 
 
By Jeff Fleming, J.D., CFP, CLU, ChFC, AEP, NAIFA YAT Chair
It is hard for me to believe that this fiscal year and my tenure as NAIFA YAT chair are quickly coming to an end. But as I look at the year in review, I am pleased with what we have accomplished. The positive momentum of YAT continues, and YAT programs around the country are exploding. Leadership at all levels of the federation has worked extremely hard to create and pursue the mission of YAT. I thank everyone for your efforts, support and dedication—to which this year’s successes are clearly attributable.
Speaking of successes, look at all that YAT has accomplished this year. First, the NAIFA Board of Trustees approved our name change to Young Advisors Team. YAT created a mission statement, also approved by the board, and that is to serve NAIFA’s young advisors by providing the tools and resources to succeed in the financial services industry. The mission statement clearly defines YAT’s purpose, and I firmly believe that YAT will make a dramatic difference in the professional lives of our young and new advisors.
In conjunction with Advisor Today, we launched this monthly email publication you are reading right now. Advisor Today’s YAT Chat publishes information about issues specifically pertinent to young advisors, including articles submitted by YAT Task Force members.
NAIFA also produced the YAT Resource Guide, which delineates many of the resources available to NAIFA members that are especially pertinent to young advisors.
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I firmly believe that YAT will make a dramatic difference in the professional lives of our young and new advisors.
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Thank you to NAIFA staff for making substantial improvements to the YAT website, which is loaded with practical tools to help our state and local leadership implement YAT programming. And, it is working! A majority of states have nominated YAT chairs at this point, and we hope that every other state will soon follow.
Our local associations have also done an incredible job of conducting YAT programs, and they are feeling the results. New leadership is emerging with a fresh perspective and boundless enthusiasm.
NAIFA is continuing to develop a database for YAT containing valuable information such as sales ideas, success stories and YAT programs so that it becomes easier to share these resources with the federation. We are also working toward an online mentoring program to facilitate the process of matching young advisors with experienced members from around the country. This is a very exciting program and will be a top priority as YAT moves forward.
We have terrific YAT events planned for this year’s NAIFA convention in Baltimore. They include a meet and greet, an offsite happy hour, and a legislative reception with guest Michael Kerley, NAIFA’s senior vice president for government relations. We will also be conducting two YAT breakout sessions. The first is titled "How Top Producers Attract Tons of Prospects: Tactics You Can Copy.” The second session, “The YAT Under-40 Panel,” will highlight a panel of young advisors sharing ideas that have brought them success. You will not want to miss it, so plan now to attend.
I am sure you will agree that we have accomplished a lot this year, but our work is not done. NAIFA YAT will certainly continue to work hard under the new leadership of Marc Bregman. We have much to be excited about, and NAIFA’s future is looking brighter as a result of the YAT initiatives.
Jeff Fleming, J.D., CFP, CLU, ChFC, AEP is an attorney and financial planner at Hippo and Fleming Law Offices and VIP Financial Group, LLC in Altoona, Pa. A member of the Altoona Area AIFA, Fleming is the national YAT chair and can be reached at jeff@lawandmoneymatters.com.
August 2005
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