In an innovative volunteering effort, a team of NAB actuaries joined SVA and three other social purpose organisations for an ‘actuarial volunteer day’. The event was initiated by NAB staff eager to use their professional skills in their volunteering efforts.
SVA’s aim for the day was to draw on the deep expertise of the actuaries to scrutinise the way SVA currently values social outcomes – and to look at ways that this could be improved. SVA Consultant Anna Crabb commented:
‘Our objective for the day was to get inside the mind of actuaries and understand a different way of thinking. The team helped us to view our work from a different perspective, and we will use what we learnt to make SROI even more meaningful for our clients.’
Once they began to grasp the SROI concept the NAB team started seeing overlap between how they work through valuations and how an SROI does, opening up discussion about how some of the approaches they use for valuations might be helpful in an SROI analyses.
Jennifer Lang, who is Chief Actuary at NAB and was responsible for organising the event, commented:
‘The day was a great way for our actuarial team to give back to the community. Having the chance to talk to people from different walks of life broadened our horizons, and we were very pleased that our skills were of use to so many non-profits, including Social Ventures Australia.’
According to SVA’s Anders Uechtritz, one of the standout benefits of the day was having the team of expert actuaries understand the thinking behind SVA’s SROI process. ‘It was reassuring to hear that many of the challenges we face in valuation, such as putting a value on something that has so many variables and assumptions, is something that’s faced in the age old actuarial profession as well’, he said.
Simon Faivel commented:
‘Whether we are insuring people’s lives or understanding the social impact of programs, we need to make judgements about the world around us. And we all want better data to make more informed judgements. Our day with the actuaries team at nab helped us recognise that we are not alone!’
‘It was time well spent for all of us and a great testament to the impact skilled volunteers can have. We’re very appreciative of the effort NAB put into organising and participating in such a stimulating event, and we look forward to sharing insights from the day with the broader sector.’