A Letter to The Industry from The ARA President – Clearing the Air

A Letter from the President of the American Recovery Association, Dave Kennedy:

There has been so much discussion surrounding the lender roundtable that was held in Dallas. There seems to be a lot of disinformation on social media and in print by those who were not in attendance, so I felt the need to clear the air with facts.

FACT: The meetings and the invitees were determined by the facilitator hosts not a single association. They and they alone decided who to invite. They invited facilitators and direct lenders who participate in strategic calls throughout the year. These forward-thinking participants wanted to open the door to an unprecedented level of cooperation and understanding.

FACT: At no time was there discussion of standardizing rates of any kind PERIOD.

FACT: Discussions were held on developing a better update program for the whole industry; reenergizing the acceptance of standard definitions for voluntary and involuntary repossession as were written by the CORP (Council of Repossession Professionals) from years ago. Having areas of pre-approved ancillary items to eliminate the need for constant phone calls, automatic cost of living (NO amounts discussed) only theory. Better integration to avoid the risks we all face with double assignments and major inefficiencies.

Comment:

The next Industry Roundtable will be held at NARS and the ARA Annual Convention. I thought I should more clearly define the goals of the ARA. Being the representative voice for the entire Recovery Industry, we feel it is very important to include all stakeholders, especially those that are willing to help to make our industry stronger, profitable and most of all sustainable.

Leadership encompasses the ability to appreciate and accept concepts and business models that dissent from one’s own direction or thoughts. It is about building not tearing down. It’s allowing open thought without bias to enable transparency enabling the development of new directions and solutions.

The meeting was not clandestine; in fact, people from all groups knew about it because input was sought and received from them. Networking takes many forms. I was a banker for nearly 15 years and networking has always entailed some type of socialization. For my entire career, dinner, golf and maybe drinks were how relationships were built, still are today. We had the chance to keep control of our industry years ago, but the very type of divisive behavior and attitude shown by some is the very reason we are in the dire situation we are in. Unity is the only solution; it serves no purpose to seek the demise of anyone’s particular business model. Everyone is free to choose their own business partners.

Come to NARS, engage, be heard, no matter what your affiliation, or if you have no affiliation at all, your voice and engagement are welcome. At NARS you will interact with lenders informally and in breakout sessions, auctions, technology companies, insurance vendors, and your fellow repossesses. ARA does not pick winners or losers; we allow the free flow of information.

If you are a member of ARA, be at the convention to decide on the direction your association moves toward.

See you at NARS and the convention!

Dave Kennedy,