NAIFA's Advisor Today Spring 2021 Edition

ADVISORTODAY

Meet Tom Michel

IN THIS ISSUE: NAIFA Members are Extraordinary

WHY THE INSURANCE AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY NEEDS MORE FEMALE AFRICAN AMERICAN ADVISORS

President Tom Michel Wears His Heart for NAIFA as a Badge of Honor Tom and Kim Michels’ 25-years together have inspired them to get to where they are now, with Tom as the 2021 NAIFA President and Kim as Managing Partner at their Los Angeles-based firm. 20 ADVOCATE NAIFA Advocacy Is Everywhere the Action Is!

From the halls of Congress to state capitols, NAIFA’s advocacy touches all aspects of policies affecting insurance and financial advisors.

22

EDUCATE Lessons Learned from a Professional Development…Professional A person’s education doesn’t stop when they leave school, and continuing professional development is essential for advisors to distinguish themselves from their competitors.

24

DIFFERENTIATE

NAIFA Members Are Extraordinary NAIFA members are well known for developing strong personal brands within their communities as champions of diversity and mentors for new advisors.

naifa Leadership

NAIFA CHAPTER PROFILE

NAIFA-Massachusetts

NAIFA’s history runs squarely through Massachusetts, with the national association being founded in Boston in 1890. Today, the Massachusetts chapter is among NAIFA’s most vibrant, with more than 420 members benefitting from the chapter’s strong state advocacy and membership programming.

Advocacy, in particular, sprung to the forefront last year. A proposed regulation imposing a fiduciary duty on insurance and financial advisors threatened to seriously harm the relationships financial professionals have with their clients and impede many NAIFA members from serving consumers effectively.

NAIFA-MA members and its lobbying team went to work, urging

changes to the original proposal. After many letters and conversations with regulators and with NAIFA members and their clients providing testimony at state hearings, the Secretary of State issued a regulation that exempts insurance agents, allows the continued use of titles commonly used in the industry, does not impose an ongoing fiduciary duty after a recommendation and includes other changes that make the rule more workable.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, NAIFA-MA moved all of its professional development programming to virtual settings. This included well-attended “Quick Bytes” seminars offered in conjunction with NAIFA chapters in Rhode Island and Connecticut. The chapter also offered

members an online presentation by Dr. Jerry Teplitz, a specialist in helping professionals cope with stressful situations.

NAIFA-MA celebrated up-andcoming members James DesRocher, LUTCF; Heidi Quigley; Michael Heberlein, CFP, CLU, ChSNC and Bill Spencer, CFP, AIF, CLTC with state Four Under 40 awards. Like the award at the national level, the NAIFA-MA Four Under 40 recognizes the professional achievement and community involvement of good NAIFA citizens under 40 years of age.

NAIFA-MA provides a shining example of how NAIFA’s state chapters are fulfilling our membership promise of Advocate, Educate, Differentiate.

NAIFA’s Advisor Today

Kevin Mayeux, CAE NAIFA CEO kmayeux@naifa.org

703-770-8101

Michael Gerber

COO & General Counsel mgerber@naifa.org

703-770-8190

Diane Boyle

SVP, Government Relations dboyle@naifa.org

703-770-8252

John Boyle, CAE

VP, Professional Credentials jboyle@naifa.org

703-770-8267

Suzanne Carawan VP, Marketing & Communications scarawan@naifa.org

703-770-8402

Judi Carsrud

AVP, Government Relations jcarsrud@naifa.org

703-770-8155

Jennifer Cassidy VP, Finance jcassidy@naifa.org

703-770-8125

Alaina Faiello

VP, Professional Development afaiello@naifa.org

703-770-8225

Corey Mathews, CAE VP, Member & Chapter Services cmathews@naifa.org

703-770-8404

Phu Ngo VP, Technology pngo@naifa.org

703-770-8130

Brian Steiner

VP, Business Development & Strategic Partnerships bsteiner@naifa.org

703-770-8220

President Thomas O. Michel, LACP Michel Financial Group tmichel@michelfinancial.com

President-Elect Lawrence Holzberg, LUTCF, LACP Fortis Lux Financial lholzberg@fortislux.com

Secretary Bryon Holz, CLU, ChFC, LUTCF, CASL, LACP Bryon Holz & Associates bryon@bryonholz.com

Treasurer Brock Jolly, CFP, CLU, ChFC, CLTC, CASL, RICP Veritas Financial LLC bjolly@vfwealth.com

Immediate Past President Cammie Scott, LUTCF, REBC, RHU, CLTC, ChHC, MSIE, SHRM-SCP, SPHR CK Harp & Associates cammiescott@ckharp.com

NAIFA CEO Kevin Mayeux, CAE kmayeux@naifa.org

Trustees

Mark Acre, LUTCF mark.acre@onesourcegroup.net

Wes Booker, LUTCF wes.booker@horacemann.com

Dennis Cuccinelli, LACP dennis@dcuccinelli.com

Christopher Gandy, LACP cgandy@midwestlegacyllc.com

Aprilyn Chavez Geissler, LACP aprilyngeissler@gmail.com

Evelyn Gellar, LUTCF, RICP, CDFA, CLTC egellarwifs@gmail.com

Connie Golleher, CLTC, LUTCF connie@gollehergroup.com

Win Havir, CPCU, CLF, LUTCF, FSS, AIC, LACP Winona.havir@horacemann.com

Doug Massey, CLU, ChFC, FSS doug@dougmassey.com

Steven Saladino, LUTCF, LACP saladino@verizon.net

John Wheeler, Jr., CFP, CLU, ChFC, CRPC, LUTCF, LACP jwwcfp@aol.com

Brian Wilson brian.wilson@mutualofomaha.com

NAIFA SERVICE CORPORATION

OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS

President Kevin Mayeux, CAE

Secretary Thomas O. Michel, LACP Michel Financial Group

Treasurer Brock Jolly, CFP, CLU, ChFC, CLTC, CASL, RICP Veritas Financial LLC

Directors

David Beaty, IAR, ChFC, CLU, LUTCF, LACP Heartland Financial Services, Ltd.

Susan Wier, CFP, ChFC, RCP First American Trust

EDITORIAL ADVISORY COUNCIL

Laurie A. Adams, CFP, CLU, LACP, LUTCF Country Insurance & Financial Services

Brian Ashe, CLU

Brian Ashe and Associates, Ltd.

Frank Bearden, Ph.D., CLU, ChFC

Frank C. Bearden, Ph.D., Consulting

Lisa Horowitz, CLU, ChFC

LifeCycles

Ike Trotter, CLU, CASL, ChFC Ike Trotter Agency, LLC

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NAIFA’s Advisor Today (ISSN 1529-823X) is published triannually by the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors Service Corporation, 2901 Telestar Court, Falls Church, VA 220421205. Telephone: 703-770-8100. ©2021 National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors Service Corporation. All rights reserved.

