Appraisers from all disciplines met in Tampa, Fla., and online for the ASA 2022 International Conference September 10-12. BVWire was there along with hundreds of attendees on site—somewhat of a return to prepandemic normalcy. At all the sessions we attended, speakers were live and on-site. Here are some big-picture highlights—more detailed coverage of the sessions will be in the November issue of Business Valuation Update.

Three pillars: Johnnie White, ASA’s CEO, welcomed the attendees and outlined the organization’s strategic plan built around three “pillars”: (1) membership; (2) education; and (3) branding. The ASA has been experiencing some challenges with respect to membership levels (partly because of the aging of the profession), so efforts are underway to attract and retain members better, particularly younger members. Also, educational content is being increased with the addition of more on-demand learning and specialty conferences (such as the recent inaugural ESOP conference). As for branding, a PR firm has been hired to help elevate the ASA brand in the appraisal profession (brand logos have been sent to all members).

Economy: The Fed “will not back off” and will keep raising rates until it sees “serious progress,” said keynote speaker LaVaughn M. Henry, former White House economic advisor and senior regional officer and vice president for the Federal Reserve Branch in Cincinnati. There will be slowing growth over the next six months but not necessarily a recession. Henry noted that Bank of America backed off on its prior forecasts of a recession this year, now saying “maybe” next year. (Note: Henry’s remarks were made before last week’s market plunge.)

Shannon Pratt Award: The recipient of the inaugural Shannon Pratt Award is Roger Grabowski (Kroll). Jay Fishman (Financial Research Associates) and Ken Pia (Marcum) presented him with the award. Recently, Grabowski spearheaded the effort to publish the sixth edition of Pratt’s Valuing a Business.