-
- Follow us
Creative Commons License
This work by the Society of Actuaries is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License-
09Apr2013
Retirement Income Industry Association Announces Winners of the 2013 Practitioner Thought Leadership Award
The Retirement Income Industry Association (RIIA) recently named Anna Rappaport the winner of its 2013 Practitioner Thought Leadership Award for her paper, “Insights to Support Better Retirement Pla
Read MoreLeave a Comment28Jan2013
Observations on Input and Output Smoothing Methods: How do they affect the funding of defined benefit plans?
Following the release of our first Rapid Retirement Research report, The Rising Tide of Pension Contributions, the SOA decided to begin an investigation of ways to address the volatility of statutory
Read MoreLeave a Comment11Jan2013
Actuary Chris Bone provides updates on the SOA’s longevity initiative; responds to New York Times op-ed about Social Security
The science of longevity projection is rapidly changing and debate about the implications of these changes is increasingly entering the public arena. Many of you may have seen the op-ed piece in the S
Read MoreLeave a Comment26Jun2012
Proposed Pension Funding Stabilization: How Does It Affect the Single-Employer Defined Benefit System?
by Joseph Silvestri, SOA Retirement Research Actuary The SOA recently released its latest research report from the Society of Actuaries (SOA) Rapid Retirement Research Initiative. The initiative’
Read MoreLeave a Comment01May2012
Ford announces program to “buy-out” retirees and former employees in its U.S. salaried retirement program – A good risk management move? Depends on your perspective…
by Andy Peterson, SOA Staff Fellow, Retirement Systems On April 27, Ford Motor Company announced a voluntary program to provide lump-sum payouts to salaried retirees and former employees in the U.S
Read MoreView Comments (3)16Apr2012
An interview with Malcolm Hamilton
by Joe De Dominicis, SOA staff fellow, Canadian membership “Don't think of retiring … until the world will be sorry that you retire.” — Samuel Johnson Aside from sports heroes like Way
Read MoreView Comments (6)29Mar2012
Retirement Planning: SOA study finds keeping up with inflation and having enough money for health care are biggest concerns
by Anna Rappaport, FSA, MAAA, Chairperson, Society of Actuaries’ Committee on Post-Retirement Needs and Risks Today, the SOA released findings from its “2011 Risks and Process of Retirement Sur
Read MoreLeave a Comment10Feb2012
Retirement planning ideas focusing on the middle market
by Anna Rappaport, Anna Rappaport Consulting One of the biggest challenges in retirement security is what can be done that works effectively for the middle market. The January issue of the Journa
Read MoreView Comments (2)17Jan2012
January—A Big Month for Retirement Planning Issues
by Joe Tomlinson, Tomlinson Financial Planning LLC The year starts on a busy note for the Society of Actuaries Committee on Retirement Needs and Risks with the launch of a major initiative, which involves the production of 11 Decision Briefs on important decisions that individuals need to make around the time of retirement. Each of the briefs deals with a specific decision area and offers key considerations to help individuals plan for retirement. As Anna Rappaport, who chairs the CRPNR, notes, "The time around retirement is particularly challenging, not only because of the life changes, but also because of the number of decisions that must be dealt with." The committee felt that it could provide useful information for both individuals contemplating retirement, and for professionals, like accountants, lawyers, and investment advisors, who work with such individuals. Anna adds, "We recognized that individual decisions depend on unique personal characteristics, but we felt that we could offer useful general information." To produce the Decision Briefs, the committee utilized a workgroup consisting of actuaries and other professionals. Included in the workgroup were members who were close to retirement age themselves, who could bring both personal and professional insights to the project. The briefs are focused on the issues facing average Americans and they do not deal specifically with issues that are only important to high-income individuals. All 11 Decision Briefs are available on the SOA website. These are the topics covered by the briefs: (more...)
Read MoreLeave a Comment27Dec2011
Top retirement stories of 2011
Many Americans reached retirement age in 2011, but that did not stop them from continuing to work. Market volatility, combined with a general lack of savings, hurt the retirement plans of many this year. Hopefully, we can learn from the “best laid plan” moments of this year and mitigate the risks inherent with our personal roadmaps to retirement. Here are some of the top stories in retirement news from this past year. Retirement: An Evolving Concept Call it news or just plain reality: the volatile stock market and uncertain economy has required many to postpone their retirements and remain in the workforce. Life expectancies are rising. Portfolio values are decreasing. As a result, the traditional retirement age of 65 is getting extended and the “golden years” are further from our reach. As reported by The New York Times’ Edward Glaeser, “Today nearly 450,000 Americans 65 and older are unemployed and looking to work.” In the last four years, the number of unemployed elderly job seekers has more than doubled. The New York Times went on to say that “nearly 40 percent of 55- to 64-year-old Americans don’t have retirement accounts.” Those who are investing in 401(k)s and making sensible investments along the way may not be much better off than their counterparts without retirement accounts, given the market volatility and risks associated with such investments. The question that remains unanswered is: how do we ensure a lifetime of savings is not undermined by forces beyond one’s control? Alicia Munnell, director of the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, has proposed a new type of savings account – supplemental to 401(k)s and Social Security – that would spread such risks among workers, retirees and government. (more...)
Read MoreView Comments (1)