Subscriptions: The annual subscription rate for individual non-NAIFA members is $50; institutions, $60. The international subscription rate for non-NAIFA members is $100 per year.

PRESIDENTS’ PERSPECTIVES

From the Past President

By Cammie Scott, MSIE, ChHC, CLTC, LUTCF, REBC, RHU, SHRM-SCP, SPHR

Unquestionably, COVID-19 required NAIFA to re-engineer the way that we operated. It required NAIFA to rethink how we hold membership meetings, distribute information and work. Gone were the days of meeting in-person, coming to the office or going to conferences; NAIFA had to adopt video conferencing to drive meetings and rely on digital marketing for communication. The biggest impact was to speed up the pace of the entire association. This new way of working as a nimble, agile organization will remain long after we return to faceto-face meetings and events. NAIFA will remain an active, high-velocity association that continuously produces products and programs to best equip our members to work in a fast-paced world.

From the President

By Thomas O. Michel. LACP

Togetherness! NAIFA’s adoption of our One NAIFA structure – a home office and 50 state and 35 large metropolitan chapters –progressed slowly. Chapters and members felt their way without continuity or unified purpose. COVID-19 changed everything! Necessity forced us to unify as an association and find ways for members to come together simultaneously, regardless of geographic boundaries. NAIFA’s first virtual Town Hall was March 23, 2020, just 10 days after our country shut down. Additional Town Halls, NAIFA Nation: Impact Week and other events unleashed incredible energy within NAIFA’s membership. More than 30,000 people attended NAIFA virtual programs in 2020, and the positivity and sheer enthusiasm for NAIFA Nation continues to grow. 2020 proved that together we really can take on anything.

Relentless Execution

NAIFA Has a Great Roadmap and a Drive to Succeed

By NAIFA CEO Kevin Mayeux, CAE

A great plan is worthless without relentless execution. The plan simply points us where we want to go and draws a picture of what success looks like. It is necessary, like a good roadmap or GPS, if you want to travel to new places. But you won’t go far unless you get in the car and start driving.

NAIFA has a great plan. Our Board of Trustees took the work of our Strategic Planning Committee, along with input from members and volunteers nationwide, and adopted the NAIFA 2025 Strategic Plan. The

plan charts our association’s course over the next five years with goals focused on Membership Growth, Brand Amplification, and Member Experience. With our plan in place, we’ve gassed up the car and opened the garage door. Now we’re hitting the accelerator.

NAIFA 2025’s goals are ambitious, so our tactics must be bold. We have developed a Business Implementation Plan (BIP) for 2021 that establishes NAIFA’s desired accomplishments and how we aim to achieve them.

We have complete buy-in from our staff at the home office and in

From the President-Elect

By Lawrence Holzberg

COVID-19 brought continuity to NAIFA. It spotlighted NAIFA’s vital work at state, interstate and federal levels. The bottom line: NAIFA showed up. Our collective focus turned to protecting our businesses, working to pass the CARES Act, and understanding the Paycheck Protection Program so we could best utilize it for our own businesses and clients. The experience unified NAIFA like none other, and it brought more new members into NAIFA than we have seen in 30 years. Why? Because the power of belonging to a professional association was clear when crisis hit. Members turned to an association working at all levels on their behalf. The pandemic has allowed the culture of the New NAIFA to be embraced by all. We are all in.

our chapters around the country, as well as the strong support of our Board of Trustees. We are working relentlessly to implement the BIP tactics that will grow our membership, amplify our brand among influencers inside our industry and out, and improve the NAIFA experience of every member.

Our relentless execution has a strong motivation. NAIFA members are the best financial professionals in the United States, driven by a calling to serve the best interests of their clients and help American families and businesses achieve financial security and prosperity. It is crucial to our families, communities and country that you succeed. NAIFA is driven to ensure that you do.

“What is the greatest impact that COVID-19 has had on NAIFA?”

President Tom Michel Wears His Heart for NAIFA as a Badge of Honor

By Mark Briscoe

No one can doubt the passion 2021 NAIFA President Thomas O. Michel, LACP, brings to his agency, his industry colleagues, his clients and his wife Kimberly, who is his partner both in life and business. That passion is as important to his success as his impressive acumen and experience.

Michel has been a loyal NAIFA member since 1986. His perspective of the insurance and financial services industry is multifaceted, reflecting his experience in the business as an agent, pension wholesaler and awardwinning agency manager. Today, he is the Managing Director of Michel Financial Group in Los Angeles, helping clients take a proactive approach to their personal insurance and financial situations.

A NAIFA POWER COUPLE

Michel formed the Michel Financial Group with Kim, creating Ohio National’s first general agency in California. Together, they have more than 70 years of experience in the insurance and financial services industry as well as more than 70 years of combined NAIFA membership. The husband-and-wife team promotes a family atmosphere that appeals to producers and clients. For both Tom and Kim, that sense of family devotion extends to NAIFA, as well.

Kim was the first female President of NAIFA’s Los Angeles chapter and is the 2012 winner of the Will J. Farrell Award,

presented by NAIFA-Los Angeles and the Los Angeles County Chapter of the Society of Financial Services Professionals (FSP) to a Southern California professional in the life insurance industry who has exhibited unselfish service.

When Tom Michel received the Will J. Farrell Award in 2013, he and Kim became the only husband-and-wife recipients of the honor in its more than 60-year history.

A PASSION FOR NAIFA

Tom Michel served as the 80th President of NAIFA’s California chapter and was a two-term President of NAIFA-Los Angeles. He was NAIFA’s national President-Elect for 2020, which put him in charge of planning the annual Performance + Purpose conference. The COVID-19 pandemic put his leadership to an early test as NAIFA was forced to quickly pivot to a fully virtual event. Despite that challenge, NAIFA’s 2020 P+P was a complete success, with attendees, presenters and sponsors giving it high marks.

Michel has been a driving force behind NAIFA’s strategic vision in recent years. He chaired NAIFA’s Quality Membership Experience Task Force, which made recommendations that shaped the transformation of NAIFA’s business model, and last year served in a leading role on the NAIFA 2025 Strategic Planning Committee. As 2021 President, he now guides the association through the first year

of implementing the NAIFA 2025 Strategic Plan.

“Our NAIFA 20/20 Strategic Plan modernized our association and allowed us to adapt quickly to serve our members and maintain our influence despite the COVID-19 outbreak,” Michel said. “Our new strategic plan, which builds on our successes, puts us in a strong position to continue that progress by growing our membership, amplifying the NAIFA brand and further enhancing the membership experience. I’ve been involved with NAIFA a long time and have never been more enthused about our future and look forward to a very successful year for NAIFA.”

THE GOOD NAIFA CITIZEN

Michel has emerged as a leader within NAIFA and the insurance and financial services world and embraced the role by sharing his passion, experience and expertise to benefit his colleagues, clients and the industry. This naturally extends to political advocacy.

