Objectivity matters. Today, more than ever. With no agenda, other than getting it right, Milliman’s Critical Point podcast takes a deep dive into subject matter that affects the health and well-being of people across the globe, from healthcare to retirement security, flood insurance to autonomous vehicles. Through a team of professionals ranging from actuaries to clinicians, technology specialists to economists, Critical Point examines the inherent challenges – and innovative solutions – tha ...
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Critical Point War Stories with Kevin Riggle: Software Engineers Talk Breaking Production
Critical Point
Building better software, one incident at a time. Host Kevin Riggle talks with software engineers about that time they broke production. Whether you're an industry professional, or just curious about what makes the modern Internet run and what happens when it breaks, we bring you stories you haven't heard elsewhere. This is the audio version of the podcast. Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@critical-point Produced by Complex Systems Group (https://complexsystems.group). Part of Critical ...
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Leadership Point Radio, LPR, is a new concept in radio charging ahead in raising the level of leadership in today’s corporate and nonprofit worlds. Offered through a simple format of interviews with leaders, folks who study leaders, and those who have been led by great leaders, bringing out the heart and soul of leadership working in today’s multitasking society. LPR is aimed at the rising stars. Individuals who recognize that new ideas and education are key to their personal and professiona ...
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Cyber risk, climate change, new pharmaceutical therapies—as companies look for ways to manage increasing costs and unforeseen exposures, captives are a popular mechanism to insure against the unexpected. Around since the 1950s, today there are more than 7,000 captive insurers worldwide, with many headquartered in Vermont, Bermuda, and the Cayman Is…
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Host Kevin Riggle interviews Melanie Ensign, former Global Head of Security, Privacy, & Engineering Communications for Uber, about what the role of a CISO (Chief Information Security Officer) is. (Hint: It's not being the smartest security person in the room.) Bonus episode from https://warstories.criticalpoint.tv/episodes/the-reporter-called-her-c…
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Host Kevin Riggle interviews Andrey Petrov about three different incidents he was involved with: A programming mistake in high school that filled its alumni's email inboxes, a Twitter analytics site he built that got co-opted as part of a phishing scam, and how he won a bug bounty on the Ethereum blockchain rollup prototype developed by superstar h…
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Drugmakers are taking steps to make sure clinical trials include participants from a variety of backgrounds—and they are steadily making progress, as evidenced by new studies of multiple sclerosis and sickle cell disease. Milliman health researchers Ellyn Russo and Chris Page unpack a history of distrust in medical research, the implications of fai…
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Kevin Riggle interviews Melanie Ensign (Discernible Inc.), former Global Head of Security, Privacy, & Engineering Communications for Uber, about building good bug bounty programs, incident management processes, and one especially memorable Christmas morning. Melanie's company: https://discernibleinc.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melani…
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The Future Is (Literally!) Bright - How Infrastructure Works, by Deb Chachra - Climate, Energy, & the Future
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1:15:38
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Kevin Riggle interviews Deb Chachra, professor of engineering at Olin College and author of HOW INFRASTRUCTURE WORKS about climate change, the housing crisis, the green/sustainable energy transition, and how we can build a better world for ourselves and everyone around us. BUY DEB'S BOOK! https://criticalpoint.tv/infrastructure Deb's Twitter: https…
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Life insurers have historically invested their portfolios in the relative safety of mortgages and bonds, but economic volatility, sticky inflation, and other headwinds have spurred many insurance companies to diversify into alternatives, a trend explored in a recent Milliman paper. On this episode of Critical Point, three of the paper’s authors dis…
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Was Akamai the Velvet Underground of Site Reliability Engineering (SRE)? - Abhijit Mehta - Bonus
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Kevin Riggle interviews Abhijit Mehta about Akamai and its role in the history and development of Site Reliability Engineering (SRE). Bonus episode outtake from https://warstories.criticalpoint.tv/episodes/he-broke-turkish-twitter-abhijit-mehta Abhijit's Twitter: https://twitter.com/AbhijitCMehta Abhijit's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meht…
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For decades, companies with traditional pensions have been freezing those plans and replacing them with defined contribution options to help their employees save for retirement. But IBM made headlines when it restored its defined benefit program in early 2024. Three Milliman pension actuaries discuss this choice, new hybrid DB plan designs, and how…
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He Broke Turkish Twitter - Abhijit Mehta
