NAIFA President Jill Judd, CEO Kevin Mayeux, and Senior Vice President for Government Relations Diane Boyle delivered the State of NAIFA Q3 webinar earlier this week. The recorded webinar is available online.

NAIFA President Jill Judd

Judd began the presentation by praising the efforts of NAIFA volunteers during the third quarter.

“NAIFA is bringing back the spirit of belonging and volunteering and your service has been service above self,” she said. “It’s been that type of mentality that keeps our association strong and continues to provide protection for our clients.”

She gave a recap of the message delivered at the NAIFA Performance + Purpose conference in Orlando during the third quarter about the progress NAIFA has made since it was reborn with changes to its structure and bylaws on Jan. 1, 2019.

“I promise you we are just beginning to feel the thrill that is NAIFA,” she said.

She reviewed award winners NAIFA recognized at P+P:

• Cheryl Canzanella, NAIFA’s 2019 Young Advisor Team Leader of the Year
• Aprilyn Geissler, NAIFA’s 2019 Diversity Champion of the Year
• Guy Baker, recipient of the John Newton Russell Award

NAIFA CEO Kevin Mayeux

Mayeux followed up with information on several exciting NAIFA programs. NAIFA’s P+P conference in September featured highly successful session tracks, great keynote speakers, and Big Ideas workshops that will now be available in a NAIFA webinar series.

“It was absolutely amazing and, by the way, a ton of fun as well,” he said. “So if you didn’t have a chance to join us in Orlando, please join us in Boston in 2020 where we’re going to crank it up a notch and have a great time there.”

NAIFA’s first Level Up workshop took place in Dallas during the third quarter. In collaboration with the Society of Financial Services Professionals, the event featured great speakers and was broadcast online. NAIFA is taking what we learned in Dallas and fine tuning the Level Up program, Mayeux said, and beginning in the first quarter of 2020 will present one workshop per quarter from locations around the country.

Mayeux then presented brief reviews of other NAIFA programs:

• The Life and Annuities Certified Professional certification is gaining momentum, Mayeux said, with a number of companies and broker-dealers approving it for us by their financial professionals. The next testing period for the LACP is January 2020, and the registration deadline is Dec. 1.
• Limited and Extended Care Planning Center is online as a resource for financial professionals who help clients with limited and extended care.
• NAIFA’s Talent Development Center includes resources and programs where NAIFA members at any stage of their career can gain knowledge and skills necessary for their success.

Senior Vice President for Government Relations Diane Boyle

Boyle rounded out the webinar with a Q3 update on NAIFA’s government relations activities.

NAIFA is keeping members informed about the SEC’s new Regulation Best Interest NAIFA with an hour-long Webinar, the Take 3 video, and other resources that make up a Reg BI Toolkit, available online.

NAIFA also delivered its new Advocacy Action Center in the third quarter. The site provides status updates on issues important to financial professionals and lets them take action on legislation and issues that NAIFA is following in Congress. The site also allows members to send letters to members of Congress and track their relationships with representatives and senators.

NAIFA’s new State Influence Program will place a renewed emphasis on state-level advocacy. NAIFA formalized a new partnership with ACLI that will initially focus on important legislation and regulations in key, at-risk states: California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. NAIFA and ACLI will work together to “get ahead of the game on the issues,” Boyle said.

NAIFA has begun planning a robust National Advocacy Meeting, Dec. 2-4 in Washington to provide training for political action and influence leaders from around the country. Attendees at the meeting will also have a Day on the Hill to meet with their individual lawmakers.

Also in Q3:

• NAIFA Trustee Connie Golleher participated in a Treasury Department panel on long-term care insurance
• NAIFA began gearing up for campaign season by raising over $100,000 for NAIFA’s IFAPAC at the P+P conference.

For much more information on the state of NAIFA, watch the complete Webinar online.