He has met and discussed policy with more than 100 legislators in his career, including Vice President Kamala Harris when she was a U.S. Senator; congressional leaders from both sides of the aisle, including Speakers of the House Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner; chairs of the House Ways and Means and House Financial Services Committees; Governors; state Insurance Commissioners; and prominent Mayors.

“Political advocacy is at our core, and it’s something I am passionate about,” Michel said. “As we see hopeful signs our country may soon exit this terrible pandemic, our leaders will be faced with

budget deficits even more staggering than anticipated. NAIFA has to be at the forefront of educating lawmakers about everything our industry does, telling them how we contribute to our clients’ financial wellness and bolster the economy.”

Congress and the administration are likely to view every potential source of revenue with a critical eye, and that includes the insurance and financial services industry.

“The products, services and advice we provide are critical to the financial security of American families and small businesses, and it is vital that we ensure policymakers understand the role of agents and advisors,” Michel said.

SHARING EVERYTHING NAIFA HAS TO OFFER

In addition to advocating for the industry, Michel extols the virtues

of NAIFA and promotes active membership.

“It is important that we share everything NAIFA has to offer – the friendships, networking, professional development, business support and protection, and more. The entire community of insurance and financial professionals needs to know what we do and what we offer,” Michel said.

And a leader as passionate and committed to service and volunteerism as Tom Michel will never keep the key to his success to himself.

“NAIFA has been essential to my own success and the success of so many of my friends and colleagues,” he said. “Everyone in the insurance and financial services business who is driven to be the best they can be for themselves, their professional colleagues and their clients really needs to be an actively engaged NAIFA member.”

The husband-and-wife team promotes a family atmosphere that appeals to producers and clients. For both Tom and Kim, that sense of family devotion extends to NAIFA, as well.

SIPS & TIPS

1 NAIFA-FL members Darian Ward, Sue Nadling, Sheila Stuart, Steve Ward, Tim Holladay and Mike Peters

2 Oscar Meda Fuentes (NAIFA-MD) and colleagues.

3 NAIFA advocacy reception.

4 NAIFA cupcakes are delicious!

5 Brian Haney (NAIFA-MD), Corey Anderson (NAIFAMN), Shane Westhoelter (NAIFA-NM), Oscar Meda Fuentes (NAIFA-MD).

6 NAIFA-AZ members Paul Ford, Tracy Jones, Stephen Kolesar, Judy Aguilar-Woertz , Bob Bryant, Patty Chesebrough, Bill Cassidy, Cliff Wilson and Mike Klein

7 NAIFA-NE advocacy reception.

Note: Meetings occurred prior to COVID-19 restrictions which is why members are shown without masks or social distancing.

Want to share your IFAPAC events? Send us your pics & peeps to ifapac@naifa.org. Not a Defender? Why Not? Learn more at www.naifa.org/advocate

Leadership in Life Institute: Transformation and Resilience

By Brendan Bernat

Iam occasionally reminded that no one serves on the board of a homeowners association because it sounds like a good time. Rather, the homeowner sacrifices time and effort to do what needs to be done (or as is often the case, fix what is not being done) to improve life in the community.

This sense of service is woven deeply into the fabric of leadership. As NAIFA’s Leadership in Life Institute (LILI) embarks on its 21st year of forming NAIFA leaders, a desire to strengthen the NAIFA community is a motivating force for over 3,000 LILI graduates. However, the LILI appeal goes far beyond this call to service. While LILI students and graduates care tremendously about NAIFA, the program’s staying power is also due to the experience of collaboration and transformation.

A few examples pulled from LILI’s curriculum illustrate just what makes LILI transformative.

THE EULOGY

It is common for philosophers to be depicted in paintings sitting in their studies with a skull on their desk. Such a skull is commonly referred to as a “memento mori” or remembrance of death. The purpose is to provide a reminder that time passes quickly, so we should use our time so that we do not end up out of time and with regrets. Within LILI there is a written and, in a sense, living memento mori. It is called the eulogy.

Inspired by Stephen Covey, writing one’s own eulogy is a requirement for graduation from LILI. A eulogy is not an obituary. Rather a eulogy reflects how we lived and how we want to be remembered. An examined life also causes us to reflect

on our most important relationships and whether we are giving those closest to us the best version of ourselves. The eulogy can be both a wakeup call and a path to the examined life.

COMMUNITY

Past NAIFA President Tom Wolff wrote about the importance of human connection in the sales and advising process. He asked his readers how often they are allowed to spend a significant amount of time doing nothing but talking about themselves. Who would be willing to spend so much time listening?

Self-disclosure provides us with understanding and human connection. Besides, we have such interesting and important stories to share. Within a LILI class you are both the talker (about yourself) and the supportive listener at different times. The foundation is acceptance and trust that slowly takes the risk out of sharing. In LILI this trust is gained over time in a small community of one’s professional peers.

GOOD TO GREAT PRINCIPLES

These principles are named for the book “Good to Great” by Jim Collins. While all the principles are important, a favorite of mine is The Stockdale Paradox. This is named for Admiral James Stockdale, who was a prisoner of war in North Vietnam for over seven years. This principle is summarized as: “Confront the brutal facts but maintain unflagging optimism.” As Stockdale explained, the prisoners who set fixed milestones for getting released suffered the most. When these arbitrary dates came and went, they were presented with a brutal fact that they were not willing to accept: They did not really know when, if ever, they would be released. However, optimism preserves hope. Admiral Stockdale did maintain

unflagging optimism. He survived captivity and was released on February 12, 1973.

In 2020 the world was faced with the transformative challenge of a global pandemic and LILI grads did well to ponder the vital lessons of the Stockdale Paradox. LILI classes continued, often virtually, and resilience became a de facto LILI principle. It was a time to ask ourselves how we wanted to be remembered for how we handled a crisis. How did we want to remember ourselves?

Now in 2021 NAIFA is poised to launch an online LILI class especially designed for online learning and interaction. This new online LILI is in line with NAIFA’s Strategic Plan and will bring LILI to even more students. It will cut across geographic barriers and remove the obstacle of physical distance.

“Invictus” by William Ernest Henley is both a poem and the name of a LILIcurriculum movie starring Morgan Freeman. “I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.” Both the movie and the poem are part of LILI for the simple fact that they belong in LILI; they illustrate LILI concepts.

However, I propose that following the year of resilience we look to another LILI-like poem, “If” by Rudyard Kipling. “If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs… If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster and treat those two impostors just the same…”

If you can, you will have gained the perspective of a leader.

The LILI program is housed under NAIFA’s Talent Development Center, an online space focused on providing resources and tools to help advisors be their personal and professional best. Learn more about LILI on the NAIFA website at tdc.naifa.org/lili.

