Kevin, you recently returned from a corporate trip? Where did you go and what did you do? We went up to one of our Caterpillar plants in Aurora, outside of Chicago. They make wheel-loaders, excavators, and forestry equipment there. We talked to different groups about the improvements they've made to machines. We're trying to educate them on how we determine what costs are. Then they help us understand ways we can reflect improvements in our pricing. We talked to engineers and analytical types.
Are presentation skills important for somebody in your position? Yes. You have to be able to communicate with product groups and dealers, which have different perspectives. They have to understand and trust what we're doing. And we have to understand what they're doing. You can't achieve either one without being able to communicate.
Kevin, you're a graduate from the MTSU actuarial program. How did you hear about it? I was a sophomore math major. I went to a talk from some visting actuaries. I was hooked.
What aspects of the MTSU program did you like? Having classes focussed on taking exams. It was invaluable. That was the key. Without that, I wouldn't have gotten past the first exam. Plus, J.C. Hankins, one of my instructors, was inspirational to me. He was really excited about the career.
You have worked for different types of companies, haven't you? I started with American General, a life insurer. Then I went to Sedgwick James and worked as a consultant. We did lots of presentations and worked on the phone. Lots of people skills were required. Sedgwick was a broker; we were in their risk management arm and provided a service for brokers to sell to their clients. We did loss projections to help place insurance or fund the next year's self-insured liabilities. We did reserve analyses too.
What position do you currently hold and what types of work are you responsible for? My title is Actuary. I oversee all of Caterpillar's warranty pricing. And I forecast losses. I put a price tag on new products and marketing plans to grow that business.
Every career has its plusses and minuses. For you, what's the biggest plus? The biggest plus is that I can continually find projects or assignments that challenge me, allow me to think. I get to solve problems other people can't solve.
And biggest minus? The amount of time required to get through the exam process. But this is a negative and a positive. You are learning to differentiate yourself, but it sometimes seems an unreasonable amount of time.
