The Heartbeat of the Disaster Claims Industry | NACA 2025

Did you make how much? [music] Most people have never even heard of this career. No radio ads, no Super Bowl commercials, no guidance counselor ever said, "Have you ever thought about becoming an insurance adjuster?" [music] But every January, thousands of independent adjusters gather under one roof. Some veterans with years in the field, others brand new with fresh licenses and zero deployments. [music] They come to share stories, shake hands, learn new skills, and discover opportunities that could change their year or their entire career. This is Naka, the National Association of Catastrophe Adjusters. And for many, it's where a six-f figureure [music] career begins. >> We had record attendance this year of adjusters. And this is the first time we've been in a convention center, [music] so we have a bigger space than we've had before. Everything seems to be crowded. I hear a lot of people are putting in their resumes, getting job offers, things [music] like that. Our CES are loaded with technology this year. So, I've heard that everybody's really enjoying that. So, it's going pretty well here in Little Rock. >> With 50 [music] years of growth, education, and connection, NACA has evolved from a small gathering of stormchasers into the beating heart of the independent adjusting [music] industry. It's not just a conference, though. It's a clearing house [music] for careers, a marketplace for opportunity. Every January, while the rest of the world is making resolutions that they probably won't follow through on, adjusters are here investing in themselves, their networks, and their futures. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the convention itself, a milestone that proves this industry isn't going anywhere. And with 61 exhibitors on the floor, the vast majority being IIA firms actively recruiting, this is where careers get launched. >> It's really the only adjuster centric conferences. So, you know, you got to be here. >> I wish I had known Naka 10, 15 years ago when I first started >> because it's the only location you can go to for a convention and find this many adjusting firms on the exhibit floor as well as get your CES at the same time. You cannot go anywhere else and basically apply with 60 other companies. Those companies are only here at Naka because they need to recruit adjusters and that's why they come. It's kind of one of those unique things that is well worth every bit of your time, effort, energy to come to Naka. >> This is our seventh year in a row. Uh we have committed to not missing it. And the reason is is because we can come out and meet talented adjusters and put the right people to work. >> I want to put a face to a number on a roster. >> Something like Florida's like a tough nut to crack as far as getting into the industry. You can do good work, but unless you meet people who run the firms and people like, you know, the recruiters, you can send emails all day, especially in a place like Florida, and say, you know, here's samples of my work. Here are the hurricanes and stuff I've done. Like, I'm a boss graduate. Here's what I've done. Most of the firms will just delete, delete, delete, delete, delete. Not really give you the time a day because you're just one of 10,000 [music] other people asking the same question. Can I get a chance? Can I get some work? >> Think about that for a second. Dozens of companies under one roof, all [music] hiring. Where else in the industry can you walk the floor for 3 days and hand your resume to that many potential employers? Where else can you get continuing education credits while simultaneously building the relationships that will deploy you when the next storm hits? Listen, the reality is is that your resume is one of thousands in an inbox. But here, you're a handshake conversation, a person that they're going to remember when the hurricane just made landfall. In a business built on storms and spreadsheets, relationships still drive everything. In this industry, you could work for a company for years and never meet your manager in person. Never sit in the same room as your team and never shake hands with the person signing your checks. So, when you get the chance, you show up and you make the connection. Now, as always, we like to have a little fun at the convention. We asked the adjusters and exhibitors a simple question. If you could only be one, would you rather be the smartest person in any room that you walked into or the most attractive? It's more thoughtprovoking than you'd think. And the answers, well, listen, I know it's going to be hard for you to answer as spiffy as you are, as sharp you are. But, uh, room full of people, you can be the smartest or the most attractive. Which would you rather be? >> Smartest all day long. Always the smartest. >> Smartest. >> Smartest. Intelligence is attractive. >> Smartest. [music] I'm most attractive for sure cuz I'm already the smartest. >> There you go. If you and I were in the same room, which one would you be? [music] >> I would be the smartest. >> Do I have to answer that? That's weird. Um, [laughter] >> definitely not most attractive. That's That's for sure. I I think smartest. I'd rather be the smartest. >> Most intelligent. Uh, attractiveness, beauty fades. You know, knowledge is power. So, I that's not even a question to me, I guess. Yeah. [laughter] I definitely don't want to be the most attractive person cuz then people don't see you for who you really are. I'd rather be the smartest person, but I just enjoy learning from other people. What if I'm both? >> You can't be. >> Well, I am the most intelligent person in the room. Says nobody ever. >> It's a tough one. Uh I heard attractive people more likely to get hired. >> Oh, that's I don't you have to I don't know. >> But then again, if I'm the smartest person in the room, that means I can't learn anything. So, it's kind of like I don't know. >> I'm going to say the smartest. Uh I'm not the smartest guy in the world, but it'd be nice to be the