Ameritas’ Growth Leaders Program

By Suzanne Carawan

The Talent Development Center was launched in 2020 to provide a digital hub for content, events, programs and conversations around the topics of personal and professional performance. The newest Center of Excellence is devoted to the betterment of the individual advisor, and whether that is in regard to building out your centers of influence, personal branding, prospecting tips, or how to navigate each stage of your career, the Talent Development Center will cover it through content curation and event programming.

One of the member programs that is housed in the Talent Development Center is the Young Advisor Team, which provides a community home for advisors who are under 40 years old or have been in the business five years or less. Otherwise known as YAT, the program offers chair positions at the local, state and national levels, and it names one Young Advisor Team Leader of the Year at the national level. The YAT National Committee oversees the popular Advisor Ambassador Program, which seeks to promote membership to new advisors who don’t know NAIFA, as well as oversees a webinar series. YAT also offers the Future Leaders program, which seeks to expand NAIFA’s outreach into junior colleges, colleges and universities.

In late 2020, the YAT program was met with a new opportunity in partnering with Ameritas, which has long offered an exclusive study group called the Ameritas Growth Leaders program focused on developing the next generation of financial service industry leaders. Ameritas’ advisors must qualify for the study group and actively participate. Ameritas and NAIFA partnered the Growth Leaders Program with the YAT program to extend the following to all Ameritas Growth Leaders:

• Membership: Complimentary NAIFA membership courtesy of Ameritas.

• Mentorship: NAIFA mentors will provide resources and foundational courses for career success.

• Advocacy training: Learning will focus on building relationships with legislators and advocating for clients.

• Recognition: Spotlight features aimed to elevate professional presence with clients and prospects.

The incredible foresight that Ameritas showed by partnering with NAIFA to provide accelerated advocacy and media training to its up-and-coming advisors evidences its commitment to not just recruitment of top talent, but more importantly, retention. Several stellar NAIFA YAT members have been part of the Ameritas program and actively provided testimonials as to the power of participating in NAIFA during the special orientation held for the group in late February.

Blake Gillies, the current National Co-Chair of the Young Advisor Team, provided the study group with a testimonial on how his involvement with NAIFA has provided him access to several trips to the Louisiana statehouse and Capitol Hill where he has been able to meet face-to-face with his representatives to discuss issues affecting the financial services industry at the state and federal levels. Kate Cihon, another NAIFA YAT who is also a past national Advisor Today

Four Under 40 winner and NAIFAColorado member, talked about how important NAIFA is to finding mentors and modeling your practice and approach after the legendary members who have been in the business for decades and are more than willing to share what they know with another NAIFA member. Rebecca Schulter, another national YAT committee person and current Membership Chair and President-Elect for NAIFA-Memphis

and a NAIFA-Tennessee member, completed the set of testimonies by discussing how NAIFA has allowed her to improve her personal performance and commitment to her own practice and the industry through volunteering and actively advocating at the local, state and national levels.

The endorsement of the power of NAIFA and the invitation to get involved from key YAT leaders, such as Gillies, Cihon and Schulter, paved the

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Interested in getting more involved as a YAT or a mentor? Passionate about topics covered by the Talent Development Center? Consider subscribing to the Talent Development Center blog at tdc.naifa.org/blog to stay up-to-date on content and programs.

Are you a YAT and under 40? Want to be like Kate Cihon? Consider applying for the Four Under 40 award at tdc.naifa. org/4-under-40. Winners get media attention and massive recognition within NAIFA Nation!

way for the rest of the 50+ Ameritas Growth Leaders to really dive into NAIFA membership and take up the offer of volunteering for leadership roles. Volunteerism — and the benefits of honing one’s leadership skills — is at the heart of the Talent Development Center’s purpose.

The work that Ameritas is doing to provide a study group that weaves in personal brand, the pursuit of professional excellence and the greater purpose of being an advocate in the industry is something that all of NAIFA applauds. As Shannon Berry, Ameritas Second Vice President of Practice Management, stated, “Strengthening the next generation of leaders in financial services is mission critical for our industry. We take pride and inspiration from our relationships with industry trade organizations. Ameritas and NAIFA are thrilled to be bringing this valuable new program to our industry’s emerging leaders.”

The Business Performance Center offers tools, resources and thought leadership to guide advisors as they take their business to new heights of success. Everyone from entrepreneurs looking to open or expand a practice to agents and advisors hoping to step up production will find useful guidance in the BPC.

Our March Business Performance Impact Week featured hard-hitting presentations by some of the industry’s most successful professionals. Among the speakers were:

• Ron Lee, JD, CLU, ChFC, CAP, Mutual of Omaha, on life insurance supplements in financial plans.

• Andrew Rinn, JD, CFP, CLU, ChFC, Ameritas, on non-qualified executive benefits.

• Eric Stearns, MBA, Stearns Financial Group, on split-dollar opportunities at tax-exempt organizations.

• Shane Westhoelter, AEP, CLU, LUTCF, LTCP, Gateway Financial Advisors, on growing your practice.

• Kathleen Bilderback, JD, LLM, Affinity Law Group, on post-COVID-19 small business prospects.

• Ryan Pinney, LACP, Pinney Insurance, and Sheryl Brown Hickerson, Females & Finance, on modernizing your agency.

• Brock Jolly, CFP, CLU, ChFC, CLTC, CASL, RICP, CEPA, Veritas Financial & The College Funding Coach, on

Business Performance Center You Might Like This…

strategizing to prepare for retirement and children’s education costs.

• Mark Massey, Southern Medical Association, on serving healthcare professionals.

• Stacey McMahan, JD, CLU, ChFC, Pacific Life, on retirement planning challenges and strategies.

• Brad Swineheart, WhiteGlove, on showcasing authenticity through captive marketing.

Learn more & subscribe to the blog at bpc.naifa.org

Learn from the best! Recordings of the Business Performance Center Impact Week sessions are available on demand, along with webinars, blog posts, research papers and other content, at bpc/naifa.org. Several of the Impact Week presentations come courtesy of NAIFA’s forthcoming Advance Practice Center, a resource for top-performing agencies and advisors.

Why the Insurance and Financial Services Industry Needs More Female

African American Advisors

By Emily Cabbage and Mark Briscoe

NAIFA’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council hosted a recent webinar featuring four successful Black women in the insurance and financial services industry. Mary Greene, Martina Jimenez Sperry, Karen Holloway and Kristen Eskew came together to discuss why the industry needs more Black female advisors.

BLACK WOMEN NEED FINANCIAL PLANNING AND SERVICES

Women are the primary bread winners in 63% of Black households and make up 68% of African Americans with undergraduate college degrees. A significant portion of Greene’s clients are African American women who are highly educated, earn good incomes and have assets they want to grow. They have a great and growing need for financial planning services. “If you’re not tapping into the African American female population as clients, you’re missing out on a whole different market that’s very lucrative,” she said.

Many Black Americans have good incomes and significant assets, the panelists agreed. What they lack is access to financial products, services and advice. Very often, when asked why they haven’t done more financial planning, their answer is that “no one has ever asked them,” Eskew said.

