The importance of actuarial models cannot be overemphasized. Actuaries use models to develop premium rates, calculate reserves and make financial projections. On the other hand, model risk is an important risk factor because a slight modeling glitch may cause significant financial impacts. A modeling actuary has the ultimate responsibility to understand a model inside out and ensure its accuracy and auditability.
What We Do
We provide technical advisory, programming and training services for actuarial modeling teams and individual practitioners to:
build open-source actuarial models using R programming language.
This modeling approach advocated by us enables actuarial practitioners and organizations to achieve the following goals:
- Model transparency
- Flexibility in model customization
- Collaboration among modelers
- Low cost
Rgogo Actuarial Modeling Framework
We use Rgogo Actuarial Modeling Framework to build actuarial models.
Rgogo project is an open-source initiative for actuarial modeling. Its goal is to empower modelers to build sophisticated actuarial models using R programming language with ease and flexibility.
Rgogo Framework provides building blocks for constructing an actuarial model. Each block represents a conceptual component such as an insurance product, a coverage, a table, an assumption, a valuation method, etc. A modeler can simply construct a model with Rgogo’s built-in objects without worrying about the complex formulae and calculation details that are encapsulated inside individual blocks. A modeler can also expand his/her own toolbox by creating new building blocks or customizing existing ones.
To know more about Rgogo Actuarial Modeling Framework, please visit Rgogo website.
Open-Source Approach for Modeling
In a nutshell, open-source software allows free use, distribution, source code modification and customization for both personal and commercial purposes.
Open-source approach is the key to model transparency, flexibility in customizing models and low cost. The basic software tools required for building actuarial models using R include R language environment, R libraries and database engines. All of them have versions distributed under open-source licenses and can be downloaded freely from internet.
To learn how you can get started with actuarial modeling with R, click here.
Why R Programming Language?
R programming language has gained popularity among data scientists and actuaries in recent years. It has wide applications in data analytics and machine learning. Syntax and features of R also make it a perfect tool for traditional actuarial modeling projects such as valuation and pricing.
To learn why actuaries should consider using R in traditional actuarial modeling work and the advantages of using R to build in-house models over using commercial actuarial software, read the blog below:
Life insurance actuarial modeling with R.