2016 Advanced Sales Forum

Deidra W. Hubenak, J.D., CPA

Vice President, Advanced Markets, AIG Financial Distributors

David Rosuck, CLU

Vice President, Marketing, Pacific Life Insurance Company

Eric T. Sondergeld, ASA, CFA

Corporate Vice President and Director, LIMRA

Our industry is in the midst of transformation — creating both challenge and opportunity for advisors, carriers, and advanced sales professionals. This interactive session will feature a discussion of “innovation” relative to the industry and the advisor’s practice. Topics will include: economic, regulatory, technological and demographic trends; evolving client needs and expectations; new ways of thinking, communicating, and adding value; use of technology to ease and enhance the advisor-client experience; re-defining the “advanced” markets; and making innovation a “safe” reality.

Robert Keebler, CPA/PFS, MST, AEP (Distinguished), CGMA

Partner, Keebler & Associates, LLP

Roth conversions, net unrealized appreciation rollouts, and income shifting strategies — these tools can be income tax efficient solutions to accomplish financial and estate planning goals. They can also torpedo the best plan when not properly designed or administered. During this presentation we will review these strategies and identify situations in which each is effective.

Income taxation of business entities and trust is complex and the rules vary widely. This session will cover some general rules and specific strategies to reduce your client’s income tax burden. Topics will include:

• Taxation of Partnerships and LLCs,
• Taxation of C Corporations,
• Taxation of S Corporations,
• Trust Bracket Management, and
• Other Trust Topics

This workshop will briefly review the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to advanced sales departments, but concentrate primarily on the various ways that departments are addressing these issues through innovation, being more impactful to revenue generation, proactive measures, and changing the culture of a typical advanced sales department. We probably all recognize the need to stay relevant to the field and senior management but may be at a loss on how to best accomplish that. Our panelists will share ideas that they are implementing and invite audience members to contribute. By the end of the workshop, we anticipate that every participant will walk away with a couple of ideas that they can immediately implement in their department with immediate results.

Hear directly from millennials on what the industry needs to do to attract millennials as both future advisors and as future clients. LIMRA research tells us millennials as consumers continue to gain in economic position and prosperity, and millennials represent the well spring from which the next generation of advisor will emerge. Our discussion will focus on technology, language and financial products that millennials want your firm to provide to engage and to attract them as employees and as consumers.

See how Pacific Life uses LinkedIn and social selling methodologies to find prospects, gain leads, and drive sales. This presentation will:

• Walk you through Pacific Life’s strategy and approach 
• Share Pacific Life’s content and measurement structure to determine ROI 
• Provide six key takeaways for social selling success

Chris Morton

Executive Vice President, Government Affairs & Business Strategy, Association for Advanced Life Underwriting

With the 2016 election looming this fall, how might the results in Washington impact your business? Attend this informative update on tax and regulatory issues that affect you, the life insurance industry, and the broader financial services community.

Lawrence Brody, J.D., LL.M.

Partner, Bryan Cave LLP

Thomas F. Commito, J.D., LL.M., CLU, ChFC, AEP

Director, Sales Concepts, Lincoln Financial Distributors

Jeffrey Hollander, J.D.

Assistant Vice President, Advanced Markets, MassMutual Financial Network

A perennial favorite, not to be missed! Larry Brody and Tom Commito will give us their unique perspective on recent Estate, Business, Employee Benefit, and Charitable Giving cases, ruling, and other current events. Their insight will help ensure that you — and the advisors you support — are the best “students of the industry” possible! In tandem with demystifying the subject matter, Larry and Tom will provide clarity on how these developments relate to and impact the advice you provide to the Advisors you support. This combination of technical knowledge and practical application will enhance your value proposition and ultimately help clients achieve their unique goals and objectives.

This workshop will focus on changes in estate planning as consumer’s attitudes and needs evolve. We will look at considerations of the blended family, special needs children and adults, the LGBTQ community and using traditional and sometimes not so traditional planning methods including consideration of life insurance, annuities and LTC products.

This panel discussion will cover popular annuity sales concepts and their related technical/tax issues that are frequently presented to Advanced Sales team members. Topics to be covered on this panel are annuities and loans to defective trusts, annuities in charitable planning, 1035 issues including post death nonqualified transfers, stretch options, annuities in IRA’s, and annuity buy-backs. This session will also include a discussion of how to work effectively with your home office legal and tax operations teams to gain their support of advanced annuity sales concepts. The participants on this panel will include Advanced Sales professionals who have expertise in annuities and work extensively in that market.

