{"id":839516,"date":"2019-07-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-07-01T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cia-ica.ca\/news\/entrevue-avec-marc-tardif-votre-nouveau-president-de-lica\/"},"modified":"2026-09-24T14:17:32","modified_gmt":"2026-09-24T18:17:32","slug":"entrevue-avec-marc-tardif-votre-nouveau-president-de-lica","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.cia-ica.ca\/fr\/news\/entrevue-avec-marc-tardif-votre-nouveau-president-de-lica\/","title":{"rendered":"Entrevue avec Marc Tardif, votre nouveau pr\u00e9sident de l\u2019ICA"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This article originally appeared in the CIA (e)Bulletin.<\/em>This is a transcription of a recent\u00a0<\/em>Seeing Beyond Risk<\/a>\u00a0podcast interview where Fran\u00e7ois Cloutier, Vice-Chair of the Research Council, spoke with President Marc Tardif. The podcast, conducted in French, is also available in\u00a0the iTunes store<\/a>\u00a0and on\u00a0Spotify<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois: Hello, and welcome to\u00a0Seeing Beyond Risk<\/em>, a series of podcasts presented by the Canadian Institute of Actuaries. My name is Fran\u00e7ois Cloutier and I\u2019m Vice-Chair of the CIA Research Council. Today we have the pleasure of talking with the new President of the CIA, Marc Tardif, who will fill us in on his plans and objectives for the coming year. Hello Marc, and thanks for joining us on this podcast.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Marc: Thanks, Fran\u00e7ois. Always a pleasure.<\/p>\n\n

Q: Marc, now that you\u2019re President of the CIA, what are your three main objectives?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

A: Well, one of my hopes is to convince every actuarial student planning to pursue a career in the field to join the CIA. In writing their exams, they\u2019re exposed to either the Society of Actuaries or the Casualty Actuarial Society, but I want them to know that in my opinion, the CIA will support them best and represent them when they embark upon a career in Canada. Not only that, but the CIA makes sure that the Associate or Fellow designation is accepted in other countries, including the United States, Great Britain, France, and Australia. And I hope that Canadian actuaries who have yet to join our ranks reconsider their decision. We would be happy to welcome them.<\/p>\n\n

My second priority is to encourage more actuaries to volunteer. We have some excellent volunteers, nearly 500 by my count, but there are some 800 positions in all. This doesn\u2019t mean there are 300 vacant positions. Rather, many volunteers are working more than one position. And I can\u2019t thank them enough. The thing is, though, volunteering for the CIA is really gratifying, so I\u2019d love it if more members stepped up to the plate and volunteered. I\u2019m appealing to all our members from every age group, but especially our younger members who may find it intimidating to join long-standing committees or councils. Those in charge are ready to welcome them and make them feel at home. We\u2019re also forming task forces with shorter mandates \u2013 three to six months, for example \u2013 and focusing on more narrowly targeted issues. This may appeal to members who don\u2019t want to commit to a two- or three-year committee mandate but who do want to volunteer their time all the same.<\/p>\n\n

Last, but not least, my third objective is to take a page from other organizations and expand the employment opportunities for our members in Canada and internationally while continuing the excellent work done by our Public Affairs Council in promoting the profession to a wider audience. Just recently we expressed our opinion on the possibility for Canadians to retire a bit later. We just submitted to our members a draft position on the financial risks of climate change. These and other positions show the public at large that actuaries can contribute in less traditional fields. Internationally, we meet regularly with the actuarial associations of the United States, Mexico, Great Britain, France, South Africa, Australia, and others. We exchange ideas with them on such topics as training, areas of practice, our successes, and even our failures. We show them that the training we require of our new members and the continuing education we require of veteran members are truly relevant. Consequently, these associations should be prepared to hire CIA members for positions in their territory. So, there you have it: my three main objectives.<\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois: Thanks, that\u2019s great. Basically, I see these three objectives taking the CIA to another level and allowing us to focus more on relevant issues. Marc, how did your year as President-Elect go? How did you prepare for your term as President?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Marc: I think I\u2019ll answer your second question first, if that\u2019s OK. I\u2019d say that I actually started preparing a few years ago, when I went to the Board meetings. At the time, I chaired the Member Services Council. Like all council chairs, I didn\u2019t have voting privileges, but I watched how the council operated. After that I was elected Director and I spent another three years at the council. I still had things to learn, it seems. I had to delve deeper.<\/p>\n\n

