Under the Spotlight – Sam Maitra

Title… Head of Actuarial Services

Organisation… Avant

Summarise yourself in one sentence… How about four words (see later)…

My interesting/quirky hobbies… I wish I was interesting and quirky enough to have such a hobby!

My favourite energetic pursuit… Hot Yoga the sport i most like to watch…

State of Origin… Go the Blues!

The last book i read… (Not counting kids story books)… Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

My favourite artist/album/film… Robert De Niro / Nirvana – Unplugged in New York /Taxi Driver

The person i’d most like to cook for… My wife

I’m most passionate about… My kids

What gets my goat… Queue jumpers and people who don’t walk in a straight line

I’d like to be brave enough to… Go scuba diving with my wife without freaking out

In my life i’m planning to change… Gradually

Not many people know this but I… am taller than I look

Four words that sum me up… Husband, father, happy, driven

What I wanted to be when I grew up… A garbage man (a tall one, I guess). In saying that, I do spend a lot of time (both at home and work) cleaning up other people’s…

Why and how I became an actuary… I liked maths in high school and I heard it paid well

Where I studied to become an actuary… Macquarie University

My work history… Have been lucky enough to work in a number of different roles across GI including consulting, corporate, reinsurance, a brief stint in Hong Kong and now in medical indemnity

What I find most interesting about my current role… Realising how actuaries can add value at the strategic level

My role’s greatest challenges… Keeping on top of it all

Who has been the biggest influence on my career (and why)… I have learnt more from Martin Edwards (my boss at Avant) in the last three years than I did in the 10 years prior

My proudest career achievement to date is… The team I have built at Avant. I couldn’t be more proud to lead a group of such capable, dedicated and good people

10 years from now, I will be… 46

When I retire, my legacy will be… The impact I had on the people I worked with

Why I’m proud to be an actuary… Because I love what I do for a living

The most valuable skill an actuary can possess is… Good instincts

If I were president of the institute, one thing I would improve is… The level of understanding high school students and university graduates have about their current job prospects following completion of an actuarial degree… every time I hear about grads having to work as bank tellers…

At least once in their life, every actuary should… Think strategically

My best advice for younger actuaries… Slow down, calm down, don’t worry, don’t hurry, trust the process

If I could travel back in time I would… Not change anything

If I win the lottery, I would… Probably keep working

CPD: Actuaries Institute Members can claim two CPD points for every hour of reading articles on Actuaries Digital.