EXHIBIT Y Examination Interviews

EXHIBIT Y – EXAMINATION INTERVIEWS

Overview

Interviews are a useful examination tool to gather information about key activities, risks, and risk mitigation strategies. Employees can also provide information on fraudulent activity within the company. It is critical for the examination team to understand and leverage the company’s risk management program; that is how the company identifies, controls, monitors, evaluates and responds to its risks. The discipline and structure of risk management programs vary dramatically from company to company. Interviews should be performed in the early stages of the examination so that regulators can adjust their procedures accordingly. An examiner can perform alternate, additional, or fewer substantive and control tests as a result of interviews with the company. The regulator should consider branded risks when identifying risks.

Interviews should be conducted with key members within management of the company as well as members of the board of directors, audit committee, internal/external auditors and any other employees deemed necessary. These interviews can be used at the beginning of the examination or at any time during the examination as necessary. However, a basic understanding of the company is essential to obtain prior to conducting interviews. Examiners should consider the size and complexity of the organization in determining which individuals to interview. This interview process is a key step in the top down approach, beginning with senior management and then drilling down through the various levels of management to obtain a thorough understanding of the organization to assist in scoping the examination. In order to select the individuals to interview, the examiners should obtain an organizational chart from the company and compile a list of potential interviewees. Interviews of board members and senior company management should be conducted by examiners who possess the appropriate background and training such as CFE’s and examiners-in-charge and above.

Interviews should be performed in person if possible. This allows the interviewer to received both verbal and nonverbal communication. The interviews should be kept confidential when possible; however, if a significant fraud or other pertinent issue was discovered through the interviews, the regulator has a duty to report the conflict to the appropriate officials.

The examiner should conduct the interview in a location where both parties are free to talk openly. The examiner should ask relevant questions with the most general questions posed first as building blocks for additional conversation. The examiner may want to consider alternating between open ended questions (i.e. Explain to me how this process works) vs. closed ended questions (i.e. How many claim processors do you have in your department?) to obtain the information. Open ended questions are generally better suited for explanation and processes while the closed ended questions are better suited to obtain concise information. The examiner should be prepared, listen carefully, and focus on the speaker’s entire message as well as non-verbal expressions during the interview process.

Since information obtained from the interview serves as important evidence in the examination process, the examiner should develop techniques to plan, conduct, document, and consider interview information. It is essential that the examiner consider the information in association with other examination evidence, including a careful review of the financial data. The interview information may verify, or oppose the assisting data.

NOTE: The following template was prepared to assist examiners in obtaining a general knowledge of the company through the interview process. The examiner performing the interview should not rely exclusively on this template and should tailor questions based on knowledge of the company and the interviewee. Each section of the template is described below to assist the examiner in tailoring the template to the interviewee. Instructions

Experience and Background – In this section, the examiner should determine the knowledge, education and practical experience of the interviewee possesses. When obtaining background information on board/committee members, the examiner should consider whether the interviewee is independent of the company. If the examiner has obtained sufficient information from the interviewee’s biography, questioning may not be necessary.

Duties and Responsibilities – In this section, the examiner should obtain information about what responsibilities the interviewee has within the organization including any potential conflicting duties. When interviewing board/committee members, the examiner should determine whether the interviewee demonstrates a proper understanding of how management establishes and monitors achievement of objectives. In addition, board members should be able to explain what company information they monitor on a continuing basis.

Reporting Structure – In the reporting section, the examiner should gain an understanding of the organizational structure and how the interviewee’s department interrelates with other departments. Examiners should obtain information on who reports to the interviewee as well as whom the interviewee reports to, what information is being reported and reviewed and how often.

Ethics – In the ethics section, the examiner should obtain information explaining how ethics are communicated and expressed throughout the company. The examiner should also determine if the interviewee is aware of any fraudulent activities or allegations of fraudulent activities impacting the company. When interviewing board members, the examiner should determine whether the board is reviewing and enforcing the code of conduct on a continuing basis.

Risk Areas – In this section, the examiner should ask the interviewee to explain the risks inherent in his/her department or area of interest. Inquiring about risks will assist the examiner in completing Phase 2, Identify and Assess Inherent Risk in Activities. In addition to interviewing board members and upper management about risks inherent to the company, the examiner should also obtain information regarding types of external/environmental factors affecting the company.

