NSSTA and SSP meetings in Washington, DC this week

In a preview of the NSSTA and SSP annual meetings is the topic of a two part video conversation this week with Jack Meligan, the President of SPI and one of the founders of the SSP, and Mark Wahlstrom, the host of The Settlement Channel.

The structured settlement industry has hit a trough in business, a decline in the number of markets and in the number of cases settled, unlike anything the profession has seen since it's inception. There is a lot of speculation among brokers, general agents and life company personnel as to why this is, but for the perspective of two long time brokers and industry leaders, this two video conversation gives you an informed perspective.

We can't sugar coat this anymore, our industry and profession is struggling. Thankfully it appears that NSSTA has moved to address its leadership void by promoting Eric Vaughn to the position of executive director while nominating a strong list of candidates to build on the efforts of the current board. However, unless the educational programs, networking opportunities and new business ideas start improving, NSSTA is looking at being viewed as increasingly less important to the daily life and survival of the brokers out in the field.

SSP once again has a strong educational program lined up, but unless they can start building membership and broaden their appeal to a larger group of brokers, they run the risk of being viewed permanently as a niche group with out the clout to impact legislation, tax laws and the industry's future direction.

Enjoy this videos and we will be back with a report on both annual meetings next week.

Comments

[Fred]

Well said. What has either of these two groups done to grow the business for their members? NSSTA's lawyers won't let them do anything, and the SSP is too radical to attract any more members. Other than collecting dues, what has either organization done in years? SSP spent a ton of money on trying to legitimize single claimant QSF's (and failed), while the last time NSSTA grew the business was 1997 when we added work comp to Qualified Assignments. With the industry shrinking in terms of both sales and providers, it's time for both of them to focus on growth, not tearing down the business (SSP) or protecting the turf of a bunch of old brokers (NSSTA).

[Fred]

If the SSP is so great, why aren't the industry's most prominent plaintiff brokers (Darer, Street, Bradford, Diamantis, etc.) members? From the member list, it reads like the SPI broker list. I have to admit though, the SSP puts on some great topics on their annual. Maybe if they weren't so radical and attacked the industry, more people would join.