BIG “ I ” LEADERSHIP ADAPTS TO CHANGE & KEEPS MOMENTUM
By : Cindy Hower
The IIABA Board of Directors Meeting was held virtually on September 10-11 , 2020 .
IIABA Chairman Jon Jenson opened the meeting with his report . Notable comments included :
• This was IIABA ’ s first-ever virtual regular board meeting .
• Big I Hires continues to be a top member utilized service for talent recruitment .
• Big I Markets growth is up 30 %, with more improvements to its technology platform coming .
Financially IIABA is strong and is heading towards the end of the fiscal year operating favorably . The board was presented and approved a balanced budget for FY2020- 2021 .
Your IIABA Government Affairs team continues to be a strong leader and advocate for each of us . Charles Symington and his team back in Washington DC have done everything possible to keep an eye on major federal issues surrounding COVID-19 , legislation to address future pandemics , the NFIP extension , and the potential implications of the November elections .
Speaking of federal legislation brings me around to the reminder if you have not made your annual InsurPac contribution or maybe have never donated , please consider doing so now . There has never been a time more impactful to participate .
We held a virtual election for the next at large member to the IIABA Executive Committee . With three
candidates running , this is quite a process under normal circumstances . The winner is not declared until the majority of votes goes to one candidate , so in a sense , it ’ s a runoff process . The candidate has an opportunity after the first round to decide if they will continue or drop out . Each candidate is privately told how many votes they get . No one else knows . Doing this virtually was interesting as candidates had to be moved into a “ room ” without the rest of the board while the voting took place . The technology worked great , and the process ended with the election of Angelia Ripley from Maryland as the next executive committee member . I know Angelia will do a great job representing all our members .
Plans are underway for a real in-person Board of Directors meeting this coming January in Savannah , Georgia . It has been an overwhelming consensus that virtual meetings work great to get business accomplished , but the real work and being together to roll up our sleeves and move the organization forward comes from face-to-face . We all miss that very much !
Cindy Hower , President of Kellerman Insurance also manages Kellerman Real Estate with Roger Hower , her husband , as the firm ’ s managing broker . She has been involved in industry relations for 30 years . She is a past president of the KAIA , past chair of the Big “ I ” Virtual University committee , and continues to serve in leadership roles .
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