Risk Mitigation Strategies – In this section, the examiner should ask the interviewee to explain how the company mitigates risks identified in the previous section. This information should include what controls are in place to prevent or detect those risks. Inquiring about risk mitigation strategies will assist the examiner in Phase 3, Identify and Evaluate Risk Mitigation Strategies (Controls).

Corporate Strategy – This section only pertains to board/committee members and upper management. The examiner should ask the interviewee to explain the corporate strategic initiatives of the company. In addition, the examiner should determine how the company prepares strategic plans for the future of the company and what competitive advantages/disadvantages exist within the company.

Other Topics – The examiner should obtain information regarding any other topics not previously discussed in this section. Some topics include significant turnover in his/her department, political or regulatory changes that may affect business and prospective risks. Examination Interview Template

Interviewer: Interviewee: Date & Time: Title/Position of Interviewee:

Experience and Background Academic:

Business:

Duties and Responsibilities

Reporting Structure

Ethics

Risk Areas

Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)

Corporate Strategy Examination Interview Template

Other Topics

NOTE: The following lists of questions represent optional tools for examiners to use when conducting examination interviews. Lists have been created for several key positions of the company which are commonly interviewed during the examination process. Each list includes questions that have been customized based upon the company position that the examiners may consider asking during the interview. It is important to note that the actual questions asked during the examination interview process should be at the discretion of the interviewer. Not all questions included in the listing may be appropriate for each interview. In addition, the interviewer should ask additional questions not included in the listing according to the examiner’s understanding of the company. Interview Questions for a Board or Committee Member

Experience and Background  How many years have you been on the board/committee?  Briefly explain your past experiences/positions you have held.  Explain your educational background.  Are you independent of the company?

Duties and Responsibilities  Briefly describe your duties and responsibilities including what company information you monitor on a continuous basis.  What areas are discussed and what type of decisions are made by the board/committee?  How does management establish objectives and how do you monitor achievement of those objectives?  Explain your relationship with the internal/external auditors. Shareholders. CEO.  Does the board/committee review related party transactions?  How often does the board/committee meet? In your opinion, is this sufficient?  Do you feel the board receives sufficient information to make informed decisions on behalf of the company?

Reporting Structure  Explain the reporting structure including who reports to the board/committee.  Describe your interactions with senior management. How frequent are these interactions?

Ethics  How does the board promote a positive “tone at the top”?  How does the board obtain an understanding of the “tone” throughout the organization?  Does the company have a code of conduct/ethics in place? Is it enforced? Approved?  Explain the commitment to ethics by the board/committee and explain how the board/committee conveys that commitment to employees.  How do you feel the company compares to others in terms of its position on ethics?  Do you have any knowledge or suspicion of fraud within the company?

Risk Areas  What key risks do you monitor as a member of the board/committee? - How do you monitor the risks? - Are the risks monitored the key risks of the company based on your opinion?  Describe any external/environmental factors of concern to the board/committee and how they are monitored and evaluated.  What type of business/prospective risks do you foresee in the company’s future?

Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)  How often do you receive reports from management on the internal controls of the company? - What information is reported?  Does the board approve an annual business plan?  Is the level of risk and return included in the approved annual business plan? - If not, does the board approve the risk appetite of the firm in any way?  Does the board review any type of risk adjustment (i.e. worst case, expected, best case)?  How does the board gain comfort with total exposures and the risk return trade-offs?  Are risks measured or quantified for the board to understand? (i.e., RAROC, VAR, CAPM, Sharpe, other models or measurers, etc.)  Does the board ensure that the financial objectives of the firm (earnings, ROE, ROA, etc.) are compatible with the level of risk embedded in the business plan and the constraints faced by the firm, such as maximum leverage or operational limitations?  Is there a level of capital commitment that requires the board approval prior to the execution of a transaction?

Corporate Strategy  Where is the company headed strategically? What type of plan is in place to implement this strategy? Has it been approved? How is it being monitored?  Is the corporate strategy effectively communicated between senior management and the rest of the company?  Explain strengths/weaknesses/opportunities/threats (SWOT) of the company and how the company responds to each.

