I love October. It's a time to enjoy the change of seasons,reflect back on three-quarters of the year already past and realizewe still have some time to finish what we envisioned in ouroriginal annual business plans.

One of the things that has been on my mind these days has beenhow can we best plan to sustain this industry. The insurancemarketplace is going to continue demanding an infusion of newintellectual capital to provide innovative ideas, new products andreliable services to meet the needs of our customer base. How canwe accomplish this?

In 1991, AAMGA chartered a group of young insuranceprofessionals within the association called the Under Forty Organization or UFO.Some within the ranks believe the acronym stands for “underpaidfuture owners,” but we will leave that to another article. Thegroup now numbers more than 400 insurance professionals under age40 and employed by AAMGA members. The immediate past president ofthe UFO has a seat on the AAMGA board, attends all meetings andparticipates in discussions to chart the future direction of theassociation, its university and the AAMGA Chair of Insurance &Risk Management at Georgia State University. The UFO's 19th annualmeeting and election of officers just concluded in Austin, Texas,with the largest number of attendees in its history.

UFO had its origin in the realization that this is still abusiness built on and fostered by trusted relationships. Allowingour young executives to meet and confer, exposing them to allfacets of the business, sharing ideas and knowledge and enhancingtheir capabilities is essential to our industry's sustainability.However, this won't happen unless each of us mentors junioremployees and directs their progress, just as we do with ourbusinesses each year. We also must look to attract more youngpeople to the insurance profession. Becoming involved in highschool, college and university programs, career fairs and centers,sponsoring events, giving guest lectures or talks, becominginvolved in an insurance fraternity and providing internships arejust a few examples of how we can best “fertilize” and thencultivate these prospects.

Although the old adage says the grass is always greener on theother side of the fence, that may be because that grass was givenmore fertilizer and attention than where you might be standingright now. As the market continues to evolve, we must take everyopportunity to become engaged in advancing and sustaining ourfuture. So enjoy the fall, but plan for the future of your businessand the industry by cultivating young insurance professionals whocan further enrich the industry.

Editor's note: UFOPresident Colleen Giles-Harris was featured in AA&B's AugustnexGens Initiative column.