The Making Things Happen column features CAS members who serve the association in many capacities and enrich the volunteer experience for all.
For Rebecca Williams, ACAS, her CAS service started as a way of networking and interacting with other actuaries (an activity she still enjoys today), but she found volunteering met more than one need.
“Volunteering is one way to feed my need to be creative,” Williams said. “I love finding ways to be creative in anything I do.”
Williams is the volunteer chair for the Ratemaking, Product and Modeling Seminar Working Group (RPMSWG). She started her volunteer work in 2009 with the Committee on Professional Education (renamed Professional Education Working Group) and has continued as a member of that group ever since. She also served and held positions in other CAS groups, including Casualty Actuaries of the Southeast, VEE Administration Committee and the Member Advisory Panel.
Her current goal is to execute a successful RPM Seminar that is returning to an in-person (hybrid) experience in 2023. The seminar has been an all-virtual event since the pandemic hit in 2020.
“I am excited that for 2023, RPM will have a robust offering with both in-person and livestream options,” Williams said.
She is eager to incorporate the topic of wildfires as a focus in the 2023 RPM Seminar.
“We are working on highly engaging ways to dive deeper into the subject and encourage engagement from the audience,” Williams said.
Williams is proud of the working group for having survived three years of virtual RPM and the loss of much of the networking opportunities that the in-person experience offers.
“I’m a sole practitioner who looked forward to in-person interactions to grow my network,” Williams said.
Williams has a list of favorites that come to mind when she thinks about the CAS. Her favorite meeting: the 2014 CAS Centennial and Annual Meeting in New York City, where she got to sing in the CAS Centennial Choir. Favorite volunteer moment: playing the role of MC for “Actuarial Idol” at a Course on Professionalism. Favorite swag: I Love CAS socks.
“As a CAS member, I am inspired by a fabulous group of volunteers on the working group and awed by the support from CAS staff. This is true for both committees on which I serve.”
For members who want to move into volunteer leadership roles, she recommends engaging and contributing as a member.
“When you make contributions to the working group, your peers will recognize this and invite you to step up and help lead,” Williams said.
In her full-time roles, Williams has worked for both the government (Texas Department of Insurance) and private insurance companies. She now works for the North Carolina Rate Bureau, where she likes interacting with a number of companies and other actuaries.
Fun Fact: In 2023, Williams’ favorite silly holiday, Pi Day, overlaps with the RPM Seminar on March 14.
“I taught my kids a Pi song, purchased Pi t-shirts for the family, and even have a Pi magnet on the back of my car. Now I’m helping to find ways we can incorporate the infinite number (3.14159…) into the seminar,” Williams said.