Other Topics  Explain any significant turnover in senior management or on the board/committee.  What type of succession planning does the company have?  Describe any other competencies/skills that can be added to the board.  Is the current size of the board sufficient? Interview Questions for a Chief Executive Officer

Experience and Background  How many years have you been with the company?  Were you hired as the CEO or promoted from within?  What previous positions have you held?  Tell me about your background.  What is your educational experience?  What designations do you have?  What is the general experience of your direct reports?

Duties and Responsibilities  What are your company’s objectives and how do you monitor them?  How do you support the operations and administration of the board?  How do you lead your organization?  What is your senior management selection process? - Do you often hire from the outside or promote within?  What is your agenda as CEO? - How is that agenda being implemented across the organization? - How do you gauge the effectiveness of its deployment?

Reporting Structure  Explain the reporting structure including to whom you report as well as those reporting to you.  Explain the function and reporting structure of your senior management team. - How often are you in contact with them?  Describe your relationship with the Board of Directors.

Ethics  Explain your commitment to ethics and how you convey that commitment within your organization.  Do you feel your management team exhibits good ethical standards?  What do you think about the ethical standards of the board members?  Are there ethics training course that are required of all employees?  Do you know of or suspect any fraud within the organization?  How would you compare the company’s position on ethics to other companies?  Do you have a written ethics code?  How is your ethics code enforced?

Risk Areas  What are your company’s risks?  What risks are you most concerned with as CEO? - Are these risks communicated to your senior management level team? Throughout the company?  How are these risks influenced by the company’s strategy?  How has the company articulated its risk tolerance?  Describe the external/environmental risk factors of concern to management.  Explain how you identify new and emerging risks in the market?  How do you identify new and emerging risks within your corporation?  What company programs are in place to detect risk?  Explain your process for anticipating extreme risks. Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)  What is the formal procedure for reporting on risk management to senior management and the Board?  Identify the risks that are presently the most significant and how they are being managed?  Explain your commitment to the internal control structure?  Explain what tools or reports you utilize to make key business decisions.  Describe what preparations are in place to respond to extreme conditions  What is your company’s plan for operating in crisis/disaster – business continuity?  Explain your process of preparing for and measuring the impact of extreme events.  From a strategic perspective, how are risks addressed across all business units and entities?

Corporate Strategy  What is your corporate strategy?  Describe how the strategy is implemented within the business.  What are your plans for retaining and growing the business?  Do you do a SWOT analysis and how to you manage it?  What are your top areas of concern for the company in the upcoming year and how those concerns being managed?  How do you identify and manage changes in business conditions?  What gives your company an edge? Disadvantages?  What risks does do you face competitively?  What key measures do you assess to evaluate your company’s performance and competitive position?  If part of a Holding Company: - How does the holding company contribute to the company’s strategy? - How might the holding company be impacted by the company’s strategy?  Is corporate strategy a key discussion between you and your direct reports? - How often is it discussed?

Other Topics  What political or regulatory environment issues do you see on the horizon that may affect your business and what steps are you taking to address these issues?  What are your short-term and long-term goals? Interview Questions for a Chief Financial Officer/Controller

Experience and Background  How many years have you been with the company?  Briefly explain your past experiences/positions you have held.  Describe your educational background.

Duties and Responsibilities  Briefly describe your duties and responsibilities, including the preparation and information flow of financial reports.  How is your performance evaluated? Is it based on the performance of the company?  Describe your involvement in regulatory compliance.  Does your company have a Code of conduct/ethics in place? Is it enforced? Approved?

Reporting Structure  Explain the reporting structure including who you report to and who reports to you. How often?  How would you describe your relationship with the board of directors? Internal/external auditors? Compliance officer?  How is financial information disclosed to the board/shareholders/creditors/others?

Ethics  Does your company have a code of conduct/ethics in place? Is it enforced? Approved?  Explain your commitment to ethics and explain how you convey that commitment to your employees.  How do you feel your company compares to others in terms of its position on ethics?  Do you have any knowledge or suspicion of fraud within the company?  Have you ever had to take a position on an accounting/reporting issue or make an adjustment to the financial statements that you were uncomfortable with or did not fully understand?

