The Gold Award recognises an individual who:
- through their volunteer activities, contributes significantly to the Society’s key strategic programs and/or
- positively enhances the reputation of the profession
2025 Recipient
Adam Follington
Adam has been involved in setting up the Appointed Actuaries Forum since its inception in 2024. Initially he convened the working group which was established to investigate the feasibility of the Forum and advise Council. He expertly guided the working group through the issues that were identified so that it provided clear guidance to Council and a way forward. Once Council decided to proceed with the Forum, Adam took on the role of convenor and has continued to lead this piece of work. The Forum is now up and running and has just held its first very successful one-day event. The Forum provides a critical point of contact, development and sharing for both established Appointed Actuaries and those who are moving into these roles. Regulators are actively participating which provides an opportunity for members to use their expertise and knowledge to be more influential.
Over the past 12 months, Adam also led the Solvency Standards Working Group and championed changes to the second amendment to the Reserve Bank’s interim solvency standard, working effectively with members and the Reserve Bank to develop a more effective standard. The development of the solvency standard changes and the Appointed Actuaries Forum is due to the efforts of a number of people, however Adam’s leadership, positivity and tireless efforts have been central to its success and for this I believe he is a worthy recipient of the NZSA Gold Award.
Margaret Cantwell
Margaret has been a long serving member on numerous NZSA committees and working groups. She has been a member of the General Insurance Committee for over 10 years and was convenor for more than 3 years. Margaret demonstrates the epitome of leadership and “what good looks like” on a committee. In her tenure as leader of the GI Committee she has successfully led and delivered events of the highest calibre, and identified her successor and readied them for that role. She is a member of the Investigations Panel and has also served on the Solvency Standards Working Group. Margaret also recently led the Natural Hazards Insurance working group to ensure a high quality submission was completed within tight timeframes.
Margaret actively participates in the Society on committees and is also a regular attendee at events. She is prepared to “roll up her sleeves” to undertake work and is an excellent role model both in the leadership and the commitment she brings to the profession. Margaret’s continued diligence, commitment and contribution make her a worthy recipient of the Gold Award.
2024 Recipient
Catherine Johnston
Catherine has served on the Professional Development Committee and has been the convenor since 2019. During her time as convenor, she has successfully led the introduction of CPD audits from a pilot programme in 2021 to the completion of 2 full audits in 2022 and 2023 (and another underway in 2024).
The CPD audit is a best practice tool to verify that members are meeting the professional requirements of the NZSA. This gives assurance that our members continue to work to the highest standards which is the key objective under the NZSA strategic pillar of excellence.
The CPD audit program has been a significant piece of work and a number of members have contributed to it. However, under Catherine’s leadership it is now embedded in NZSA’s governance processes. Catherine is stepping down as convenor of the Professional Development Committee and we thank and recognise her efforts.
2020 Recipient
Ben Coulter
Ben has committed a huge amount of time and effort into both NZSA’s contribution to and response to IFRS17, but possibly more importantly, into building deep, constructive and trusted relationships with the accounting profession, the FSC and the RBNZ. Ben is Convenor of the NZSA IFRS17 Working Group and the NZ representative on the Australian Actuaries Institute IFRS17 Task Force. In addition, he has taken a lead role in the FSC’s IFRS17 working group, part of which involves interacting with RBNZ and considering the implication for the solvency standards.”
2019 Recipient
Christian Barrington
Christian is a long-time member and current convenor of the General Insurance Practice Committee. In this role he has led NZSA’s efforts around catastrophe risk, including leading a task force which has developed thoughtful and viable ways to upskill actuaries in this area. Christian also presented an excellent framework at the Conference, which will be an excellent reference for members going forward. Christian is also a well-respected representative of the NZSA with ICNZ.
2018 Recipient
Herwig Raubal
Herwig has performed an incredible service to the profession through his leadership of actuarial work in the Public Sector, leading to the social investment approach and a new range of career opportunities for actuaries. Alongside this, he has found time to be Convenor of the NZSA Professional Standards Committee for the last ten years.
2017 Recipient
Christine Ormrod
Christine has been a tireless worker for the profession. She has led the Retirement Income Interest Group for several years, most recently overseeing the production of the Rules of Thumb for decumulation, which were recognised by the Minister, the FMA and MBIE as being exactly the kind of advice New Zealanders need. Christine has been a fine representative for the profession, and brought much interest from the general public and other stakeholders. Alongside this role, Christine has also worked this year on New Zealand’s response to International Standards of Actuarial Practice.