Actuarial Assurance Specialist: Group Internal Audit at Sanlam Group

Sanlam Group Internal Audit established an Actuarial Assurance function in 2012, which has grown to a team of five actuarial professionals.

• Engaging actuarial functions across the Sanlam Group to understand their mandate and the risks they manage and are exposed to.
• This includes actuarial processes and controls around data, models and model governance, assumption setting, and valuation and reporting on various bases. In addition, processes around actuarial risk management and models, asset valuation models, investments, credit risk management, balance sheet management and the Group’s growing General Insurance footprint require increased focus.
• The Sanlam Group is faced by challenging regulatory changes, which include prudential and market conduct regulations. Internal Audit’s role is to provide assurance over the robustness of processes, controls and models included in the designed solutions.
   

The Actuarial Assurance function is responsible for assurance over actuarial functions globally. Key geographical areas include the South African businesses (including Santam), selected African countries, Malaysia and the UK. The function is risk-based and as such the Actuarial Assurance function will link with Sanlam’s growing geographical footprint across Africa.

What will make you successful in this role?

As an Actuarial Assurance Specialist, the role will support the provision of independent assurance to the Board and Management. The role is Cape Town based at Sanlam’s head office and will include assurance assignments over actuarial functions across the Sanlam Group (including travelling to execute assignments on-site within various Sanlam businesses in Johannesburg, rest of Africa, Malaysia and the UK).

Duties And Responsibilities Include The Following

• Support overall planning and execution of actuarial assurance assignments group-wide.
• Working with Group Actuarial & Risk Management to understand combined assurance.
• Planning and execution of specific audit assignments such as validation of actuarial and financial models, processes and controls around the management of market, credit and insurance risks, and actuarial and financial reporting under various internal and statutory bases, including SAM, Solvency II and EV.
• Assurance activities relating to governance - specifically the adequacy of risk management and actuarial control functions across the Group, as well as ORSA processes established under SAM and Solvency II.
• Support in providing specialist assurance over the Group’s IFRS17 programme. This relates to the control environments around actuarial data and modelling, actuarial processes, valuations and reporting functions.

Qualification, Knowledge & Experience

• Nearly-qualified actuary, with a minimum of 3 years actuarial experience in life insurance
• Knowledge of SAM and/or Solvency II (Pillar 1 and Pillar 2/ORSA) and EV methodologies
• Working knowledge of balance sheet management, capital management, and investment risks
• Working knowledge of IFRS17 and developments around the new standard
• Awareness of regulatory and governance developments
• Experience in an assurance function (advantageous but not required)
• Experience with Prophet (advantageous but not required)