Associate

WTW•Philadelphia, PA

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Associate will work within the Retirement Line of Business at Willis Towers Watson US LLC in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The role provides actuarial support for pension and retiree welfare plans, including accounting and funding valuations under US GAAP, IFRS, and ERISA regulations. Responsibilities include processing, reconciling, and reviewing annual census data; producing and reviewing system-generated plan liabilities; and developing and reviewing financial reporting results and formal actuarial reports. The Associate conducts forecasting and modeling of future benefit obligations for retirement and other post-retirement plans to support client budgeting. The role assists with setting year-end financial disclosure assumptions, including discount rates, expected returns on assets, and mortality tables. It also calculates benefits reflected in proxy statements and reviews those statements for accurate reporting. The position monitors market conditions and government rulings that may affect benefit plans and communicates relevant changes to clients. It reviews actuarial valuation assumptions through plan experience studies and manages multiple client projects by organizing status meetings, documenting discussions, structuring timelines, and championing professional excellence.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree (U.S. or foreign equivalent) in Actuarial Science, Mathematics, Statistics, or a related quantitative field.
One year of experience as an Actuarial Analyst or in a related role.
Experience collaborating with consultants on team projects providing actuarial services to clients in industries such as manufacturing, utilities, investments, legal, insurance, and health care.
Experience with databases, dataset analysis and data reconciliation, project management, and report writing.
Experience contributing to retirement plan design and union negotiations, including assessing liabilities and preparing cost estimates.
Experience conducting asset and liability projection modeling based on funding policy and economic scenarios to determine funded status, net periodic benefit cost, and minimum required contributions.
Experience working with US GAAP, IAS 19, ERISA, FASB, Department of Labor, Pension Protection Act, and other government regulations.
Experience conducting experience studies to improve plan valuation assumptions, including termination and retirement rates, salary scale, disability incidence rates, form of payment election rates, spousal age difference, retiree medical participation rates, and mortality credibility analysis.
Proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.
Experience utilizing actuarial valuation systems.
Experience with discount rate and pension benefit forecasting models.
Exam progress toward designation as an Associate of the Society of Actuaries (ASA).

Responsibilities

Perform accounting and funding valuations for pension and retiree welfare plans in accordance with US GAAP, IFRS, and ERISA regulations.
Process, reconcile, and review annual census data for plan populations.
Produce and review system-generated plan liabilities.
Develop and review financial reporting results and formal actuarial reports.
Conduct forecasting and modeling of future benefit obligations for retirement and other post-retirement plans to support annual client budgets.
Assist in setting assumptions for year-end financial disclosure, including discount rates, expected returns on assets, and mortality tables.
Calculate benefits reflected in proxy statements and review statements for accurate reporting.
Monitor market conditions and government rulings that could affect benefit plans, and relay relevant changes to clients.
Review actuarial valuation assumptions by conducting plan experience studies, including retirement, termination, disability incidence, salary increase, form of payment election, spousal age difference, and retiree medical participation rates.
Manage multiple client projects by organizing periodic status meetings, documenting discussion notes, structuring project timelines, and championing professional excellence.