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1:05:58
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Kevin Riggle interviews Abhijit Mehta, who tells how one tiny dot made almost made a massive difference to Twitter's Turkish ad revenue. Abhijit's Twitter: https://twitter.com/AbhijitCMehta Abhijit's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mehtaabhijit/ Chapters: (00:00) - Intro (01:25) - How did you find yourself in a place where you could break pro…
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Kevin Riggle interviews Julia Lunetta, who tells us how an ostensibly minor change caused her employer, a financial institution (Upromise Investments), to miss its overnight reconciliation with its banks. Credits: Emoji artwork is provided by Emojitwo (https://emojitwo.github.io/), originally released as Emojione 2.2 (https://www.emojione.com/) by …
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Growing the actuarial profession in the developing world: Where the UNDP-GAIN initiative stands after one year
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Actuaries are vital to the insurance industry and national economies, but the profession is still emerging in many developing countries. That’s why Milliman and the United Nations Development Programme have launched a program to increase actuarial capacity around the world. In this episode, five Milliman volunteers reflect on the initiative’s first…
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In our second Critical Point episode about AI applications in insurance, we drill down into the topic of machine learning and particularly its evolving uses in healthcare. Milliman Principal and Consulting Actuary Robert Eaton leads a conversation with fellow data science leaders about the models they use, the challenges of data accessibility and q…
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Kevin Riggle interviews Kate Rudolph, who tells how a rolled back commit on her intern project resulted in Dropbox, her employer, offering free watermelon to the entire Internet. Credits: Emoji artwork is provided by Emojitwo (https://emojitwo.github.io/), originally released as Emojione 2.2 (https://www.emojione.com/) by Ranks.com (http://www.rank…
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Artificial intelligence has been the buzz term of 2023, evolving at a pace unimaginable when Milliman launched this podcast five years ago. For this 50th episode of Critical Point, we gathered a group of our AI experts to discuss how the technology is poised to reshape the insurance value chain, from hiring practices and actuarial modeling to custo…
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He Locked Players Out On Launch Day - Zachery Johnson
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1:24:55
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Kevin Riggle interviews Zachery Johnson, who tells how an innocent command doomed the database servers and locked players out of Diablo II: Resurrected on Day 2 of launch. Blizzard's blog post on the incident: https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/d2r/t/diablo-ii-resurrected-outages-an-explanation-how-we%E2%80%99ve-been-working-on-it-and-how-we%E2%80%9…
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Insurers are feeling the heat as another record-breaking summer finally cools off. In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman leaders Rich Moyer, Garrett Bradford, and Andi Shah—who have studied the impact of extreme heat from the Middle East to Europe to North Carolina—discussed the ramifications on property, workers’ compensation, health, and ot…
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After 2022’s rollercoaster of soaring interest rates and plunging investment returns, sponsors of single-employer defined benefit plans face a key choice as they calculate the 2023 variable rate premium they’ll pay to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC). Milliman pension actuaries Casey Baldwin and Ryan Cook spoke with Nina Lantz about …
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Twelve Lines of Code Took Down the Whole Company - Patrick O'Doherty
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Kevin Riggle interviews Patrick O'Doherty, who tells how a seemingly-simple configuration change one Friday morning led to a massive outage. Patrick's web site: https://patrickod.computer Credits: Intro & outro - "Senpai Funk" by Paul T. Starr. Used with permission. https://soundcloud.com/ptstarr Critical Point logo and wordmark designed by Timothy…
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Kevin Riggle interviews Willie Williams, who tells the story of the time he accidentally took down a major site while an intern at Akamai. Willie's Twitter: https://twitter.com/bigwilliestyle Credits: Intro & outro - "Senpai Funk" by Paul T. Starr. Used with permission. https://soundcloud.com/ptstarr Critical Point logo and wordmark designed by Tim…
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As companies embrace diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) efforts, many are realizing their benefit policies and communications can help address health inequities and be more inclusive. From modernizing the language in plan documents, to simplifying fertility care for same-sex couples, to not showing a skinny marathoner in the ads for your fitne…
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When the SECURE 2.0 Act passed in late 2022, it introduced 92 provisions affecting retirement plans—and created a long to-do list for plan professionals. In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman employee benefits expert Nina Lantz talks with Brandy Cross, our director of defined contribution (DC) plan compliance, about how DC plans are coping. L…
