GALs Just Wanna Feel Connected
Disclaimer: the opinions expressed by the author of this article don’t necessarily represent the opinions of NAWA as an organization.
Have you ever looked around a meeting and realized you were the only woman in the room?
It certainly can feel that way when women are still a minority in the actuarial profession and STEM careers overall. The most recent diversity reports from the Casualty Actuarial Society and the Society of Actuaries show that today, just over 30% of worldwide members self-identify as female [1]. While this represents a dramatic improvement over time for both organizations [2], women are still generally underrepresented in the actuarial profession. Societally, there is a focus on improving diversity in the corporate workforce, but change does take time. In the interim, female actuaries may still feel a bit isolated.
At Lincoln Financial Group, a cohort of female actuaries is working to make sure that isn’t the case. At an annual gathering of Lincoln’s actuarial talent in 2022, female employees found themselves naturally discussing some of their desires at the company, like paying forward good mentoring experiences and bringing women together to spur more organic connections. These various one-off discussions developed into a grassroots effort to create a women’s actuarial group within Lincoln, which would later become known as the Group of Actuarial Ladies and Allies (GALA).
Grassroots is not an understatement, either. GALA came to be because 10 women were motivated to make it happen. Their small group chats turned into regular meetings, and those 10 women became the GALA Leadership Group – an appropriate name as it did indeed require a great deal of leadership to work through a few key challenges.
Solution
Challenge
The Leadership Group felt strongly that GALA should be tied to NAWA yet have a Lincoln-specific mission. They agreed that GALA would be designed to help women and allies in the actuarial profession feel a sense of community and inclusiveness, provide guidance and support to individuals of all backgrounds, and bolster the female presence in the actuarial field.
#1: Creating a Vision
To avoid feeling overwhelmed and enable progress, the Leadership Group found it helpful to identify top priorities and start with small, manageable steps.
#2: Setting Realistic Goals
Without a preexisting directory to pull from, the Leadership Group took it upon itself to pool its various networks within the company and create an email list of female actuaries and allies.
#3: Identifying Membership Base
The Leadership Group identified and officially recruited a woman actuarial executive who could act as a sponsor for GALA.
#4: Gaining Buy-In at a Company Level
To create company-level distinction from NAWA while adhering to the same principles, the Leadership Group landed on the name GALA for the Lincoln-specific women’s actuarial group.
#5: Determining Branding
It was critical to have clear definitions of roles amid the Leadership Group to support a clean rollout of GALA. Each member of the Leadership Group voiced their preference for responsibility and was given a specific role, such as NAWA Liaison, Administration Lead, or Marketing and Communications Lead.
#6: Holding Leadership Group Accountable
With planning and preparation complete, the Leadership Group hosted a January 2023 kickoff meeting to share goals for GALA and gauge interest in the group. Attendance was high, and the momentum flowed into the first official event, the “GALA-ntine’s Day” networking event held on February 13. This event helped the Leadership Group better identify the needs of members, who were in search of networking, mentorship, and opportunities to share their perspectives as women in the actuarial field.
GALA has used feedback to tailor events to the specific needs of members ever since. From discussing a short article related to Women’s History Month, to sponsoring different threads on a Teams channel, all GALA-sponsored activities in 2023 incorporated networking in some way. The member-focused strategy proves to be working, with members sharing positive sentiments at every event. One such comment came from a summer intern who attended a career stages networking event. The intern shared that their classes feel male-dominated and that they were so happy Lincoln had a group connecting women in the profession.
So, what’s next for GALA?
Although networking events have been successful at starting conversations, these conversations sometimes get cut short, and people may not take the opportunity to reconnect. In the first quarter of 2024, GALA is planning to pilot a coffee chat series aimed at creating regular opportunities for members to meet with the same small group over the course of six months. Topics will be provided to start conversations, but groups are welcome to discuss whatever comes to mind.
In 2022 Lincoln formally appointed a female actuary, Ellen Cooper, to CEO, and it has been a source of pride and motivation for other female actuaries. It is one of GALA’s goals to include her in a future event.
Other ideas the GALA Leadership Group would like to explore include a mentoring program, a speaker series, recruiting or community outreach events, and NAWA event watch parties or post-meeting discussions.
GALA is only in its beginning stages, but the connectedness of women in the Lincoln workplace has already improved substantially. GALA at Lincoln is a testament to advocating for a cause you believe in, and the group hopes to inspire others inside and outside the company! If you share any of the same feelings or have similar goals for your place of work, consider what you can do to improve your environment.
Author Bios:
Jacqueline (Brimley) Ennes, FSA, (right) is a Life actuary for Lincoln Financial Group in the Boston metro area. She graduated from Fairfield University in 2013 with a major in mathematics and a minor in computer science, and she achieved fellowship with the Society of Actuaries in 2022. Jacquie started her career in IT at another life insurer before pursuing actuarial accreditation, and that has influenced her passion for diversity and representation within the actuarial field. She is currently focused on life product development at Lincoln, and outside of work, she enjoys cooking and traveling with her husband and mini dachshund.
Lindsey Moyer, FSA (left) is a Senior Actuarial Consultant with Lincoln Financial Group. She graduated from Clemson University in 2016 and obtained her fellowship in 2022. Lindsey is engaged with the Network of Actuarial Women and Allies (NAWA) as a member of the Community and Connection Committee and is passionate about mentoring and empowering others!
Outside of work, Lindsey enjoys hiking, playing with her nieces and nephews, and traveling. She has spent the last year as a digital nomad and has enjoyed visiting over 15 national parks this year!
[1] As of December 2022, 31.0% of Casualty Actuarial Society members reported as female (https://www.casact.org/sites/default/files/2023-02/2022-Women-in-the-CAS.pdf). According to the June 2023 Society of Actuaries Diversity report, 33.0% of worldwide members and 32.2% of US members reported as female (https://www.soa.org/4a8d9f/globalassets/assets/files/static-pages/about/diversity-inclusion/2023-diversity-report.pdf).
[2] Author’s note: It was difficult to get historical information for both societies on the same basis. In 1992, 19.0% of CAS members reported as female (https://www.casact.org/sites/default/files/2023-02/2022-Worldwide-Membership-Over-Time.pdf). In 1960, 2.2% of SOA members reported as female. (https://digitalcommons.bryant.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1008&context=honors_mathematics).