To better serve these markets and truly provide financial security opportunities for everyone, Jimenez Sperry said financial services firms need

to “make it a priority to have a diverse team to represent the community.”

THE STRENGTHS OF BLACK WOMEN AS ADVISORS

Black women are hard-working and understand the importance of taking care of families, two traits that make them great advisors, according to Greene. “We belong to a lot of civic, religious and social organizations,” she added. “So, we can introduce [the industry] to those organizations that we volunteer in and that we have personal connections with.”

“If you want to get into the Black community, you’ve got to start connecting with these African American females,” she said.

HOW TO BRING MORE BLACK WOMEN INTO THE BUSINESS

It is important for companies not just to recruit diverse teams, but to ensure that their diverse talent has the training, resources, support and mentorship

needed to succeed. Creating and nurturing a diverse team needs to be part of a comprehensive strategic plan. “Firms cannot simply hire a Black woman to check a box,” Jimenez Sperry said. “They need to provide support and help their advisors brand and market themselves. They need to create inclusive business cultures. Diverse hires need to feel like they belong and are important to fulfilling the company’s meaningful goals and contributing to its success.”

WHY DOES THE INDUSTRY NEED MORE BLACK WOMEN ADVISORS?

“The easiest answer is because people want them,” Holloway said. “There’s a demand for it. It’s like real estate –if you build it, they will come. We’re seeing more and more Black women are making money and want advice, and they’re looking for someone to give them advice. So, it’s supply and demand. If they’re demanding that, then the market should respond.”

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To read more on a similar topic, see the NAIFA report: “Serving the African American Community” along with the on-demand webinar “Why the Industry Needs More African American Female Advisors” online within NAIFA’s Talent Development Center at tdc.naifa.org.

Kristen Eskew is a Business Development Executive with OneDigital and a loyal NAIFA member since 2020.

Martina Jimenez Sperry is Managing Partner at Cetera and a loyal NAIFA member since 2002.

Mary Greene, MBA, is a Financial Professional with Prudential Advisors.

Karen Holloway, CLTC, is a Wealth Management Advisor with Northwestern Mutual.

By Suzanne Carawan

The national Young Advisor Team committee is responsible for a new program launched last year called Future Leaders. Added as a wrap-around program to the 2020 Performance+Purpose virtual conference, the Future Leaders program featured an hour of content at the start of the conference geared toward students pursuing degrees in economics, finance and business, and it ended with a post-conference wrap-up session to discuss conference content. Students from the University of Illinois, American University, Austin Peay State University, Kansas State University,

George Mason University and Texas A&M University were invited to attend not only the Future Leaders program, but the entire Performance+Purpose conference on a complimentary pass as a way to expose undergraduate and graduate students to careers in financial services.

The special Future Leaders segment featured panelists of NAIFA members discussing the various types of positions NAIFA members hold — from working for a practice as an advisor to working at a home office. Christopher Gandy, LACP, and then NAIFA-Chicagoland President and National Trustee, kicked off the program discussing the real work

Future Leaders Program Will Expand in 2021 Spotlight

Karen Byrd, LUTCF, is Immediate Past President of NAIFA-Tennessee, IFAPAC Defender, and a proud NAIFA member since 1996. Aside from her work at Independent Brokers agency based in Adams, Tennessee, Karen is passionate about the future workforce of the financial services industry. Karen established a strong relationship with Austin Peay State University and has been regularly visiting and providing students access to NAIFA programs and inviting students to become members of NAIFA. The good work of Karen Byrd

is helping to raise awareness of financial services as a career opportunity for university students. Thanks to Karen, we are spreading the word about a profession that we all love.

Do you have connections at a university, college or junior college that would be interested in participating in Future Leaders? Or, are you an alum of a program that you want NAIFA to invite into Future Leaders? Referrals are everything! We thank Ike Trotter for introducing us to his alma mater, Ole Miss. Thanks, Ike! If you have a referral, please drop us a note at marketing@naifa.org.

advisors do — to help clients get on to and stay on a path to financial security. The program featured a panel discussion on different career paths and featured 2019 YAT Leader of the Year, Cheryl Canzanella, LUTCF, of MassMutual; Becky Brothers of Principal Financial Group; Derek Scheetz of Lifetime Financial Group (Guardian); and Isaac Amaya of The Pinnacle Group. The Future Leaders were then treated to a discussion on tenacity by Delvin Joyce, CLU, ChFC, of Prudential and finished with a talk on growth mindset by Brian Haney, CLTC, CFS, CFBS, CIS, LACP, CAE, of the Haney Company. As a final addition to the Future Leaders program, staff from Cambridge Research, who sponsored the Future Leaders program, spoke directly to students about internship opportunities that they have and provided a deep dive on how Cambridge Research works.

NAIFA’s 2025 Strategic Plan officially incorporated the Future Leaders program, and the 2021 Business Implementation Plan features it as a priority program. Plans for the program include the launch of a blog for participating universities and students to apprise them of upcoming events and include content of interest, as well as to double the number of participating universities. A special Future Leaders segment was included in the Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Impact Week and again featured Cheryl Canzanella, Derek Scheetz and Stephen Kagawa, FSS, LUTCF, NAIFA’s 2020 Diversity Champion (to learn more about Stephen, see the feature story for Differentiate in this issue). Plans for the annual Performance+Purpose professional development conference, and the Limited & Extended Care Planning Center Impact Week scheduled for November 2-4, 2021, will also include a Future Leaders component.

Asked the

ANSWER #1:

“As an industry, it is so important for us to reach younger customers, but to do that, we can’t do things the way they have always been done. I’ve heard from financial professionals for years that there is a desire in the market for a long-term care product that has market participation and growth potential.

“With MoneyGuard Market Advantage SM , we want to open up long-term care planning to clients who are younger, healthier or would like growth potential over 20–30-year time frames and make it more affordable. During product development, we asked for feedback from financial professionals and really made it a point to use that feedback in the final design. Customers, especially younger ones, want flexibility, and we believe we’ve delivered that with MoneyGuard Market Advantage. It is designed to grow and evolve with them over time.”

Bill Nash, Senior Vice President, MoneyGuard Distribution, Lincoln Financial Group

ANSWER #2:

“Millennials are often categorized as disruptors in many industries, from Uber to online shopping, and they are efficient users of technology, leveraging it to simplify their buying process. While many are delaying milestones like marriage and parenthood, one event they cannot control is caregiving. AARP found that over 10 million millennials are unpaid caregivers juggling careers and this role, averaging 21 hours a week providing some level of care.

“Their experience with caregiving makes them more open to caregiving solutions, including LTCi, and they prefer to be educated about products in an authentic and engaged manner.

“Insurers in the LTC market must invest in technology to make the buying process easier and streamlined, and advisors should connect LTC planning with health and wellness and retirement utilizing webinars and social media marketing.

