Essay by Tia Goss Sawhney

This invited essay has been submitted to the Society of Actuaries for publication in the October issue of CompAct, the newsletter of the Technology Section. In this essay I invite actuaries to discuss why we are conspicuously absent from the software development vendor teams that serve the insurance industry.

The essay is loosely divided into three parts. In the first part I provide reasons why actuaries should be included in such teams. I then provide SOA membership statistics which demonstrate that we are not employed in any routine basis. Finally I suggest reasons why we are not employed by software development teams.