IIABA Prez: Future Is In Diversity, Young Agents
By Mark E. Ruquet
NU Online News Service, Sept. 23, 11:23 a.m. EDT, Las Vegas?W. Cloyce Anders, the outgoing president of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America, urged his membership at a conference here to provide cash for the group's political action committee and support for young agents and IIABA's diversity initiative.
In order to thrive in the future, he said, the organization needs to support those programs as well as the industry's InVEST insurance education program.
"Each program prepares those who will succeed us to be the leaders of our agencies, our associations and our industry," he said. "We all, the Big ?I,' our states and our members, must promote this young talent and encourage diversity."
"We must evolve to maintain our greatness; an organization that remains in the past will not remain great," Mr. Anders said during the Alexandria, Va.-based association's InfoXchange conference here.
During his one-year term as president, Mr. Anders said a major goal of his was to seek better relations between the state and national associations. He said advancing that goal has made the independent agents associations a more effective voice for the needs of agents.
"We work through action, not rhetoric to accomplish results," observed Mr. Anders.
He added that legislators listen when agents "speak with one voice."
IIABA must continue to promote grass roots support through its InsurPAC, which he said has reached over $500,000 and will become a $1 million PAC over the next two years.
"Money is the mother's milk of politics," he noted. "All agency employees must support InsurPAC to ensure our voice is heard even louder in Congress."
On the association's branding campaign promoting independent agents, Trusted Choice, Mr. Anders said more than 3,000 agents have signed up for the program and more companies are signing up to partner with the program.
Agents are writing more business for the program that has spent more than $1.5 million on advertising promoting the name and its agency locator Web site.
"We cannot rest," he added. "We will make Trusted Choice a household name in the minds of consumers."
On relationships between agents and insurance companies, he said the association continues to work with carriers to be "good partners" and invites them to do the same.
He called on companies to show more support for the development of technology through the Agency Council for Technology that will break down proprietary systems and support single-entry, multiple company interface.
"We must remain vigilant so we are prepared to tackle new challenges, grasp new opportunities and build new relationships," he said. "We can not; we must not; and we will not rest."
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