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SECURE 2.0, Part 2: How the new retirement law affects single-employer defined benefit plans
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In this companion episode to our look at SECURE 2.0 and defined contribution (DC) plans, Milliman employee benefits expert Nina Lantz explores how the new retirement law affects single-employer pensions. She talks with Milliman Consulting Actuary William Strange about what it means for retirement that life expectancy is rising more slowly, how comp…
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More than three years after the coronavirus shut down the world, the Biden administration announced in early 2023 the end of the U.S. National Emergency and the Public Health Emergency, two declarations that had mandated health insurance coverage of COVID-19 tests and vaccines, among other requirements. As these regulations are now rolled back, wha…
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As climate change causes more storms and floods, residents of coastal areas are being forced to move inland—driving up rents and displacing current residents of those regions. Milliman recently studied this issue in a paper called “Climate Displacement in New York City: Making Space for Our Neighbors,” published with Rebuild by Design, a nonprofit …
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Hear from Milliman’s first female principal, Peggy Pearson, about her path from homemaker (and home economics major) to actuarial leader, all while breaking through the cultural barriers of the time. In honor of Milliman’s 75th anniversary, Peggy sits down with current Milliman principals Angela Bolduc and Kim Guerriero to discuss how she “got into…
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Church retirement plan sponsors face unique considerations. While helping to position their clergy and other plan members for a secure future, they also must stay competitive across the wider benefits landscape to recruit and retain lay employees. For a look at how one diocese manages these pressures, Milliman actuaries Jake Pringle and Delbert Zam…
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Insurtech never stops evolving. In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman actuaries Sheri Scott and Robert Eaton discuss recent trends they’ve seen and opportunities on the horizon--everything from new motion data and technology for improving the customer experience, to coverage for emerging risks including autonomous trucks, cryptocurrency, and …
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The VM-20 requirement is no longer hypothetical—it’s here, and it’s had a big impact on principle-based reserving for the life insurance industry. In this episode of Critical Point, we hear how experts are coping. Michael McCarty from Legal & General America shares the direct carrier’s side, while Laiping Wong-Stewart from RGA brings the reinsurer’…
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Learn how SECURE 2.0 could derail or reduce participant contributions, and what plan sponsors and HR professionals need to know about this potential regulation. In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman’s Jason Brantley sits down with Charles Clark and Karina Guerrero to talk about surprises in SECURE 2.0 and some of the details below the headlin…
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Hear real-life experiences and get an “inside the company” look at the regulatory examination of principles-based reserve valuations for life insurers. PBR is a new method of determining U.S. statutory reserves in life insurance that better quantifies product risks. Milliman’s Karen Rudolph sits down with Catherine Murphy from John Hancock and Sara…
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In this one-on-one conversation with Vicky Nevin, Microsoft’s head of international compensation and benefits, learn how a leading multinational organization is approaching its compensation and benefits strategy and overcoming global challenges. Vicky speaks with Milliman / MBWL global EB leader John-Paul Augeri to share perspectives and priorities…
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Learn about five trends and creative approaches heading into 2022 for supplemental health benefits. Strategy consultant Christin Kuretich fuses Milliman market intel with a broader lens on society and the shifting nature of the workplace, to make some educated predictions on what we will see change and evolve in the voluntary benefits market. From …
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For corporate financial officers who are considering a pension annuity buyout, there’s an opportunity cost to 100% risk transfer, as Milliman’s Zorast Wadia and Bret Linton discuss on this episode of Critical Point. With the passage of the COVID-19 stimulus, many CFOs and plan sponsors likely see the second half of 2021 as an opportune time to de-r…
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In fall 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the looming flu season, public health experts feared the possibility of a “twindemic”—a one-two punch of Coronavirus plus influenza. But that year, flu cases hit historic lows. The so-called twindemic never happened. Milliman health care expert Ellyn Russo discusses why the volume of flu cases decrease…
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In late July, the IRS provided additional guidance on changes to single-employer defined benefit pension plan cash contribution rules under the American Rescue Plan. In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman pension consultants Charlie Clark and Casey Baldwin break down the guidance and what it means for pension plans and their plan sponsors. Bal…
