actuaries.org/iaa for more information. 
3. Ask actuaries you know who have worked internationally about their experiences. I guarantee that you will learn something interesting and gain a new perspective.

¹ Property and casualty insurance is referred to as general insurance or non-life insurance in most of the rest of the world.