Over the last decade, the concept of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) has gained significant momentum in the insurance industry and beyond. This came with the recognition of risk as being something not per se to be avoided, but to be optimally exploited in the frame of a company’s risk appetite. ERM is going beyond traditional risk management in that it is holistic, and encompasses strategic risk management as well as risk culture.

Actuaries should see this as an opportunity to broaden their role, and to show that they are ideally equipped to carry out tasks in the field of ERM. Against this backdrop, in November 2009, several actuarial associations launched the CERA credential as a global risk management designation for actuaries. CERA pursues the following goals:

• Strengthen international recognition of the actuarial profession’s enterprise risk management (ERM) expertise
• Promote the development of more actuaries internationally with training in ERM
• Present new opportunities for actuaries worldwide to use their expertise in an expanding range of areas
• Send a strong message to employers and candidates that the skill set of actuaries offers significant risk management expertise

The EAA offers a series of training courses and exams to study for the CERA designation to all actuaries who want to deepen their knowledge in ERM.