Our annual “Pinnacle U” pairs small groups of college students with one or more of our actuarial analysts in order to research a topic of interest, culminating in a day full of presentations. The format of Pinnacle U hasn’t changed much over the years, but our approach to the event has evolved to foster a real-world business experience for everyone involved.

During this year’s Pinnacle University (Pinnacle U) event, we presented an overview of parametric insurance. Unlike traditional insurance coverage, parametric insurance is not an indemnification product. Instead, it determines a benefit payable in advance of the policy purchase by estimating the loss as accurately as possible, subject to certain conditions being satisfied. The cost of the policy is based on a pre-determined trigger. Examples might include maximum sustained wind speed for hurricane coverage or earthquake magnitude as measured by the Richter scale.

Pinnacle recently hosted the 5^th annual Pinnacle University (Pinnacle U) event in our Bloomington office. The Pinnacle U program is a collaborative effort with Illinois State University (ISU) to provide training and development opportunities to both our employees and local college students. Consistent with our firm’s commitment to community, Pinnacle U is well-received in the Bloomington-Normal area.

Pinnacle recently hosted the 4th annual Pinnacle U event in our Bloomington office. Pinnacle U is a collaborative effort between Illinois State University (ISU) and Pinnacle that provides a wide array of training and development opportunities for its participants. The event is also a tangible response to the strategic plan of the Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS), which lists improving communications and relationships with candidates and academics as a top priority.

When college students, regardless of their chosen major, ask for advice on how to cope with the changing job market, “Communication skills are critical,” is what they’ll hear.  We can perform complex regressions on personal computers and use presentation software to create slides, or we can build software programs designed to take an actuarial loss triangle and, with the press of a button, create a set of loss development exhibits… but someone has to explain all of this.