“The best LTCi products for younger buyers are through their employers and more are offering Group LTCi due to a reinvigorated market and the experiences that employers have had with working caregivers.

“Advisors should work together to help young buyers understand the importance of planning early, and COVID-19 has instructed that things can change in an instant. Technology can play a role and help carriers and consumers in more efficient planning that leads to a growth in an advisor’s business.

“Lock in your health, protect your assets, preserve independence and let your loved ones be companions rather than caregivers with LTCi.”

Noel A. Evans, Director of LTC Solutions, AHT Insurance

We

Experts: Insurers are looking at modifying or creating products that appeal to younger consumers. How do you see that impacting an advisor’s ability to grow their business?

ANSWER #3:

“As traditional LTCi is known for its ‘use it or lose it’ factor, more advisors are turning to hybrid LTCi products to fill in the gaps for long-term care health needs. Hybrid products hedge this risk factor by paying out when care is needed, but they also retain funds for the annuity or for life insurance when all or a portion of the LTC ‘pool’ of money is not utilized.

“For LTCi brokers to expand their business (to engage younger clients), the advisor mind-set may consider a shift to understanding that purchasing LTCi, for those over age 50, is a personal experience while younger buyers seek financial value for future care needs. Younger clients need to see the benefit of their purchase — the tax savings, cash accumulation, the WIN-WIN with premium guarantees and the inflation protection. Younger insureds might engage in the LTC conversation more favorably if it is packaged as a subset of retirement planning and asset protection, rather than advance planning for their ‘golden years.’

“Down the road, advisors might suggest looking to a long-term care plan that covers the insurance needs but also delineates specific instructions for transition care choices (placement, record-keeping, legal documents, etc.). Younger people purchase insurance for peace of mind and want all their ducks in a row. When they see family members scrambling to care for a grandparent or parent — with no design — our advisory role becomes clear: assist with funding their retirement, but also with defining their future long-term care options — the insurance is a bonus. “

Stan Israel, Stan Israel Insurance Services, Inc.

ANSWER #4:

“Carriers are starting to look into building hybrid indexed universal life products where the life insurance benefit starts out high with a small LTC benefit. As you age, the life insurance benefit reduces, and the LTC benefit increases. This type of product can provide a lifetime of appropriate benefits with the flexibility younger people need. For advisors, this is a simple-toexplain, easy-to-sell option for their clients.”

Joseph Pulitano, CEO, LTC Agency Operations, LLC

ANSWER #5:

About the Center

The Limited & Extended Care Planning Center is the first of NAIFA’s Centers of Excellence to focus on a specialty topic within insurance and financial services. The Center covers the continuum of issues encountered in short, extended and long-term care and includes information on a variety of funding options that a planner needs to consider. From reverse mortgages to robotics, the Limited & Extended Care Planning Center features webinars, white papers, interviews and more.

NAIFA’s Limited & Extended Care Planning Center empowers professionals to network with solution and service providers to share best practices, access subject matter experts, and provide access to research, training and resources. You can subscribe to the blog, sign up for events and get more involved at lecp.naifa.org.

“Products that appeal to younger customers will certainly impact and enhance an advisor’s ability to grow business. From 2013 through 2019, the average age that LTCi coverage has been issued has been relatively stable and fluctuated slightly around age 57. In 2019, sales to ages under 55 represented only 28% of the policies issued, indicating a potentially untapped market for LTCi.

“While sales of LTCi at the younger ages may require different products and different techniques, sales activity has shifted toward finding real answers to real problems. What real problems do younger LTCi consumers want to solve? Many are finding themselves sandwiched between generations. They are caring for children at home or even adult children who have boomeranged back home. In addition, they are also seeing their parents’ health deteriorate, and frequently, that deterioration may occur in a different geographic location. These phenomena may cause the under 55 demographic group to be more open to planning for and purchasing LTCi.”

Peggy Hauser, Managing Director, PriceWaterhouseCoopers

NAIFA Advocacy Is Everywhere the Action Is!

Across NAIFA Nation, NAIFA’s advocacy influence makes a difference. Many important decisions come out of Washington, D.C., but just as many are made in state capitals or in the meetings of interstate policy groups. That’s why NAIFA’s advocacy is always protecting your business wherever the action is.

By Mark Briscoe

Federal

The dust has finally settled following the 2020 elections. A new administration and a new Congress are making decisions in Washington, D.C., that will impact the businesses of insurance and financial professionals and the Main Street families and businesses NAIFA members serve.

The 117th Congress was seated in January with nine freshman senators and approximately 60 new members of the House of Representatives. These are men and women who, in many cases, are completely unaware of NAIFA’s advocacy mission. They have not been in office during a Congressional Conference when NAIFA members filled the halls of House and Senate office buildings. They don’t have a clear understanding of the many ways that

NAIFA is involved with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) and National Council of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL), groups that produce model legislation and regulations and influence policy nationwide. NAIFA State Chapter Director Julie Harrison is a member of the board of directors of the National Insurance Producer Registry, an affiliate of the NAIC that oversees licensing matters. NAIFA Policy Director Maeghan

NAIFA members and their colleagues serve the insurance and financial needs of their constituents in their home districts, or how the decisions they make may impact the financial security of everyday Americans. The key is building relationships.

How can a NAIFA member build a relationship with a member of Congress? It’s really not difficult. It just requires being motivated, engaged and involved. Several good ways to start include:

• Attending NAIFA’s Congressional Conference, a virtual event May 25-26, to meet via video technology with your senator and their office staff

• Attending local events where the member of Congress will be

• Visiting with the member of Congress or their office staff in-district

• Volunteering to work on a campaign

• Contributing to a campaign or attending a fundraiser

Gale represents NAIFA on the Industry Education Council, an educational partner of NCOIL.

Earlier this year, NAIFA Trustee Chris Gandy spoke at a meeting of the NAIC’s Special Committee on Race and Insurance. NAIFA staff and volunteers regularly provide the NAIC and NCOIL testimony, letters and assistance drafting model legislation and regulations, as well as other resources.

When the NAIC or NCOIL produces a model policy with NAIFA’s backing, our association’s state advocacy teams and grassroots networks go into action. They work to have the model adopted by state governments.

Many NAIFA members know their senators or representatives as neighbors, business associates, members of the same religious communities and volunteer organizations, or through other personal interactions. If you know a member of Congress, please tell NAIFA by reporting the relationship via the NAIFA Advocacy Action Center on our website at www.naifa.org/advocate.

Good relationships are a pillar of NAIFA’s advocacy success. Being politically active and involved is an important part of being a good NAIFA citizen and working in clients’ best interests. After all, laws and regulations that don’t allow agents and advisors to effectively provide vital products, services and personalized advice are not in the interests of clients or consumers. When we have opportunities to change policies for the better, we need to do so.