Risk Areas  What key risks do you monitor in your position? - What reports or other means do you utilize to evaluate the risks? - How do the key risks align with the company’s overall risks?  Do you monitor risks relevant to specific components or divisions within the entity?  How do you identify new and emerging risks?  What kind of financial incentives are used throughout the company? Do you have any?  Describe any external/environmental factors of concern to management and how they are monitored and evaluated.  What type of business/prospective risks do you foresee in the company’s future?

Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)  Describe the financial reporting process, including validation of financial information, review and approval, and distribution.  What internal controls are in place to mitigate risks in your department?  Do you discuss with the audit committee/board of directors how the internal control system serves the company?  Describe the methodology used for estimations (i.e. loss reserves, etc.) including how they are performed, reviewed and approved.  How has the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 affected the company, if at all? Holding company?  Explain the budgeting and planning process.  Explain the month/year-end close process including manual journal entries and approvals.  Describe any current accounting issues pending resolution or recently resolved. Past issues?  What is the process for adopting/implementing accounting guidance?

Corporate Strategy  Where is the company headed strategically? What type of plan is in place to implement this strategy? Has it been approved by the board?  Do you and other upper management meet regularly to discuss corporate strategy? How is it communicated with other employees of the company?  Explain strengths/weaknesses/opportunities/threats (SWOT) of the company and how the company responds to each.

Other Topics  How are related party transactions approved and recorded and is a report on related party transactions provided to shareholders?  Describe any differences between company’s accounting standards and international accounting standards.  Explain any political or regulatory environment issues that may affect your business in the future. How is the company addressing these?  Is the accounting department adequately staffed?  Has there been any turnover in your department?  What are your short-term and long-term goals for your area? Interview Questions for a Chief Operating Officer

Note: Several different functions/processes could report to the Chief Operating Officer. The examiner will likely need to tailor interview questions to these specific functions (i.e. Human Resources).

Duties and Responsibilities  Briefly describe your duties and responsibilities.  Describe the major processes you supervise.  How is your performance evaluated?

Reporting Structure  Explain the reporting structure including who you report to and who reports to you. How often?  How are goals determined and performance evaluated?  How would you describe your relationship with the CEO? Other upper management?

Ethics  Does your company have a code of conduct/ethics in place? Is it enforced? Approved?  Explain your commitment to ethics and explain how you convey that commitment to your employees.  Do you feel the company’s ethics training and position on ethics is sufficient?  Do you have any knowledge or suspicion of fraud within the company?

Risk Areas  What key risks do you monitor in your position? - What reports or other means do you utilize to evaluate the risks? - How do the key risks align with the company’s overall risks?  Do you monitor risks relevant to specific components or divisions within the entity?  How do you identify new and emerging risks?  How are goals determined and performance evaluated?  Describe any external/environmental factors of concern to management and how they are monitored and evaluated.  What type of business/prospective risks do you foresee in the company’s future?

Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)  What internal controls are in place to mitigate risks in the processes you supervise?  Do you discuss with the audit committee/board of directors how the internal control system serves the company? Upper management?  How has the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 affected the company, if at all? Holding company?

Corporate Strategy  Where is the company headed strategically? What type of plan is in place to implement this strategy? How does the strategy impact activities within your department?  Explain strengths/weaknesses/opportunities/threats (SWOT) of the company and how the company responds to each.

Other Topics  Has there been any turnover in your department?  What are your short-term and long-term goals for your area? Interview Questions for an Internal Auditor

Duties and Responsibilities  Briefly describe your duties and responsibilities. How much of your department’s time is allocated to SOX, business process reviews, compliance?  Do you perform any management or accounting functions?  How is your performance evaluated?  How are audit findings communicated to the company? The board/audit committee?  How do you monitor/follow up on audit findings?  Are any internal audit functions outsourced?

Reporting Structure  Explain the reporting structure including who you report to and who reports to you. How often?  How would you describe your relationship with the board of directors/audit committee? External auditors? Compliance officer?