smartest one in the world just to be able to connect with people on a different level. >> Say the smartest if you're able to have good rationale, put things together [music] because you're out there investigating these claims. So you need to know how to think and be thoughtprovoking. And I I think you know it it takes a little smartness to get that done, you know. Yeah. What's up? >> Room full of people. Which would you rather be? The most attractive or the smartest? >> Definitely the smartest because I can figure out how to be the most attractive. >> All right. Thank you very much. >> Anytime. >> You do know that if we were both in a room, you could only be one but not the other. >> No comment. >> All right. See you. >> I've been the most attractive person in the past and it's a burden. Rather be the [music] smartest. >> James, I think our booth is proof that you can be both. Probably the smarter. And why? I don't know. That's a I don't know. >> Okay. [laughter] >> I don't know that you like that question very much. >> I don't really like that question. I was expecting you to say something about tacos. If I could be the most intelligent person in the room, that would be pretty awesome, I think. And the reason is because I'm not and because I don't know what that really feels like. >> My heart is most attractive, so I'd rather be the smart. [laughter] >> Nice. Might as well go for the smartest. I've been attractive for years. >> Turns out adjusters value brains over beauty. Who knew? But it kind of makes sense. In an industry where your reputation and your skill set determine whether you work or you sit at home waiting for the phone to ring, intelligence wins every time. >> This year we're doing something again new. We are holding a concert [music] with the Flat River Band at the Hall here in Little Rock. So what's interesting with the Flat River Band is they live in Nashville and two of the band members actually own an adjusting firm, Tractor Claim [music] Service. So, we decided, you know, kind of keeping everything in the adjuster family that we would invite the band to do a performance. So, that's going to be tonight's evening performance. So, it should be pretty good. >> After the expo floor closes and the CE classes wrap up, the real bonding happens. Tonight, they'll listen to a band made up of their own adjusters who know what it's like to battle it out with roofers, write an estimate, and chase a storm season. Naka knows that networking isn't just business cards and elevator pitches. [music] It's late night conversations. It's stories from the field. Meeting unique insureds from across the country or even the [music] globe. The intense wildfire deployments and the hurricane that changed everything. Because when you're alone in a hotel room in a disaster zone hundreds of miles from home, working 16-hour days, the people that you meet here become your lifeline, [music] your community, and your family. >> We get to talk to companies like Adjuster TV that are more connected with everybody here. From my perspective, it cuts to the chase from an adjuster's point of view cuz you can Google, but often times if you Google what you're looking for, it comes at it from different avenues. And the adjuster TV is more specific to help an adjuster get specifically where they need to be or find out more resources that they need for what it is they're looking for and multiple resources at that. So, I think it's kind of a one-stop shop from an adjuster's perspective to just be in line with what an adjuster needs. >> And that's exactly why we're here to document the stories, the strategies, and the real world advice that you won't find in a textbook or a licensing course. Adjust TV exists to bridge the gap between what adjusting looks like on paper and what it actually feels like in the field. We talk to the firms doing the hiring, the veterans who've been through every kind of storm, and the rookies figuring it out for the first time. Because if you're serious about this career, whether you're brand new or 20 years deep, you need to know what's happening, who's hiring, what's changing, where are the opportunities. >> Next year, we will be at Chalkaw Casino [music] in Oklahoma. Um, it's going to be exciting. We're going back to [music] a casino type event, uh, which is what we usually do, uh, in the Las [music] Vegas and Reno area. And so, we're trying to move around the country, find different [music] spots to make travel and accessibility better for everyone involved. So, we're [music] excited to go to Oklahoma. We would like to see more of our, you know, our Texas adjusting friends to come and visit with us at Naka. [music] The next chapter of NAKa is already on the horizon and it's bigger than ever. A new city, a new venue, more firms, more opportunities, more adjusters taking the leap into a career that most people still don't even know exists. Durant, Oklahoma, January 25th through 29th, 2026 at the Chalkaw Casino. If you're serious about adjusting, that's a date you circle on your calendar. That's where you meet [music] the people who can change your life. So now you understand why Naka matters. You see the energy, the opportunity, the connections happening all around you. [music] But here's the question. How do you actually make the most of it? What's happening at those booths? [music] What are the firms really looking for? And how do you stand out when you're competing with hundreds of other adjusters for attention? [music] Coming up, we're taking you on to the expo floor. We'll show you what's actually happening in those conversations. We'll hear from the firms about who they hire and why. And we'll learn from adjusters who've cracked the code. [music] the ones who came here with nothing and left with opportunities that changed their careers. Because showing up is step one, but knowing how to work the room, that's what separates the ones who get deployed from the ones who go home empty-handed. And as always, thank you so much for watching and have a great storm. [music] >> [music]