Leaders Blog

'Tis the season to differentiate our members from the crowd. NAIFA is currently accepting nominations for NAIFA Quality Awards (NQA), Diversity Champion, Advisor Today's 4 Under 40, Terry Headley Lifetime Defender Award, YAT Leader of the Year, and John Newton Russell. All award deadlines are July 31, 2022. Visit the Talent Development Center under "Awards" for more information and to apply.

NAIFA's Young Advisor Team Chairs kicked off their first quarterly call of 2022 this week. The 2022 YAT Co-Chairs, Carina Hatfield and Danny O'Connell welcomed everyone to the call. We were joined by nearly 20 of our association's best and brightest.  Was your chapter represented?

As NAIFA leaders, you may have heard that two organizations have filed lawsuits against the U.S. Department of Labor concerning DOL’s interpretation of who is required to act as a fiduciary. NAIFA is not a party to either of these suits. We are aware some NAIFA chapters and leaders have been contacted by the media and others about the lawsuits and may be unsure of NAIFA’s position.

NAIFA’s response at this time is: NAIFA is not a party to these lawsuits, so we wouldn’t want to speculate about them. We are, of course, aware of the issue and will continue to represent our members and the Main Street consumers they serve.

Please contact NAIFA's Home Office if you have questions.

IFAPAC is pleased to offer contributors a monthly report called "Inside Elections" from Nathan Gonzales. Gonzales is an off-air consultant for ABC NEWS on their Election Night Decision Desk and has appeared on CNN and Fox News. He has also been quoted in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and numerous state and regional newspapers all across the country. His "Inside Elections" report is highly respected for its unbiased election analysis and is a great way to get a DC insider's look at some of the most important races coming up this year.

It's a new year and with it comes an updated Membership Sell Sheet.  The 2022 sell sheet features our new YAT Leader of the Year, Brian Haney.

Lawrence Holzberg, LUTCF, LACP, Managing Director and Director of Insurance and Advance Sales, at Fortis Lux Financial, in Melville, NY, (loyal member since 1990) is the 2022 President of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA). Bryon Holz, CLU, ChFC, LUTCF, CASL, LACP, President of Bryon Holz & Associates in Brandon, FL, (loyal member since 1987) is President-Elect, Thomas M. Cothron, LUTCF, Agency Manager with Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company in Ocala, FL, (loyal member since 1981) is Secretary, and Brock Jolly, CFP, CLU, ChFC, CLTC, CASL, CFBS, of Veritas Financial LLC/MassMutual Financial Group in McLean, VA, (loyal member since 2001) is Treasurer. Thomas O. Michel, LACP, Managing Director of Michel Financial Group in Los Angeles (loyal member since 1986) will continue his service as Immediate Past President.

NAIFA will be closed December 23-24 for the Christmas holiday. We will open again on Monday, December 27th.

If you missed this year’s Advanced Practice Center Impact Week, don’t worry! We have everything you need to know on-demand. Check out our 10, one-hour sessions with industry experts, including: 

• Kathleen W. Bilderback on the effect of low-interest rates on acquisitions, third-party sales, management buy-outs, and family business succession 
• Stacey McMahan on comprehensive succession and exit planning 
• Scott McHenry and Andrew Rinn on the role of life insurance in a qualified retirement plan 
• Diane Boyle on NAIFA advocacy and topics of interest to NAIFA members 
• Howard Sharfman on ideas to grow your business at each stage of your career 
• Robert B. Wellendorf on life insurance in the business marketplace 
• Frank W. Seneco and R. Wesley Sierk on PPLIs and CICs 
• Steven J. Beatty on why business owners need life insurance 
• Daniel M. Zugell on trends and opportunities for the modern ESOP 
• Joel Solomon on the importance of consistency in your practice 

Plans are well underway to celebrate and recognize our leadership. Invitations have been sent out to Chapter Presidents, Chapter President-Elects, Membership Chairs, IFAPAC Chairs, Grassroots Chairs, and YAT Chairs. Be sure that at least one of these leaders from your chapter has registered for National Leadership Conference. Join us December 5-7 at the Renaissance Downtown Hotel in Washington, D.C.

NAIFA’s Limited and Extended Care Planning Center is hosting the second annual NAIFA LECP Impact Week, November 1 - 5. 

 The virtual event, with the theme Success Is a Collaboration of Problems Solved, has been revamped for 2021. Each of the five days of Impact Week programming will drill down on a specific topic and feature multiple presenters in a packed one-hour presentation, 12 - 1 pm eastern.