All day long we communicate with different audiences: field partners, other home office departments, national marketing organizations, and clients. We are regularly called upon to be educators, advocates, negotiators, problem solvers, and public speakers. How do we make sure our message gets across and doesn’t get lost in translation? Join us for an interactive discussion regarding how our communication style and effectiveness directly and indirectly promotes sales in contexts and situations requiring our input, direction or advice. Discussion topics will include case consultations, training, marketing materials, client meetings, and methods of communicating with various parties with the end client in mind.

The Social Security decision is one of the most important decisions individuals face about their retirement income. This decision could potentially result in accumulating hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional retirement income. This presentation breaks down and simplifies the many rules and filing options for Social Security to help retirees make a suitable decision for their needs by analyzing and comparing different Social Security filing options.

Bradford Campbell

Partner, Drinker Biddle & Reath, LLP

This general session will offer insight on the new DOL Fiduciary Rule, providing an overview of how this rule changes the way Rollover and IRA business will be done going forward. Nothing in recent history has the potential to transform our industry the way the DOL Fiduciary Rule does. We owe it to ourselves and our companies to stay abreast of these changes so that we can uncover the opportunities they may present.

Jason Mendelsohn

President, Ashar Group

Lee Russell, CLU, ChFC, ALMI, RHU, CEP

Director, Advanced Markets, AIG

Channing Schmidt, J.D., CFP

Advanced Marketing Director, Minnesota Life

Wendell Stallings, CLU, ChFC

Advanced Markets Consultant, Case Design, MetLife

Life insurance carriers have become increasingly vigilant to combat sales strategies that either abuse the tax code or exploit their products. Advanced sales departments often help determine whether a particular sales idea or strategy will receive a carrier’s blessing or prohibition. This session will contrast appropriate uses and abuses in the life insurance marketplace for several practices, including premium financing, life settlements, and captive insurance. By understanding where certain practices may either stay within or cross the line of appropriateness from the carrier’s standpoint, advanced sales professionals can better advise producers and cultivate quality business.

Robert Eichler, CFP, CLU, ChFC

President and Founder, CCL Financial Group

Lee Russell, CLU, ChFC, ALMI, RHU, CEP

Director, Advanced Markets, AIG

Howard Sharfman

President, Schwartz Benefit Services, Inc.

When in the course of case design a producer reaches out to the Advanced Sales team, are there disconnects between assistance sought and what is provided? Are there avenues, or actions, which provide more efficient, or clearer, response? These questions, and others, will be posed to our panel of top producers. The answers will stir consideration of how we may improve our efforts to help them serve their clients.

This workshop will focus on the DOL’s Fiduciary Rule and its resulting effects on the various aspects of our business. Different companies may have discovered different solutions to the changes this rule requires. Thus, our goal is to reveal what practices have been incorporated by different companies and what opportunities might be found in this profound time of change in our industry.

The term “underwriting” generally conjures up thoughts of medical profiles and standards. But in reality financial profiles and valuation standards are often just as important to the acceptance of a life insurance Underwriting risk. What should be included in a good cover note? Join us for an open interview with Jordan J. Carreira, a seasoned life underwriter from The Lincoln Financial Group, conducted by Tom Commito. Come prepared with your own questions.

Leigh-Alexandra Basha

Partner, McDermott Will & Emery LLP

Life insurance offers tremendous planning opportunities and benefits to both resident and non-resident alien clients. This presentation will highlight the relevant rules with respect to insurance planning for these types of clients, and assist life insurance professionals identify opportunities to meet the needs of international clients. The presentation will be geared towards practical situations, and offer examples of the utility of insurance planning in resident and non-resident alien’s estate plans.

Matthew Pressler

Director, M Life Insurance Company

Mark Teitelbaum, J.D., LL.M., CLU, ChFC

Vice President, Advanced Sales, AXA

Josh Winslow, J.D.

Assitant Vice President and Associate Counsel, Advanced Markets & Underwriting, John Hancock

Jeffrey Hollander, J.D.

Assistant Vice President, Advanced Markets, MassMutual Financial Network

The Advanced Life Insurance Sales professional must keep up with the changing sales environment. In addition to being well-versed in traditional strategies, it is important to be on top of new and sometimes aggressive case designs. Understanding these strategies and evaluating cases with financial underwriting and product design can present both challenges and concerns.