Ethics  Does the company have a code of conduct/ethics in place? Is it enforced? Approved?  Explain your commitment to ethics and explain how you convey that commitment to your employees.  How do you feel your company compares to others in terms of its position on ethics?  Do you have any knowledge or suspicion of fraud within the company?  Are you independent of the company?

Risk Areas  What key risks do you monitor in your position? - What reports or other means do you utilize to evaluate the risks?  Do you monitor risks relevant to specific components or divisions within the entity?  How do you identify new and emerging risks?  Describe any external/environmental factors of concern to management and how they are monitored and evaluated.  What type of business/prospective risks do you foresee in the company’s future?  What risk-based methodology does the company use?

Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)  What internal controls are in place to mitigate risks in the company?  Do you discuss with the audit committee/board of directors how the internal control system serves the company? How often?  How has the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 affected the company, if at all? Holding company? Internal audit department?  Describe any internal control issues discussed during the most recent audits.  Do you review the company’s application of accounting guidance?  How do identified risks direct the audit plan? Corporate Strategy  Explain strengths/weaknesses/opportunities/threats (SWOT) of the company and how the company responds to each.

Other Topics  Is the internal audit department adequately staffed?  Describe your staff’s experience and background. Do they have public accounting experience? Are they certified public accountants or certified internal auditors?  Has there been any turnover in your department?  Who hires internal audit members?  What are your short-term and long-term goals for your area? Interview Questions for Investment Management

Experience and Background  How many years have you been with the company?  What previous positions have you held?  Tell me about your background.  What is your educational experience?  What designations do you hold?

Duties and Responsibilities  What are your company’s investment objectives and how do you monitor them? - Are they written?  Describe the governance structure over investments?  How do you support the Board of Directors/CEO/CFO?  Are there written investment guidelines that the company must follow?  Do you or others monitor them for compliance?

Reporting Structure  Describe the organizational structure of the investment function?  What are the reporting lines and how often are reports made?  Are formal/informal status meetings conducted?  Describe your relationship with the Board of Directors and the CEO.  What is the composition and role of the investment committee and how independent is that committee from operational management? - How often do they meet? - What are their areas of concern? - In general terms, what is the education/experience of your staff?

Ethics  Do you feel your CEO/CFO exhibits good ethical standards?  What do you think about the ethical standards of the board members?  Do you know of or suspect any fraud within the organization?  Are there ethics training courses held on a yearly (or regular) basis?  How do you feel the ethical standards of this company compare to other companies?

Risk Areas  What is the company’s risk tolerance for investments?  How has the company articulated its risk tolerance?  How does the company monitor risks related to investments (interest rate risk, credit risk, etc.)?  How does the company review its risk/reward tradeoff?  What is the company’s current risk exposure level? - Is the risk level increasing or decreasing?  How does the company determine its asset allocation strategy?  How are assets and liabilities matched at the company?  Describe your investment selection process.  What investment types do you focus on?

Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)  What internal controls exist to ensure adherence to investment policies and procedures?  How is performance and compliance gauged (both with statutory rules and internal investment policies)?  Who monitors potential impairment issues? - How often?  Provide examples of potentially troublesome results that may have resulted in the past and the types of management actions that have been taken as a result.  What controls and authorizations are in place to transfer money?  Are all transactions approved by senior management?  How does the company monitor and determine the value for its Schedule BA investments?

Corporate Strategy  How do you identify and manage changes in business conditions?  Is the company-wide strategy clearly communicated to the rest of the company by senior management? - How does that impact your department goals/activities?

Other Topics  What are your long-term and short-term goals for the division? Interview Questions for a Legal Counsel

Experience and Background  How many years have you been an attorney for the company?  Briefly explain your past experiences/positions you have held.  Describe your educational background.

Duties and Responsibilities  Briefly describe your duties and responsibilities.  Explain any significant (use a pre-determined threshold) lawsuits/legal actions outstanding against the company?  Are the number of lawsuits fluctuating or remaining constant?  How do you identify any potential legal issues that may arise within the company?

Reporting Structure  Explain the reporting structure including who you report to and who reports to you. How often?

Ethics  Do you feel the company’s ethics training and position on ethics is sufficient?  Do you have any knowledge or suspicion of fraud within the company?