During my year as President-Elect, I assisted the President and observed him very closely. I also met with representatives of several international associations. My year as President-Elect was very active: in addition to the Board meetings I mentioned earlier and the international meetings, I tried to attend a number of meetings of the six councils. The President-Elect is also called on to meet with actuarial clubs. I toured cities from west to east: Calgary, Winnipeg, Waterloo, and Toronto. I haven\u2019t forgotten Qu\u00e9bec City \u2013 my visit there has been postponed, likely until the fall. And I just learned a few days ago that London has just been added to the list.<\/p>\n\n

I\u2019ve met a lot of very dynamic young actuaries, and I think the profession remains in very good hands. I also represented the CIA at the Actuarial Students\u2019 National Association [ASNA], an organization that impressed me greatly. While there, I met the President-Elect of the Society of Actuaries, and he too impressed me a great deal. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois: That\u2019s great, Marc. You mentioned that the CIA maintains a relationship and dialogue with other actuarial associations or entities around the world. How would you characterize our relations with those associations or institutes, such as the SOA, CAS, IFoA, and so forth?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Marc: That\u2019s a good question, Fran\u00e7ois. Obviously, we deal much more with the SOA and CAS. We deal with them very regularly, in fact, and our relations with both are excellent, I would say. For example, we are very gratified that the CAS accepted our university credit system a few years back and remain hopeful that the SOA will follow suit one day. I understand that it\u2019s difficult for them. Accepting our system poses certain problems for them, but we still hold out hope that they\u2019ll be able to one day. Also, we asked both organizations, which supply us with exams, to develop the material we\u2019ll need to provide proper training to deal with IFRS 17, and both were very responsive \u2013 this despite the fact that in the US, IFRS 17 won\u2019t apply as much as it will in Canada. As for the IFoA, the organization in Great Britain, we share educational materials with them and participate in joint research efforts. Our relationship with them is very good. We meet with them at least twice a year. I think I touched earlier on the bilateral meetings we hold twice a year with international actuarial organizations, such as those in France, Australia, South Africa, and Mexico. And I mustn\u2019t forget the International Actuarial Association, where CIA members are very active, as evidenced by the fact that Canada was able to place a member, Dave Pelletier, on the working group tasked with studying the proposed IAA reorganization. In my opinion, this proves that the association considers that Canada has an important role to play, and that\u2019s great.<\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois: Nice. I\u2019ve noticed that you\u2019re very present on LinkedIn, where you publish and share various content. Will the CIA maintain a larger presence on social networks or media in the coming weeks and months? And if so, on which platform and to what end?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Marc: That\u2019s a bit of a tricky question. My personal involvement on LinkedIn\u2026 First of all, we\u2019re better known on social networks, like\u00a0Facebook<\/a>,\u00a0Twitter<\/a>, and\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>. Personally, I\u2019ve only joined LinkedIn in a professional capacity. And since I\u2019ve become involved with the Board and more recently the presidency of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries, I\u2019ve taken the opportunity to tout our volunteers\u2019 success and highlight subjects of interest to our members. I\u2019m trying to weigh in on an ad hoc basis to highlight these things and show what our members are doing and what the Institute is publishing and sharing. I too find it interesting, and I think we\u2019re doing some good work. So that\u2019s pretty much what I\u2019ve been up to on that end.<\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois, you asked whether the Institute will increase its presence on social networks. As I said earlier, I\u2019ve been participating in Board meetings for five years now, and once or twice \u2013 if not more \u2013 a year we receive reports detailing the CIA\u2019s activity on the various social networks. The Institute maintains a presence on Facebook, Twitter, and of course, LinkedIn. As I said, personally I participate only in LinkedIn, so this is the only activity I see directly on my phone or computer. But the reports I receive as a Board member tell me that the Institute is very active on the other two platforms I mentioned, and possibly some others that I\u2019m personally less familiar with. Now, I also know that our communications service is in very good hands. It was led by Les Dandridge until very recently, but Les is retiring. It will now be led by Sandra Caya, and Sandra is very active and involved in these social networks. So, I think that the Institute is going to be very active in this area, probably more than ever before.<\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois: Thanks Marc. In your view, what are the biggest challenges facing the profession and actuaries as things stand today?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Marc: In the early 2000s, the life insurance industry became very consolidated. In my view, P&C insurance has yet to see this level of consolidation. Maybe it will, and maybe it won\u2019t. I hope not, because that would mean fewer positions. But we also know that fixed benefit pension plans, for example, are less and less popular. Although the existing plans will continue for a number of years, there will eventually be fewer positions in this sector.<\/p>\n\n

