Communication of technical results to technical and non-technical audiences
Communication marks test whether a decision-maker can act on your work. The exam asks you to translate models and uncertainty into material a Board, audit committee or regulator can use without being misled.
Principles
- Lead with the decision-relevant message, then the evidence; be proportionate in length and technical depth.
- UK Technical Actuarial Standards (TAS 100 for generic work, TAS 200 for insurance) set expectations on data, assumptions, models and communication: reports must be clear, complete on material matters and not misleading, with material uncertainty identified.
- Use ranges and scenarios rather than a single figure; quantify how key sensitivities affect capital or profit; label figures as discounted or not, gross or net.
- Translate items with no intuition - risk margin, CSM, IBNR - into effects on capital, dividend and reported profit.
- Separate the estimate from the recommendation, and state the decisions required of the audience.
Worked example
An audit committee must approve reserves. Provide: the recommended best estimate and range; the movement since last quarter with attribution (new claims, inflation, assumption changes); the effect of a 5% deterioration on solvency coverage and on the dividend; the three assumptions that matter most; and what you need from them. Put the triangle detail in an appendix.
Traps
Presenting model output as fact; drowning the Board in development triangles; failing to say what the audience should do; using jargon the reader will silently misread.