Risk Areas  Are there any risks that could represent financial solvency concerns for the company?  What type of business/prospective risks do you foresee in the company’s future?

Other Topics  Has there been any turnover in your department?  What are your short-term and long-term goals for your area?  Do you know of any regulatory or political changes that may affect the company?  Describe your staff’s experience. Do they have law firm experience? Interview Questions for Chief Risk Officer/Company Risk Officers

Duties and Responsibilities  How does your role/function relate to, or how is it integrated with SOX, internal audit, or other departments?  How do you support the Board of Directors/CEO/CFO? - How frequently is your interaction with them?  Explain to me the major projects taking place and how do you divide your departments time (i.e. what are the areas of focus)?  Do you publish reports/finding? - Who do they go to?  Describe the functions your team is in charge of.

Reporting Structure  Describe your team and their roles that support of your division’s function.  Is there a board-level committee or other group that you report to? - How independent is that group from your area of management? - What is their role and how do you interact with them?  Describe those who have been involved (your team, internal audit, operational areas, consultants, external auditors, etc.) and their roles in the SOX compliance process.  Describe the experience/education of your staff (generally).  Are there any financial ties to company profits within your compensation package?

Ethics  Are there company-wide policies and procedures that include a code of ethics? - If so, describe them.  Do you feel your CEO/CFO exhibits good ethical standards?  What do you think about the ethical standards of the board members?  Do you know of or suspect any fraud within the organization?  How are conflicts of interest monitored?  Does your organization have a whistle blowing procedure?  Is required ethics training scheduled for employees periodically?

Risk Areas  Explain the process to identify new and emerging risk.  How is risk diversified within the company?  How has the company articulated its risk tolerance to employees/senior management/BOD?  Is the area of risk a common topic of discussion amongst senior management?  What is your current risk exposure level?  Is your risk level increasing or decreasing?  What are the most significant risks facing the company?  What company programs are in place to detect risk?  Does the company have a process in place to envision the significance of extreme risk (i.e. stress testing or liquidity risk analysis)?

Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)  Does the organization structure allow for proper segregation of duties?  What internal controls exist to ensure adherence to company policies and procedures? Regulatory procedures?  What procedures are in place to diversify risks?  How does the company transfer risks?  How does the company identify risks related to product development and new products?  What strategies are used for managing the most significant risk facing the company?  Are executive officers and management team members required to disclose personal business or family relationships with organizations your company invests in?  Describe any compliance related training conducted by the organization? - Is the training required?  Describe your organization’s disaster preparedness plans.  How does the company’s strategy complement/mitigate the company’s risks?  Describe the nature of this business, the target market, nature of contracts, average size or range of values and the risk management processes that are in place to mitigate identified risk.  Are quality reviews performed by internal auditors or other means within the company?  Describe the major processes that have been subjected to testing through SOX?  What is the nature and extent of incentive compensation?  How are goals set and performance evaluated? - How is that linked to responsibility and accountability? - How does all of that impact the divisional level?

Corporate Strategy  What SWOT do you see for the company? - How does it affect your responsibilities  How do you identify and manage changes in business conditions?  If part of a Holding Company: - How does the holding company contribute to the company’s strategy? - How might the holding company be impacted by the company’s strategy?

Other Topics  How does top management shape the organization’s risk culture?  Do you have an organizational-wide integrated risk management framework?  What are your long-term and short-term goals for the division? Interview Questions for Underwriting

Duties and Responsibilities  Describe the company’s book of business. - Program business, treaty, facultative - Mix of property/liability - Mix of excess/quota share  Are there written underwriting guidelines that the company must follow? - Do you or others monitor them for compliance?  How do you determine if you are you underwriting the cases you should?  Do you feel your organization’s underwriting philosophy is more conservative or liberal compared to similar organizations?  Do you have a documented procedure for following actual loss to expected loss ratios?  Describe how your underwriters’ skill levels are developed?  Does your staff handle an appropriate number of cases?  Do you have a written best practices checklist which includes quality standards?  Do you monitor regulatory compliance?  Do you evaluate your staff by the number of cases underwritten or by complexity of cases?  What reports do you use to monitor underwriting activity?

