ACTUARY OF THE FUTURE
01 December, 2007
Mark Poyner
Date entered profession?
September 2005.
Employer?
Garvins.
Area of work?
Pensions consultancy.
Jobs so far? (including pre-actuarial!)
Stacking the cold meat shelves at Safeway,
working in a laundry, spending most
summers between the ages of 14 and 20 at a
small accountancy firm.
Exams passed?
All CTs except CT5.
Most exciting actuarial moment?
Winning the Redditch 6-a-side division 2
football league in my first season as captain
for Garvins. (Quickly to be relegated the
following season!)
Alternative career?
Vet although my allergies to cats, guinea
pigs, and rabbits put me off that track!
Most memorable actuarial moment?
Looking for my first set of results on the
internet before realising my name would be
on the Institute pass list rather than the
Faculty pass list which I was currently
searching down.
The last CD you bought?
Hillsong Mighty to Save.
Film or theatre?
Film every genre except science fiction,
although musical theatre is also a big
favourite.
Pets?
None at the moment but used to have two
rabbits (which I couldn’t actually hold
because of my allergy!) and two hamsters.
Green tea or coffee?
Not a big fan of either drink about four
pints of water per day at the office.
Spend or save?
Save I have to produce a pension somehow!
Exam philosophy?
Don’t give up playing sport.
Any vices?
Following Tottenham Hotspur causes me
great anguish.
Study-day shopper or sleeper?
Out of those two, I would have to say sleeper.
Next move for the actuarial profession?
Realising that accounting standards cause too
much pressure for pension schemes to focus
on the short term.
Would like to see actuaries working in which
wider field?
Farming.