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When it comes to long-term care, what are some of the benefits and challenges of aging-in-place services, and how can these work hand-in-hand with long term care insurance? In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman’s Robert Eaton and Missy Gordon are joined by Char Hu, founder and CEO of The Helper Bees, a healthcare insurtech company that offers…
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Milliman pension experts Charlie Clark, Vanessa Vaag, and Grant Camp discuss how the American Rescue Plan Act may impact single and multiemployer pension plans, and why pension funding has been integrated into the bill. The conversation ranges from the $86 billion special financial assistance for multiemployer plans, good faith compliance, and what…
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Flooding stands out among other natural catastrophes because of the risk it poses to the financial health of the average U.S. homeowner. In this episode, Milliman flood risk experts Dave Evans and Cody Webb are joined by Andrew Netter from Milliman’s mortgage group and Brand Katz from KatRisk to discuss the relationship between flood insurance and …
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The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred—and aggravated—a range of mental health and substance use issues in the United States. In this episode, Milliman’s Stoddard Davenport talks with host Lesley Pink about how different populations are faring on the mental health front, how the rising demand for mental health services is being met, and how recent stati…
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COVID-19 has dramatically increased the use of telehealth services across the U.S. In this episode, Milliman’s Susan Philip sits down with Mei Kwong, executive director of the Center for Connected Health Policy, to discuss some of the biggest changes to telehealth in 2020, including regulatory changes around reimbursement and access, provider usage…
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COVID-19 has had far-reaching economic implications, but what does the pandemic mean for the U.S. mortgage market? On this episode of Critical Point, Milliman’s Mike Schmitz from the firm’s mortgage practice, and Chris Harner from Milliman’s Cyber Risk Solutions group, discuss the impact of the pandemic on mortgage defaults and the credit risk mark…
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Artificial intelligence (AI) along with low-dose CT scans hold promise for the early detection of lung cancer, but there are challenges that come with scaling up this new technology. In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman’s Bruce Pyenson is joined by Jim Mulshine, a thoracic medical oncologist who spent 25 years at the National Cancer Institut…
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The CARES Act – which stands for the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act – has sweeping implications for both defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) retirement plans in the U.S. From distribution and loan relief for qualified individuals on the DC side, to deferral and election options for single-employer plans on the DB …
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Black lung disease presents a significant, long-term liability exposure for coal companies, risk pools, and governments – a liability complicated by climate change and its effects on the industry. After the number of reported cases declined in the late 1990s, a recent CDC report indicates that trend has reversed and that cases of black lung in mine…
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At the heart of effective risk management is the ability to manage tail events, and the COVID-19 pandemic is raising some quite profound questions for risk practitioners in the life insurance industry. On this episode of Critical Point, Milliman consultants Anthony Dardis, Ariel Weiss, and Chloe Lau discuss enterprise risk management and emerging i…
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The COVID-19 pandemic will have far-reaching implications for both short- and long-term healthcare costs in the U.S., as Milliman consultants Pamela Pelizzari, Stoddard Davenport, Doug Norris, and Matt Kramer discuss on this episode of Critical Point. For the past month, Milliman consultants have been building actuarial models to better understand …
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Managing cyber risk in emerging markets such as South Africa comes with its own unique challenges and opportunities, as Milliman’s David Kirk and Chris Harner discuss in this episode of Critical Point. Insurers and companies are confronting varying levels of preparedness, with outstanding questions around how to best understand, measure, and quanti…
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Every country has its own, unique healthcare system, but within these disparate systems there are shared approaches that cross borders and languages. This next episode of Critical Point, which is based on a series of papers by Milliman experts around the world, explores some of those commonalities and shared approaches that we see in healthcare sys…
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New trends in dental care and insurance coverage are aimed at improving the patient experience, as Milliman’s Joanne Fontana discusses on this episode of Critical Point. According to the American Dental Association, one-third of adults in the U.S. lack dental insurance, but emerging technologies such as ‘smart’ toothbrushes, teledentistry, and dent…
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