At CEO Update Live Executive Forum, panelists discuss the ‘ebb and flow' of issues, and how it affects group staffing

Political gridlock has led to a slowdown in lobbying activity, according to three experts who spoke at a CEO Update Live Executive Forum Wednesday. Pictured from left are recruiter Ivan Adler and lobbyists Scott DeFife and Scott Talbott.

Legislative lobbying on Capitol Hill is in somewhat of a lull, and that has ramifications for association hiring and resource allocation, veteran lobbyists and recruiters said at a May 8 executive forum.

"There definitely is a [lobbying] slowdown," said Scott Talbott, senior vice president of public policy with the Financial Services Roundtable. His comments came at a CEO Update Live Executive Forum, entitled "Advocacy in a Time of Gridlock," held at the SunTrust Building in downtown D.C.

But reasons for that slowdown are varied, the experts said. Although some have cited legislative gridlock as the main reason, that in itself is not the complete explanation. "You could argue you need to do more with gridlock," Talbott said.

In part, the slowdown is the result of the "ebb and flow" of issues: the primary battles surrounding the Affordable Care Act and the Dodd-Frank financial overhaul are finished, although the issuance of regulations still remains, Talbott said.

This ebb-and-flow affects how an association uses its resources, said Scott DeFife, executive vice president, policy and government affairs for the National Restaurant Association. With regulations from previously approved legislation still coming, NRA's advocacy department has shifted to reflect that.

"We have just as large an advocacy shop as we had before, but some of the skill sets and the pieces that we have are less foot-on-the-ground lobbyists and more regulatory specialists," DeFife said.

And the lobbying slowdown has dampened hiring at associations, said Ivan Adler, a principal with The McCormick Group executive search firm: "Flat is the new up."

"There's not a lot going on on the Hill, [so] there's no need to hire a third person to do the work of the two you've got now," Adler said. "It's all a matter of demand, and demand is not there."

See the May 17 issue of CEO Update for more coverage of the advocacy forum.