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.”