This is offset somewhat on the insurance side, because the valuation model, the pricing, and the models for calculating the required capital are increasingly sophisticated and complex and seem to require more actuaries. The insurance transition period we\u2019re seeing now with IFRS 17 will surely require more actuaries. And this should last for a few years. Eventually, some positions may disappear, but it\u2019s up to us to keep showing the public that actuaries can play a larger role in traditional sectors, yes, but also in sectors where we have less of a presence.<\/p>\n\n

The CIA will continue promoting the profession and ensuring that the initial training and continuing education offered to members will enable them to fill these new positions. I\u2019m thinking here of predictive analytics, for example. This is a field where actuaries are very involved in their industry, but we\u2019re hopeful they\u2019ll get involved as well in non-traditional areas. And we\u2019re seeing some success. We\u2019ll do everything we can to build on this success. There is also risk management, which has been around a bit longer. We\u2019ve built capacities in this area, and we\u2019re trying to ensure that actuaries play roles in non-traditional sectors. It will also be necessary to adapt to artificial intelligence and the disruptions it will cause in all fields, including our own. But disruptions also create opportunities. It will be up to us as an Institute to ensure that the training we offer our members enables them to successfully navigate these disruptions and face the music.<\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois: Yes, I think that\u2019s the right way to look at things. I\u2019d like to turn now to something a bit more general. It\u2019s often said that retirees are busier than when they were working. Is that true in your case, Marc?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Marc: Well, having agreed to assume the role of President of the CIA, which involves a three-year commitment, I have to say that this has taken up any idle time I might have otherwise had. I\u2019m very involved, and it\u2019s pretty time-consuming. Now, apart from that, sure, we\u2019re travelling a bit more and there\u2019s no shortage of things to do around the house. I\u2019ve started exercising a bit more and I\u2019m training two or three times a week. Let\u2019s just say that the days go by fast. Maybe not as fast as when I went to the office every morning, but I\u2019m never bored.<\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois: Yes, I hear you. Anything you\u2019d like to add as a closing remark?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Marc: In almost every presentation I deliver, be it at an actuarial club, ASNA, the various associations and meetings and, for example, the conference I was at in Montr\u00e9al last week [act19<\/em>], I always close with the same message. I want Canadian actuaries to feel at home in the Canadian Institute. I want them to feel involved. I want them to find challenges that they can volunteer for. And I want them to see opportunity. I\u2019m also prepared to listen to these actuaries if there are things they want to discuss, questions they want to raise, or views they want to express. We\u2019re available, and we want their feedback. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n

Just like with any corporate executive or management situation, we can\u2019t guarantee we can listen to every single thing our members say, but the more feedback we get, the easier it is for us to take the pulse of our organization. So, feel free to contact me personally, or contact the Board or Head Office. We\u2019ll listen to what you have to say, and we\u2019ll see what we can do. But bottom line? I need new volunteers to step up. We need more and more volunteers. There are more and more challenges to be met, and the more ideas we\u2019re presented with, from a variety of age groups, the easier it will be for us to steer our organization in the right direction, with the help of everyone\u2019s input.<\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois: I think that\u2019s a great way to wrap up today\u2019s podcast. Thank you so much, Marc, for taking the time to share your thoughts with us today.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Marc: Thanks Fran\u00e7ois. It was a pleasure to fill you in on what\u2019s going on in my head.<\/p>\n\n

Fran\u00e7ois: On behalf of the entire CIA membership, I wish you every success in your endeavours as President of the Institute.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Marc: Thank you.<\/p>\n\n

My name is Fran\u00e7ois Cloutier and thanks for listening to\u00a0Seeing Beyond Risk<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cet article est une transcription d\u2019une entrevue r\u00e9cente pr\u00e9sent\u00e9e dans notre s\u00e9rie de balados\u00a0Voir au-del\u00e0 du risque.\u00a0Fran\u00e7ois Cloutier, vice-pr\u00e9sident aux communications de la Direction de la recherche, s\u2019entretient avec notre pr\u00e9sident Marc Tardif.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45571,"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"wicket_organization":""},"news-category":[448],"news-topic":[359],"class_list":["post-839516","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry","news-category-balados","news-topic-nouvelles-de-linstitut"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cia-ica.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/839516","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cia-ica.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cia-ica.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cia-ica.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/45571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cia-ica.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=839516"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cia-ica.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-category?post=839516"},{"taxonomy":"news-topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cia-ica.ca\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-topic?post=839516"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}