3 Discovery Phase Conclusions

The exploratory phase of the project was a necessary and insightful experience. Its purpose was to establish an appropriate niche for the project and to identify a means to demonstrate R’s potential use to actuaries.

This discovery period helped in several key ways:

1. As detailed above, the “R for Actuaries” talks were an invaluable resource. They provided key initial information regarding R’s strengths, as well as identifying potential benefits over Excel.
2. The interviews shaped the group’s understanding of the actuarial industry. The experience and knowledge of industry professionals was particularly useful in trying to identify potential areas which may benefit from the use of R.
3. Both the talks and the interviews contributed to the understanding of why R has not yet been widely adopted in the pensions and life sectors. In order to encourage further use of R, it is essential that tangible examples of its benefits are demonstrated to actuaries.

Moving forward, it was decided to focus mainly on the pensions sector. It was believed that implementing R in this area had the greatest potential. In order to showcase the potential strengths of R, it was concluded that an application should be developed. A functional display of R’s capabilities would serve as a useful example of R’s potential. It was agreed that R Shiny would be the perfect tool to demonstrate this. The app would be useful in and of itself, and also serve as inspiration to current actuaries.