NAIFA is currently pushing for the adoption of the NAIC’s model rule on annuity transactions in every state. NAIFA had a hand in creating the NAIC model and heading off alternatives that could have disrupted advisor-client relationships. It protects consumers by requiring financial professionals to work in their best interests while at the same time preserving business and compensation models that give consumers choices in the marketplace and broad access to products, services and advice. It’s a win-win.

State

State-level advocacy is often where the rubber meets the road. Laws and policies enacted by states can have major impacts on NAIFA members’ businesses and on the consumers they serve.

NAIFA is the only producer association with a strong advocacy presence in every state capital, including a professional lobbyist, a state political action committee and an active grassroots network. NAIFA has added members to its professional advocacy team over the past year to further build our presence in the states and coordinate our efforts on national and state chapter levels.

NAIFA and the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) maintain an active partnership to advocate on issues where our interests overlap. Coordinated efforts between NAIFA and ACLI, for instance, have spearheaded the push to adopt the NAIC annuities transaction model.

Active grassroots and coordinated lobbying by NAIFA and ACLI, including letters to lawmakers and regulators, have been influential in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Michigan, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio and Rhode Island adopting the NAIC model and many other states actively considering it.

The annuities model has been a point of emphasis at NAIFA state chapter legislative days, which have connected NAIFA members with lawmakers, either virtually or in-person. Chapters that have pressed ahead with successful legislative days or days on the Hill in 2021 include: NAIFA-CA, NAIFA-IA, NAIFA-FL, NAIFAME, NAIFA-ND, NAIFA-TX and NAIFAWI.

Chapter leaders provide comments and testimony to support good policies, like the adoption of the NAIC model, and oppose bad ones, like a trend toward creating state-run retirement plans that would compete with the private sector.

If the states are where the action is, you can bet it is NAIFA that is getting things done.

Take Action

NAIFA’s Advocacy Action Center is an online hub of advocacy information and tools. Through the Center, NAIFA advocates can:

• Join their voices with thousands of other NAIFA members as IFAPAC contributors to support candidates for state and federal office who understand the value advisors play in securing America’s financial future.

• Contact their federal legislators on issues important to the industry.

• Sign up to be a grassroots contact for their legislators and join NAIFA’s advocate network.

• Learn more about the federal and state bills being monitored by the NAIFA Government Relations Team, as well as those requiring action.

• Report relationships with state and federal elected officials. Access the Advocacy Action Center. Educate yourself by reading the monthly, members-only GovTalk newsletter. Register for NAIFA’s Congressional Conference.

Lessons Learned from a Professional Development… Professional

By Alaina Faiello

s I was standing in line waiting to pick up my order, the lady standing next to me began to make small talk. After going through the normal introductory questions, she asked me, “So, what do you do for work?” To which I replied, “I work for a national association that advocates for the profession of insurance and financial advisors, and I manage their Professional Development department!” After she blinked at me a few times and then proceeded to stare at me blankly, I corrected my response and said, “I educate people, ma’am.”

In the vast world that is education, the term “professional development” may be used to describe a wide variety of specialized training, formal education or advanced professional learning intended to help individuals improve their professional knowledge, competence, skill and effectiveness. The world of professional development has spanned across industries and cultures as far back in history as the first cavemen learning how to make fire and going on to teach others how to do the same in a little cave-class lesson.

NAIFA has had a similar history in providing professional development for our members and the industry at both the national and chapter levels, albeit much advanced from caveman days! Our members and industry experts took the things they knew and shared those things with others to teach them how they too could be successful. In this article, I will share three easy lessons

I have learned on building effective programming and wrap it up with a bow by sharing the future of NAIFA’s professional development.

WAYS TO BE SUCCESSFUL

Lesson #1: “Knock, knock. Who’s there? Your target audience.”

In professional development, you need to decide early on who your audience is so that you understand their levels of interest in different topics and how they like to engage. It is important to know who you are creating content for. Start by defining your primary, secondary and sometimes even tertiary audiences, as these groups will guide the direction of your programming in so many ways. Consider who your current audience is and the audience you would like to attract to your programs and events as well. Are they the same? Chances

interests.

Lesson #2: “But did you ask her?!”

Once you have identified your audience(s), the next question you should ask is: “What are the top three priorities of each audience type?” closely followed by: “What frequency do they like to receive information?” A common pitfall I have seen is the assumption that we know what other people want to know and how often. Surveying your audience before you build your programming is key to guiding your topic selection process and determining how often you provide it. A great point recently shared with me was, “It’s not your goals that will define great event content. It’s theirs.” Survey before you build a program or event to determine what your audience wants to know.

Survey again after to assess how on or off the mark your content was so you can make future adjustments to improve.

Lesson #3: “Not everything needs to be a webinar.”

After you have identified your audience and surveyed them to determine their top priorities, the final step is choosing the appropriate modality to drive home your program objectives. In professional development, modality is the delivery method by which we provide the education, and each delivery method has its place in your overall professional development plan. Will your event be virtual or in-person? Live or pre-recorded? Instructorled or self-paced? Do you have the resources to support each type of modality and how often? The options are endless and therefore it is important to know who your audience is, their top priorities, how often they want to receive information, and (drumroll please) how they prefer to ENGAGE in meeting their priorities. Having a clear understanding of each point up front will help you map out a very clearly defined professional development strategy without sacrificing time and energy on guesswork to meet your audience’s needs. Modalities can be anything from a lunch-and-learn, a webinar, a conference, a whitepaper or even an article in Advisor Today (winks at the camera).

Practicing what you preach: The future of NAIFA professional development The lessons shared above are how the Professional Development team at NAIFA has started to transition the process for how we create and deliver programming that resonates with the specific needs of both our current and future audiences. This means designing educational content in a variety of modalities that will appeal to different learning styles and packaging these in a way that is easily digestible. While there is still work to do and until we are able to move back into more in-person programming modalities, we are making the foundational adjustments now to build a solid professional development

stream digitally that will include the rollout of a new Learning Management System (LMS) in Q2 and also includes our partnership with Zoom.

As the world begins to open back up, the future is bright for NAIFA professional development, and we will continue to meet the educational needs of our members and the industry with our chapters and national programs. There is no better time than now to share topic ideas, speaker suggestions and any other information you would like to provide on how we can continue to improve the programming at programs@ naifa.org. All feedback is welcome and helps us to better serve you. Trust me, I educate people.

“development”

The lessons shared are how NAIFA national has started to transition the process for how we create and deliver programming that resonates with the specific needs of both our current and future audiences.

NAIFA Members are Extraordinary

By Mark Briscoe

NAIFA members’ personal brands, more often than not, reflect the brand of their professional association – a brand that projects strength, success and value. That is particularly true for three NAIFA standouts who have risen through the ranks, as demonstrated by their professional success, awards, achievements and leadership.

