Happy New Year; It's Been a Rough Ride
Is the worst of the “storm” passed or are we just in the “eye” of the hurricane?

I was reminded this week that the last recession was bigger, and I lived through it. No doubt you have felt the pain this past year having to cut and then cut some more. So, how do we approach the New Year? A recent Wall Street Journal editorial suggested . . . “with stoicism and optimism.”

In every challenge, there is an opportunity. Mergers and Acquisitions are starting to come out of the doldrums and the SBA is poised to be more active in lending to small businesses. Banks are failing and the loan portfolios are being purchased (at cents on the dollar). Fascinating deals are being made and being valued by some of our members. Fraud and Forensic services are in demand as the glaring examples of corruption in corporate and the investment management world as they work their way to the surface. We’ll be seeing the fallout from the Madoff and similar cases for some time. It’s an exciting time, really.

Chapter leaders have started planning the 2010 tri-annual agenda topics and we welcome any and all volunteers as well as ideas. If you have an interest or expertise in M&A, intangible valuation, ADR, or collaborative practice or want to review and update the “basics” in developing discounts and premiums, please step forward. This is the time of year we contract with authors and we need you. The next conference call to continue planning these programs will be January 21; we welcome your participation.

Transition of chapter leaders is also in the wind. In preparation, we are surveying the membership again, state by state, and your responses are urgently requested. We can’t be the organization you want if you don’t tell us what it is you need. As with all technology, our “free” survey software occasionally has a hiccup. My apologies to all those who were moved to another state this holiday season. We’re scrubbing our e-mail address and state lists. Which brings to mind, if you have not updated your member profile in the NACVA database, please do so. We all change e-mail addresses with regularity, and that makes it hard to keep in touch. The next conference call with new officers will be held February 2; to join us contact simoneh1@nacva.com. Adapting technology to make things easier is an ongoing focus for the chapter environment. At the same time, there is no replacing the benefit of the networking and personal connections that arise in a face-to-face meeting. If you have ideas or talents in this area, we need you!

Terrorism, economic, and financial failures—so much turmoil surrounds us—take this opportunity to revisit our mission and refresh the foundation on which it is built. A member-driven organization dedicated to the support and development of professionals in the valuation, litigation, and fraud consulting disciplines. What will that look like in the next decade? Moreover, what can you accomplish by partnering with NACVA and your local chapter in that time? Take the opportunity to make a contribution.
 

Local state chapter events provide members valuable opportunities to: (1) promote CVAs, AVAs, CFFAs, CMAPs, and NACVA within the community, (2) create a platform to network and develop mentoring relationships with other members, (3) deliver relevant industry-related information and educate members on the range of support available as benefits of membership and, (4) receive economical CPE on timely and relevant topics pertinent to valuation and litigation forensic services.

I encourage NACVA members to take advantage of these opportunities, sharing ideas, and educating one another on current issues facing the business valuation, litigation, financial forensics/fraud consulting, and mergers and acquisitions communities. To help facilitate and address such issues, NACVA provides presentation materials for three half-day state chapter meetings each year on topics of current interest.

Contact your local state chapter president to let him/her know of your interest in attending a meeting, being a presenter, or assisting in preparing the materials for a future meeting—or contact me at simoneh1@nacva.com or NACVA’s Executive Director Pam Bailey at pamb1@nacva.com.

 

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