Milliman

Milliman is an international actuarial and consulting firm founded in 1947 in the United States. The firm provides actuarial, benefits, healthcare, investment, and risk-management services to a wide range of clients, including insurers, employers, governments, and financial institutions. Milliman is known for its actuarial research, benchmarking studies, and software tools that support decision-making across insurance, healthcare, and employee benefits sectors.

History

Founded by Wendell Milliman and Stuart A. Robertson in the late 1940s in Seattle, the firm established early links with regional insurers, pension plans, and industrial employers. During the postwar period, expansion paralleled growth in life insurance, pension administration, and the rise of large corporate benefit programs, leading to regional offices across North America. In subsequent decades, the firm broadened services to include healthcare consulting, property and casualty actuarial practice, investment consulting, and enterprise risk management. Strategic hires and the acquisition of boutique practices enabled entry into international markets, aligning with global trends exemplified by firms like Marsh & McLennan Companies, Willis Towers Watson, Aon, and Deloitte. The firm adapted to regulatory changes influenced by statutes and rulings such as Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, Health Maintenance Organization Act, and various state insurance codes, which affected actuarial reserve standards and pension funding practices. Technological shifts—mirrored by firms including IBM, Microsoft, and Oracle Corporation—drove development of proprietary tools and analytics capabilities.

Services and Products

The firm offers actuarial valuation and modeling for life insurance, property insurance, and health insurance carriers, plus pension and defined-benefit consulting for corporate sponsors and public plans. Advisory services encompass healthcare analytics, provider payment models, utilization review, and population health programs, interacting with institutions like Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, National Institutes of Health, and World Health Organization stakeholders. Investment consulting spans asset allocation, performance measurement, and fiduciary services, often engaging with pension funds such as CalPERS and sovereign investors akin to Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global. Risk management and capital modeling include solvency and regulatory capital assessment under frameworks like Solvency II and International Financial Reporting Standards. Software products and benchmarking reports support actuarial workflows and business intelligence, comparable to offerings from SAS Institute, FIS, and Moody's Analytics. Ancillary services include merger and acquisition due diligence, litigation support in coordination with law firms and courts—ranging from matters before the United States District Court to international arbitration panels.

Global Operations

Operating across North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East, the firm maintains offices and affiliated practices in major financial centers such as New York City, London, Toronto, Hong Kong, Sydney, and Dubai. Global delivery models leverage regional regulatory expertise for interaction with supervisory bodies like Prudential Regulation Authority, Financial Conduct Authority, Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (Canada), and national ministries of finance. Cross-border projects have connected the firm with multinational insurers, reinsurance markets in Bermuda, capital markets in Tokyo Stock Exchange and Frankfurt Stock Exchange, and development programs linked to institutions such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Collaborations with academic centers and professional bodies—examples include Society of Actuaries, Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, and universities like Columbia University and London School of Economics—support talent pipelines and research dissemination.

Corporate Structure and Governance

The firm operates as a private partnership with regional partners and a central executive leadership team. Governance structures combine partner councils, executive committees, and regional managing directors to coordinate strategy, compliance, and quality control. The board-level and executive roles interact with external auditors and legal advisers from firms like Ernst & Young, KPMG, and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. Compensation and promotion mechanisms reflect professional credentialing pathways tied to actuarial institutes such as the Casualty Actuarial Society and American Academy of Actuaries. Ethics, professional standards, and continuing education policies align with codes promulgated by bodies like the International Actuarial Association and national supervisory authorities. Philanthropic and public affairs activities have engaged foundations and civic institutions across regions, coordinating with nonprofit entities and trade associations.

Notable Engagements and Impact

The firm has been retained for large-scale pension restructuring projects, insurance product design for major carriers, and healthcare payment reform initiatives that have influenced policy decisions and market practices. High-profile engagements have included actuarial due diligence in major mergers and acquisitions and support for regulatory filings affecting reserve methodologies and pricing. Research outputs and benchmark surveys produced by the firm are cited by industry publications and stakeholders including trade journals, trade associations, and regulatory agencies. The firm’s analytics and scenario modeling have been used in stress-testing exercises for insurers and in advising public pension plans confronting demographic and fiscal challenges similar to those reported for entities like City of Detroit pension negotiations and reform efforts in several U.S. states. Internationally, consulting assignments have influenced health financing reforms and insurance market development in OECD and emerging-market contexts, often referenced alongside work by McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, and PwC.

Category:Actuarial firms