The importance of staying organized to be effective (Kate Weaver – IABA)
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Bio
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Kate Weaver is the Executive Director of the International Association of Black Actuaries (IABA) and has been with the organization for 6 years. She is married and has 2 children. Her work and passion unite as her job brings together all of her strengths, which truly comes together to add great value to aspiring actuaries.
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Guiding Quote to Success
“Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today” – Benjamin Franklin
Kate’s Advice: Taking care of things today, and not letting them pile up, keeps things from getting overwhelming.
First Step of the Journey
Kate got her first taste of the business world at an early age. Her journey has taken her from marketing to event planning to teaching.
All of these past events all came together to prepare her for her ideal job as Executive Director of IABA.
Roadblock on the Journey
Whenever you lead or manage a team, project, organization, or people, some of the most challenging things involved are prioritizing and motivating and engaging volunteers to keep projects moving.
Running into bottlenecks or falling behind not only causes stress, but can also impact your studying. If you have to stay late at work to make sure a project gets out the door on time, or you spend all your time following-up on items multiple times, that’s going to impact the time you have left to study, how much willpower you have left to be motivated, and the strength of mind to actually absorb the information.
That’s why Kate’s suggestion to overcoming the roadblock of keeping volunteers on task is so applicable to your effectiveness.
Kate takes massive action on a daily basis as she lives her “Guiding Quote” consistently. However, as a manager of volunteers and projects, there are often things that she needs to rely on others to help her move forward in order to meet the necessary time frame.
Kate’s key takeaway to work with a group of people and get things done when they have competing demands? Have a back-up plan and put that plan into action as needed to keep things moving forward.
The step-by-step approach to project management that Kate shares is bound to be useful to all who listen.
Greatest Professional Success
In 2014, Kate took on planning that year’s IABA Annual Meeting.
For years, it had been put together by external vendors, and in an attempt to organize the meeting internally, Kate was tasked with planning it all.
The result? The event went off without a hitch, even in a new city. On top of that, they had a record year of attendance and fundraising, in addition to positive feedback.
Kate maintains that the foundation of this success came down to three things: excellent organization; a great back up plan; and dedicated people following through on what they said they’d do.
Kate goes on to provide some amazing insight on how to manage multiple projects and establish clear expectations with others. These skills are definitely things a well-organized actuary with multiple deadlines will want to master.
Most Excited About Now
Getting started on 2015 IABA Annual Meeting!
This year’s meeting will be in Downtown Miami the weekend of August 7-8, 2015.
Today’s Theme: How the International Association of Black Actuaries (IABA) and other Actuarial Communities help aspiring actuaries
Key highlights:
- The International Association of Black Actuaries is focused on increasing the number of Black Actuaries through Outreach, Communication, and Networks
- There are actuarial scholarships open for students (both undergraduate and graduate)
- There’s a 4 to 5 day in-person Actuarial Bootcamp that focuses on Soft skills held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting
- Two programs of mentoring: 1) Traditional Mentoring and 2) the Mentor Resource question – great ways to connect with people who have been through the ropes
- Networking opportunities including the Annual meeting and Local Affiliate events
- Journeyers – This is an organization you can be a part of even before your first designation.
Useful Resources For Actuarial Toolkit
- International Association of Black Actuaries (IABA) [website]
- 2015 IABA Annual Meeting Information (Aug 7 – 8 in Downtown Miami)
- IABA Resources including Presentations/Scholarships/Lessons
- Actuarial Students National Association [website]
- Atlantic Monthly (overall: finding a magazine or newspaper that keep you current on trends) [Free Audio Book]
- Doodle – Meeting Schedule application that allows you to find out a group’s availability
Making the Connection
Want to get in touch with Kate?
Reach out to her through the IABA Website or email her!
Want more help with your journey?
- Create a study plan you’ll actually stick to!: This free video series will show you the step-by-step process to create you own Personalized Study Roadmap and design your Study Lifestyle
- Actuarial Job Course: a completely free full-length course with videos, worksheets, tools, and community all geared to help your get your entry-level actuarial job and start your actuarial career.
- Actuarial Journey Podcast: Get more insights and lessons learned 4 days a week sent directly to your phone!
- Actuarial Community: Feeling alone on your journey? Become a part of the Actuarial Journey Community!
- Time-Saving Exam Smartcuts Guide: Free downloadable guide sharing exam strategies that are not only focused on shaving off study hours, but saving you months and years of studying all together