RESEARCHERS have studied extensively to develop a theory that would suggest that math whizzes are usually musical geniuses. While they continue to work to establish a clear link or file it away as a mere coincidence, 22-year-old associate actuary and the youngest manager at Guardian Life Nikhil Asnani counts himself among the prestigious few.

The manager with responsibility for reinsurance and product development is a natural; having pronounced intrinsic abilities in mathematics and music. Still, he doesn’t take it for granted, maintaining instead that his success today was built on a foundation of focus, hard work and dedication to the task at hand.

“What I always knew was that my brain is a very quantitative one; meaning that I was fond of applying mathematical analyses to everyday living. This was the same principle and fondness that saw me exploring music and while I cannot read music, playing the piano or the keyboard, because of these same analytical skills, have come quite easy, with practice, to me,” Asnani told Career & Education in a recent interview.

Even with the fondness for all things mathematical, the field of actuarial science was never a childhood fantasy for Asnani; he only decided on it in the second year of the degree programme at the University of the West Indies (UWI). But the decision was not without tremendous risk given the limited scope of employment in the field in Jamaican and Caribbean societies. But Asnani had done the maths and had charted a map.

In his very first year, he joined the ranks of the UWI actuarial society and determined to garner experience relevant to his field. That led him to Guardian Life.

“In 2012, through a family friend I was able to acquire a summer student position here. This I did again in 2013, and I was again invited to work on a programme in 2014, which resulted in my employment status being converted to a permanent employment very soon after,” Asnani recalled. He was 21 at the time.

By then, he had completed four of the five exams and modules that ware required for him to become an associate. This, he said, is usually unheard of for aspiring associates, but he had heeded the advice of the actuary society, and that of mentor and vice-president of Guardian Life’s Actuarial Department Cathy Allen.

“I was encouraged to do at least two of the prerequisite tests before I left UWI, but I decided to challenge myself and push it up a notch. This saw me completing UWI having successfully completed four tests,” the eight-time dean’s list awardee said.

But Asnani is not the only catch Guardian Life scored in 2014. Another associate actuary, 30-year-old Mikhail Francis, is also part of team. He, too, graduated UWI with honours.

He has travelled a different path from Asnani, but Francis has come home to the path of his dream job, only this time armed with more expertise, leadership prowess and experience.

“I describe my decision to pursue my passion, even though I had not been working in the profession, as a leap of faith,” Francis told Career & Education. “After I graduated, and without any actuary opening, I joined the auditing department at Ernst&Young, after which I came to Guardian Life Insurance, after which I explored a few companies, including Digicel.

“But there was always the passion to work as an actuary [and] coming back to Guardian Life [was like] being given the opportunity to finally pursue my dream,” Francis said, elation hard to miss.

Balancing work, study and a family has been challenging, Francis revealed, but the closer he gets to his dream of becoming an actuary the more his quality of life improves, he said. Luckily for him, however, and Asnani too, there is strong support from family and work groups, particularly VP Allen.

When asked how she contributed to their success, she instead heaped praises on the young men, saying they were responsible for their own successes, and commended them for continuing to work hard and well at Guardian Life and within the realms of the actuarial society.

“Nik has the knowledge, the capabilities and he is an excellent communicator, very resourceful and has the initiative to take on any task. When we were taking him on I was concerned about whether or not he would make a good manager because he had no experience, but he has utilised his strengths and has risen to the challenge. For Mikhail, even before he started working here I knew we had made the right decision. He is focused; he was able to do well at his studies and exams even while he worked outside of the actuarial department, which is very difficult, and he has exceptional leadership skills,” Allen gushed.

Those characteristics, she said, leave her with no doubt that both her charges will become actuaries in short order.