Episode 27: Actuaries as Storytellers with John Harney
“I will use an old adage from my mother actually, which is: you have two ears and one mouth for a reason, which she may have said to me for other more disciplinary reasons back in the day.
But the point there is to just start by listening, and listen out for stories all around you and listen out for how people are telling those stories around you. Just soak that up. Because I think what you will find, it's like anything, if you've got some sort of an awareness, you'll see it everywhere.”
John Harney,
Experienced Actuary
John is a senior pensions professional, working primarily with companies who sponsor UK pension schemes. John is a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and a Chartered Enterprise Risk Actuary. Originally hailing from Ireland, he has worked in the pensions industry for almost 10 years, having studied Actuarial and Financial Maths at Dublin City University.
John has worked on various projects for pensions schemes, including exercises to help members have more options for the form in which they receive their benefits, as well as helping schemes develop their long-term strategies. A passionate speaker, he has told stories in an array of contexts to a variety of audiences. He is also passionate about the power of social media, particularly LinkedIn, in giving pensions issues and wider actuarial issues a bigger public voice.
Outside of work, John is passionate about walking his dogs, travel, reading, cooking and music.
In this interview John shares his reflections about:
Why the art of storytelling is so important for actuaries and how storytelling has helped you in your career,
Some examples of situations where storytelling has helped you to achieve an outcome at work, and
Some practical “how to” tips and tactics that actuaries could try themselves to improve their storytelling skills.