Whether it’s through recognition by NAIFA’s awards programs, feature roles in NAIFA signature events or media channels, or the LACP certification or LUTCF designation, NAIFA offers a myriad of ways for members to differentiate themselves in a crowded marketplace.

and financial services industry success in the United States, as well as internationally. The practice he founded connects financial advisors from multiple disciplines to serve the needs of multinational individuals and families. He helps ethnic communities and first-generation Americans migrating from Asia acclimate financially to their lives in the United States.

Kagawa, a loyal NAIFA member since 1986, is the 2020 NAIFA Diversity Champion, a distinction that reflects and amplifies his brand in a very personal way.

“Knowing and appreciating that our cultures, customs, food, languages, regulations and communities differ from one country to another, but at the heart of the matter, we’re much the same. We care for those who depend on us and for those we love, and we want more for our children, our business and ourselves,” Kagawa said. “Financially preparing those who enter our country to successfully build their lives and find joy and fulfillment in their newfound American homes while recognizing and addressing those footprints left behind represents our response to the globalization of financial services.”

Pottstown, Pennsylvania. She is NAIFA’s 2020 Young Advisor Team Leader of the Year.

Diversity Champion

Stephen Kagawa, CEO and Chairman of the Board of The Pacific Bridge Companies, stands out for his insurance

A member of NAIFA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Council, Kagawa has been a popular speaker on ethnic diversity marketing, holistic financial advisory practices and multinational wealth management at NAIFA’s Performance + Purpose conference and other industry events.

A loyal NAIFA member since 2005, Hatfield is the President of NAIFAPennsylvania and has served several terms on the state board of directors. She served on the NAIFA-Pennsylvania Strategic Planning Committee and chaired the state Young Advisors Team and Membership Committee. She was the President of the NAIFA-Tri-County local chapter from 2009 to 2011. Hatfield’s drive to succeed and to serve her fellow NAIFA members is relentless.

A graduate of NAIFA’s Leadership in Life Institute (LILI), Hatfield has also been a LILI class moderator. She serves as a NAIFA Ambassador, providing

guidance to the next generation of insurance and financial advisors and encouraging them to become NAIFA members.

“I am ready and willing to do my part in helping to advance NAIFA, our industry and financial security for the American families and businesses that we serve,” Hatfield said. “I am forever, had a problem standing out from the crowd. His stature is only enhanced by his background as a college basketball star at the University of Illinois and a professional career that included stops in the NBA.

As a financial professional, Gandy has achieved great success as the founder of Midwest Legacy Group and as a loyal NAIFA member since 2003. He was President of the NAIFA-Chicagoland chapter and serves on NAIFA’s DEI Council. He was an important member of the NAIFA 2025 Strategic Planning Committee and is currently on NAIFA’s national Board of Trustees.

Gandy is highly regarded as an expert on DEI issues in the insurance and financial services industry, frequently speaking to industry audiences, including at NAIFA events. His presentations as part of NAIFA’s webinar series and at NAIFA’s Diversity Symposia, NAIFA Live premier monthly meeting, and Performance + Purpose conference have proven as popular as they are powerful and insightful. Gandy advocates for greater diversity

in the insurance and financial services profession, including leadership positions, so that the industry can better provide financial security for all.

“Is it fair to say that our industry should look like the people we represent, the clients we serve?” Gandy asked. “Isn’t that what the industry was built on? Isn’t that how it’s supposed to be?”

Along with members like Stephen Kagawa and Carina Hatfield, Gandy exemplifies the NAIFA standards of strength, success and value, as well as service and volunteerism. They demonstrate the character and attributes that make NAIFA members the best insurance and financial services professionals in the country. And with NAIFA’s help, they constantly differentiate themselves from the crowd.

“naifa proud”

Is it fair to say that our industry should look like the people we represent, the clients we serve? Isn’t that what the industry was built on? Isn’t that how it’s supposed to be?

–Chris Gandy

NAIFA Awards Recognize the Best of the Best

NAIFA membership is the hallmark of a true professional, one dedicated to business success and providing quality, ethical service. Belonging to NAIFA differentiates members from other producers in a competitive market.

But NAIFA goes above and beyond to recognize our standout members with a robust slate of awards. You have read about some of our amazing award winners, including 2020 NAIFA Diversity Champion Stephen Kagawa and 2020 YAT Leader of the Year Carina Hatfield, in the preceding pages. Read on to learn how you can differentiate yourself as a NAIFA award recipient!

THE NAIFA QUALITY AWARD

The NAIFA Quality Award provides advisors at any career stage the opportunity to demonstrate a commitment to excellence. This includes: professionalism through education and earned designations, production measured by performance metrics customized for each practice specialty, adherence to the NAIFA Code of Ethics, and service to NAIFA and fellow association members.

NAIFA members may submit their NQA applications at tdc.naifa.org/nqa.

NAIFA DIVERSITY CHAMPION

NAIFA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Council created the Diversity Champion award to recognize NAIFA members’ exceptional efforts to promote the full and equal participation of diverse

people in the insurance and financial advising profession.

NAIFA Diversity Champions possess an exceptional blend of experience, skills, accomplishments and other qualities. They create and promote DEI in workplaces, raise DEI awareness in the industry and community, encourage diverse individuals to reach professional goals, promote DEI within NAIFA, and provide services in underserved and diverse markets.

Learn more about NAIFA’s Diversity Champion award and submit nominations at tdc.naifa.org/diversitychampion-nomination.

ADVISOR TODAY’S FOUR UNDER FORTY

Advisor Today recognizes four financial advisors who achieve excellence in their profession by the age of 40 with the “Four Under 40 Award.” Recipients are notable for the success they attain early in their careers and their commitment to their communities, families and teams. They provide inspiration and positive examples for fellow advisors.

Learn more about Advisor Today’s 4 Under Forty and submit nominations at tdc.naifa. org/4under-40.

YOUNG ADVISOR TEAM (YAT) LEADER OF THE YEAR

NAIFA’s Young Advisor Team (YAT) promotes the success of insurance and financial professionals under the age of 40 or in their first five years in the business. The YAT Leader of the Year Award recognizes an advisor’s commitment to NAIFA, including service in leadership positions, participation in NAIFA’s Leadership in Life Institute, involvement in political advocacy and participation in external service work such as charities, as well as their ability to inspire others. The award is also a testament to the recipient’s professionalism and dedication to the success of the industry and his or her industry peers.

Learn more about the YAT Leader of the Year award and submit nominations at tdc.naifa.org/yat-leader-nominations.

THE JOHN NEWTON RUSSELL MEMORIAL AWARD

The highest honor that can be bestowed upon an individual in the life insurance and financial services industry is the John Newton Russell Memorial Award, which was created in 1947. It recognizes a lifetime of professional excellence, service to the industry and a commitment to ethical conduct. The selection committee consists of representatives of the nine leading organizations in the life insurance and financial services industry.

Learn more about the John Newton Russell Memorial Award at tdc.naifa. org/jnraward-about.