CHAPTER PLAYBOOK

Chapter Services Team

The Chapter Services Team (CST) is the primary NAIFA staff contact for Chapters and is composed of a Director of Chapter Services and a Chapter Services Coordinator. The Director of Chapter Services, Justi Folladori (jfolladori@naifa.org, 703-770-8410), is primarily responsible for running team operations, staffing committees in its portfolio and directing the development and deployment of Chapter support resources. The Chapter Services Coordinator, Kaila Wilson (kwilson@naifa.org, 703-770-8245), is primarily responsible for direct Chapter interactions and support, regularly communicating with Chapter Leaders and Staff, while supporting the efforts of the Director.

Chapter Experience Team

The Chapter Experience Team (CET) is part of NAIFA’s Chapter rapid response group, and is composed of the CST and the staff of the NAIFA Association Management Services (NAIFA AMS) team, who serve nearly two dozen NAIFA Chapters. Upon request, this team will meet with Chapters to provide staff to-staff support

Field Leader Experience Team

The Field Leader Experience (FLEX) Team was formed by the Executive Committee (EC) with the approval of the Board of Trustees to provide volunteer-to-volunteer support, guidance and direction to Chapter Leaders, while also acting as a rapid response group  for Chapter needs. The FLEX Team works closely with the CST to identify and address challenges.

The FLEX Team is composed entirely of volunteers, appointed by the NAIFA President (who also appoints the FLEX Team Chair), with experience and knowledge of proper Chapter operations and compliance. FLEX Team members also serve as liaisons to the Chapter Cohorts to assist in facilitating dialogues and solutions, building a direct relationship with the Chapter Leaders of their Cohort. 

Chapter Cohorts are peer groups of State and Local Chapters with similarly sized populations in their jurisdictions, led by a FLEX Team Liaison, who meet monthly to discuss ideas, solutions and peer-to-peer collaboration. The FLEX Team Liaison is the primary contact for the Chapters in their Cohort and elevates any unresolved issues and/or concerns to the full team.

The FLEX Team meets monthly to review any known issues within Chapters or Cohorts that are elevated by staff and/or FLEX Team Liaisons. These concerns are noted on the agenda as “Active Chapter Issues” and are discussed by the group, who recommends how to deploy staff and/or FLEX Team resources to address the issue.

Once the issue has been initially addressed and/or the Chapter is making progress toward the improvement goal, the Chapter is moved to a “Monitoring” status, where they are revisited in future meetings to discuss their improvement. If the FLEX Team determines that a Chapter is not making sufficient progress to address an Active Chapter Issue, the FLEX Team will move them to “Pre-Referral” status and shall begin taking the necessary steps in their procedures manual to move the matter toward a formal Referral to the Chapter Quality Committee (CQC). 

FLEX Team Chair
John D. Richardson, RICP, LACP
Email: johnrichardson@financialguide.com 
Phone: 615-419-4140

Chapter Quality Committee

The Chapter Quality Committee (CQC) was formed by the Executive Committee (EC) with the approval of the Board of Trustees to ensure that Chapters are adhering to their responsibilities as a component of NAIFA by following the provisions of their Chapter Agreement to provide a quality member experience for NAIFA members. These CQC procedures are designed to provide a clear, consistent and fair process for the CQC and for Chapters.

The CQC is composed entirely of volunteers, appointed by the NAIFA President (who also appoints the CQC Chair), with experience and knowledge of proper Chapter operations and compliance. The role of the CQC is to conduct a fact-finding process related to Chapter compliance with the NAIFA Chapter Agreement, identification and resolution of any deficiencies, and when necessary, to make recommendations to the EC for further action.

The CQC becomes engaged with the Chapter via a Referral from the FLEX Team, which delineates critical or ongoing concerns related to Chapter operations and adherence to the Chapter Agreement. Any Chapter Leader or Staff member that is aware of any issue or behavior that may give rise to a Referral should report it immediately to the FLEX Team and/or the CST for consideration.

Upon receipt of a Referral, the CQC will meet to initiate an Inquiry, review the substance and justification for the Referral, and direct staff to provide Initial Notice to the Chapter via electronic mail and overnight delivery. The Initial Notice shall contain the substance and justification for the Inquiry, specific citation(s) of apparent non-compliance with the Chapter Agreement, requests for documentation and/or response and a survey of potential times for a Fact-Finding Discussion with the CQC.

Following its Fact-Finding Discussion, the CQC will provide a written Recommendation to the EC with a summary of the substance and justification for the Referral, the specific citation(s) of apparent non-compliance with the Chapter Agreement, Findings of Fact and the action the CQC suggests the EC should take to address the matter.

The EC has a broad array of actions that it can enact, as detailed in the CQC procedures, to achieve Chapter compliance. Additionally, this process can be halted at the discretion of the CQC at any point, should the Chapter be found to have come into compliance with NAIFA’s policies. It cannot be emphasized enough that the goal of this entire process is to achieve compliance, with adverse actions to the Chapter being a last resort. In fact, it should be noted that after a Referral to the CQC, nearly 90% of Inquiries have been dismissed prior to the involvement of the EC, as the Chapters have taken the necessary steps to address the concern.

Chapter Quality Committee Chair
Mark C. Miller, IAR, LUTCF
Email: markmiller@uclfinancial.com 
Phone: 901-261-0139

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