This week, Marshall Kath hands over the reins to a new NAPSLOpresident. To hear Mr. Kath tell it, in many respects it tooklittle effort to lead an already well-oiled organization.

"I was handed an ongoing, living body of work and had a year inwhich I was part shepherd, part steward," said Mr. Kath, directorof industry relations at Black/White Associates in Henderson, Nev.,and former CEO of Colemont. "The good news is the weight of whatneeds to get done doesn't just get dumped at the door of thepresident. Really, the work is constantly ongoing-- you're justproviding guidance and direction when and where you may beasked."

More specifically, Mr. Kath called the existinginfrastructure--the organization's full-time staff based in KansasCity, its committees and the executive board--"a pretty effectiveand efficient machine."

Although Mr. Kath rattled off several of NAPSLO'saccomplishments looking back on his year as president, he insistedthe staff and its membership prove every day the organization is ongood footing and will be long after he leaves.

"In these times we have lost very few members. We think NAPSLO'svalue proposition is very compelling. Our dues structure isappropriate but not burdensome," he said, noting the activevolunteer participation of approximately 300 members. "Businessescontinue to view NAPSLO membership as meaningful and reallyimportant to our business."

A LEGISLATIVE VICTORY
After nearly two decades of pursuit, Congress included surpluslines modernization provisions in the NonAdmitted and ReinsuranceReform Act (NRRA), which, according to Mr. Kath, streamlines thepayment and allocation of surplus lines premium taxes and appointsthe insured's home state as the standard used for surplus linestransactions that cut across multiple states. Mr. Kath praisedExecutive Director Richard Bouhan and his assistant, Cheryl Rupp,for their ongoing efforts on federal legislation; he also citedDirector of Government Relations Steve Stephan, who in effect "has50 clients," in addition to working with Mr. Bouhan on the federallevel.

"There are 50 states in the U.S. and Steve does a great job notonly with keeping up with what's going on, but also working withthose people in the states," Mr. Kath said.

LEADERSHIP SCHOOL BOLSTERS EDUCATION
Building on the success of its E&S School and Advanced School,NAPSLO conducted its second annual Leadership School in conjunctionwith the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia.Designed for the industry's senior leaders, the course's attendanceexceeded expectations and feedback was very positive, according toMr. Kath.

Under the leadership of Admiral Insurance Company's vicepresident of marketing, Letha Heaton, NAPSLO also saw therestructuring of its Mid-Year Leadership Forum into two events, aTown Hall and a four-person panel of senior members. Ms. Heaton,who serves as NAPSLO's Mid-Year conference chair, and her committeemembers overhauled the format and lengthened the conference by aday to cater to the event's 550 attendees.

"We were very pleased with the way that worked out. There were alot of accolades from our membership, so we think we've got [theMid-Year conference] dialed into members' needs," Mr. Kathsaid.

Education and community were not limited to those on the cusp ofthe C-level in Mr. Kath's year at the helm. NAPSLO's Next Gengroup, a consortium of the organization's younger professionals,has formed its own board and has members sitting on each ofNAPSLO's main committees in just its third year ofexistence--bringing a valuable perspective to the leadership ofNAPSLO, Mr. Kath said.

MONITORING BROAD TECH TRENDS
Mr. Kath also reflected on the technology-oriented conferences andinitiatives in which NAPSLO participated over the year. Mike Ardis,NAPSLO's director of communications and technology, leads theorganization's involvement with the Agents Council for Technology(ACT), a subsidiary of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokersof America, that focuses on retailers. Ardis served as a co-chairof a subcommittee working on surplus and specialty lines issues. Inaddition to ACT, NAPSLO was represented at gatherings of theAssociation for Cooperative Operations Research and Development(ACORD), a group that sets data standards for the larger insuranceindustry, and the annual automation conference of the AmericanAssociation of Managing General Agents (AAMGA).

Mr. Kath stressed that NAPSLO still serves as a watchdog ratherthan an agenda-setter for its members when it comes to technology,and he stressed again that the people under him are primarilyresponsible for its integration into the profession.

"Our membership has never asked us to lead the charge in termsof keeping up with applications and making recommendations. Thatgets done within the halls of our membership. What our members haveasked us to do is keep them addressed of the broad trends," hesaid, adding that findings get communicated through newsletters andcommittees.

KEEPING THE ENGINE RUNNING
If Mr. Kath has any recommendations for the incoming presidentbased on his one-year tenure, his advice is simple--let people dothe jobs they are already doing well. In addition to Mr. Bouhan,Ms. Rupp, Mr. Stephan and Mr. Ardis, Mr. Kath singled out NAPSLO'sother full-time staff--Debbie Hill, Jennifer Hague, Vicky Flemingand Kathy Poulson--for their efforts in improving theorganization's meetings, events, technology initiatives and generalaccounting and administration. He also urged his successor torecognize the importance of its hundreds of volunteers.

"These are people who give of their own individual time, andthen their employers financially support this and recognize theywill give up time on the job to get this work done," he said.

In addition, Mr. Kath insists that the relatively large17-member board does not have too many cooks in the kitchen.

"You don't really see boards that size in the for-profit world,but there's a good representative cross-section of our membershipon that board," he said.

In essence, since NAPSLO's well-developed infrastructure and itscreative personnel continues to effectively serve its steadymembership, Mr. Kath strongly recommends acting as a "guide" asopposed to a leader --just as he did the past year.

"Listen well and then, maybe, act accordingly. I've not known ofany NAPSLO president to do things in haste, but we're all servedwell by just listening well and then acting out of, and from,that."