Secrets of the CCA

If you are expecting to find out that the CCA is secretly being run by an ancient order of Illuminati, I’m sorry to say you will be disappointed.

If you believe that actuaries are the real power behind the governments of the world, while that would be awesome and the world would probably be a much better place, that also is not true.

CCA presidents do not have a secret handshake.

And, no password is required to get into our meetings, although if there was it would be “swordfish”! (A little shout-out to all you Marx Brothers fans.)

The secrets I am talking about are little-known facts about the CCA and some things you should know about your favorite actuarial organization. Hopefully you will find some fun or interesting facts you did not know!

• The CCA is a senior citizen  and will turn 75 late next year! The organization was incorporated in the State of Illinois on December 7, 1949, exactly eight years after Pearl Harbor and the same year the Society of Actuaries (SOA) was founded. Per the Articles of Incorporation our official name was the Conference of Actuaries (in Public Practice). In October of 1991, the membership voted to change its name to the Conference of Consulting Actuaries (CCA).
• In January 1950, seven actuaries met to establish the CCA's Bylaws. The CCA held its first membership meeting at the Edgewater Beach Hotel in Chicago on October 3, 1950. Thirty-five CCA members attended! While the CCA persists, sadly the Edgewater Beach Hotel was closed in 1967.
• For many years, one of the general requirements for admission was “professional and business qualifications and moral character and ethics beyond reproach.” I think it became pretty clear that all applicants met these standards, and this wording was eventually dropped!
• At the end of 2022, the CCA had 1,514 members, which is our highest number ever. Membership has grown 12.5% since 2014.
• By primary practice area, our membership split is 65% Retirement, 27% Health, 5% Life and 3% Casualty.
• In 2022, almost 16% of CCA members volunteered on committees or as a speaker in some capacity. As best we can tell this is the highest percentage of the U.S. actuarial organizations. From personal experience I can tell you that our volunteers are a highly engaged group!
• CCA membership is 29% female (for those that disclose the information). Not surprisingly, this is very close to the gender split reported by the SOA.
• Actuaries from smaller firms (less than 20 actuaries) make up nearly one-third of our membership.
• On average, our members have been with us 10 years. Our longest tenured member is Fred Kilbourne at an amazing 55 years!
• For specific circumstances, the CCA offers a 50% discount for:
  • Newly credentialed actuaries
  • Federal government employees
  • Actuaries not fully engaged in actuarial work (retirement,  disability, temporary unemployment.)
• Retirees are eligible for reduced webinar subscription fees.
• The CCA offers a mentoring program.
• Past meeting and webinar presentations are available for free to members by visiting the archives section of our website
• Our online communities are an excellent – and free - way to connect with your colleagues. These groups hold conference calls to network and learn. However, 45% of members have not enrolled in any communities. 
• Although all CCA members are eligible for a Wall Street Journal digital subscription, only about 30% of members have activated it by logging into our website.
• Since 1996, the CCA has been a Full Member Association (FMA) of the International Actuarial Association (IAA). The IAA has 73 FMAs and 26 Associate Members.
• The CCA is a member of the North American Actuarial Council (NAAC), along with the other four U.S. actuarial organization and the three Mexican actuarial organizations.