The COVID-19 pandemic has changed our lives in ways both large and small that seemed unimaginable only a few weeks ago—but the need for your advocacy on critical retirement issues is greater than ever.
One of the more significant changes, if one still has a job, is the switch from working in an office or other business location to working remotely from home. This change has forced many of us to interact with our work colleagues and others integral to performing our job virtually, whether through phone conferences, cloud-based team collaboration software (e.g., Microsoft Teams), or web-based video conferencing tools (e.g., Zoom).
My experience with these changes has been largely positive, and more seamless than I expected, although I (like I suspect most people) still long to interact with my friends and colleagues in the flesh. But life and work must go on, and so we here at the American Retirement Association are continuing to adapt to our new reality for the foreseeable future until the Coronavirus disease is defeated. That future means transitioning our professional advocacy and educational events, like the upcoming NAPA Fly-In Forum, into a virtual format.
One of the things that has always made the NAPA Fly-In Forum special is providing the opportunity for our politically engaged members (or those who would like to be) to exercise your First Amendment rights as Americans. In normal times, this means heading to Capitol Hill to educate policymakers about the value you bring to your clients, and American workers generally, to enable them to build a secure nest egg for their retirement. Of course, that will not be possible this year but the critical role that you play as advocates has never been more important.
At the American Retirement Association we are committed to providing that opportunity for you again this year. We are exploring the best ways that you will be able to interact with your representatives in Congress and their key staff virtually when the Forum convenes next month—and with these changes come opportunities to build on your relationships that have been established because of your efforts in past years, and to create new and lasting ones for the future.
As you may be aware, our top policy priority in response to this crisis is to give employers the flexibility needed to preserve their workplace retirement plan despite the unprecedented cash flow challenges that many businesses face in the current economic environment. That has required my colleagues and me on the government affairs team at ARA to feverishly work our email and phones and engage with Capitol Hill to achieve that goal.
I have found, despite my initial skepticism, this new experience to be intensely rewarding. I have been able to schedule more meetings with lawmakers and staff more efficiently, all without having to step foot outside of my home. The conversations that I have had with the Hill, wherever they may be in these recent weeks, despite many of those individuals frankly feeling overwhelmed and overworked because of the crisis, have allowed me to have more in-depth discussions (and sometimes healthy debates) about retirement policy than ever before in my eight years working for this organization.
So, I would strongly encourage you, to the extent you might have doubts about the value of engaging with Capitol Hill virtually, to step up to the plate and participate in our (virtual) “fly-in” at the Forum in July. Because your voice on Capitol Hill, with potentially hundreds of thousands of 401(k) plans at stake, is needed now more than ever. Your impact will be real.
NOTE: Applications for this impactful and innovative event have been coming in at a record pace! Don’t be left out—“Join” us on July 21–22, 2020.
Apply today at http://napadcflyin.org/
NOTE: Delegates must apply to attend and be:
- a member of NAPA;
- responsible for at least $100 million in plan assets, 10 plans, and 2,000 participants; and
- a plan advisor with 5 or more years of experience servicing retirement plans.
Applications are subject to review and approval. This exclusive event is open to advisors and home office personnel only.