Reporting Structure  Explain the overall structure of the Underwriting Department.  Is there an underwriting committee? - How is it organized and who are its members?  To whom do you report and who reports to you?  What is the educational/experience level of your staff?  How often do you communicate with the CFO/CEO/BOD? - Do you provide them with any specific reports?

Ethics  How do you monitor your brokers with compliance regarding your policies?  How do you determine if your brokers are accepting the right block of business?  How do you feel the ethical standards of this company compare to other companies?  Does the company require training for ethics for underwriters and brokers?  Are the code of ethics adhered to by senior management, CEO, CFO and BOD? - Do you feel that they set the “tone at the top?”

Risk Areas  Describe the development and approval process for new products?  Are there approved underwriting guidelines? - Are they updated on a regular basis?  Is there a company underwriting manual?  Explain the underwriting authorization levels.  What are some examples of business turned down and why were they turned down?  Which lines of business performed well/poorly in the past?  What percent of your cases are automatically underwritten vs. manually underwritten?  What other risks have you identified?

Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)  What controls are in place to ensure underwriting guidelines are followed?  Describe the controls in place to ensure correct contractual language and rates are used.  Who monitors the brokers to ensure compliance with underwriting standards?  Who are the responsible parties to ensure monitoring procedures are properly carried out?  How often are underwriting audits performed and who performs them?  How do you ensure that what is underwritten gets entered as premium correctly? - Is there an interface that does it automatically? - If so, who monitors it for accuracy?  How does the underwriting function fit into the overall corporate strategy?  Is it communicated well by senior management/BOD/CEO/CFO?

Corporate Strategy  Give a general description of product pricing.  How is premium adequacy maintained?  Explain the process for review of files and the benefit from significant depth in underwriting experience and knowledge.  Explain the company’s competitive advantages and disadvantages - What are you doing to capitalize on their advantages? - How are you compensating for their disadvantages?

Other Topics  Describe the interaction of the underwriting function with brokers.  What is the compensation/commission structure for each distribution channel?  What are your long-term and short-term goals for the division? Interview Questions for Chief Actuary

Duties and Responsibilities  Briefly describe your duties and responsibilities.  Describe the major processes you supervise.  How is your performance evaluated? Is it based on the performance of the company?

Reporting Structure  Explain the overall structure of the actuarial function of the company.  Is there a reserving committee? - How is it organized and who are its members? - How are differences resolved?  To whom do you report and who reports to you?  What are the size, educational qualifications, and experience level of the reserving staff?  How often do you communicate with the CFO/CEO/BOD? - Do you provide them with any specific reports?  Do at least some of the Board/Audit Committee members demonstrate an understanding of the variability inherent in the reserves?  What is management’s influence on the booked reserve?

Ethics  How do you feel the ethical standards of this company compare to other companies?  Are the code of ethics adhered to by senior management, CEO, CFO and BOD? - Do you feel that they set the “tone at the top?”

Risk Areas  Have there been changes in the appointed actuary in recent years, and, if so, how often have such changes occurred and why?  What is the current reinsurance program and how has it changed over the past 10 years? - What rationale led to the changes that have occurred? - Who participates in the reinsurance decisions?

Risk Mitigation Strategies (Internal Controls)  What controls are in place to ensure reserving guidelines are followed?  Who determines what reserves will be booked in the financial statements quarterly? Annually?  How often are full reserve analyses performed?  Does the company book to the actuary’s point estimate, or is there a monitored gap?  Is there a monitoring system in place for interim reviews, and if so, what does that system entail? - What actions are taken as a result of the monitoring?  How is the data segmented for the reserve study?  Are separate analyses conducted for certain unique types of losses (e.g., construction defects, class actions, catastrophes, environmental)?  Is the opinion signed by a company actuary or a consultant?  Does the company use commercial software or “homegrown” spreadsheets? What controls are in place to check for errors?  How are pricing and underwriting monitoring integrated into the reserving process?  Is there a peer review of the reserving actuary’s work and who performs it?  How much reliance does the Appointed Actuary place on the work of others?

Corporate Strategy  Give a general description of the company’s reserving philosophy.

Other Topics  What is the quality of the Actuarial Report with respect to completeness and clarity of documentation?