It is not uncommon for analogies to be drawn between business strategy and military strategy. One of my favorite examples is a 2016 article Australian consultant Graham Kenny wrote for Harvard Business Review. In it, he compares strategic planning in business and the military, citing an approach promoted by Moltke the Elder, Dwight Eisenhower, and Winston Churchill

In the late 90s, Harvard Business Review noted that “The Experience Economy” is demonstrated when “a company intentionally uses services as the stage, and goods as props, to engage individual customers in a way that creates a memorable event.” Likening the Experience Economy to a performance is as effective a metaphor today as it was then because it reminds us that we need to create connection to our products and services to engage our customers.

For association professionals, the Certified Association Executive (CAE) credential is a mark of professional development. Earning your CAE can make a positive impact on your career path and showcase your commitment to the association profession. Several AMC executives use the knowledge they gained earning their CAE certification to guide and support our association partners.

Ad campaigns about customer service are all the rage right now. Who doesn’t love “Jake from State Farm”, the khaki-wearing night shift worker turned meme? Or what about Discover and their commercials about how they treat you like you treat you. Because “I don’t have time for machines,” according to one Discover customer.

As leader of the organization and chair of the board of directors, an association’s president has a unique responsibility to guide the actions of numerous volunteers to ensure they make decisions based on the association’s best interests. Most often, this person is well-prepared to act as an advocate for members following many successful years of service. Most often, this person also has extensive experience acting as a leader within his or her field, experience that proves invaluable to their role as president.

What makes a happy and healthy team? I could tell you what I think, but maybe it makes more sense to go directly to an actual team that fits the description. I asked members of our creative team to share their thoughts, expecting to hear about a “hardworking yet fun atmosphere” and buzzwords like “accountability,” “flexibility,” and “recognition.”

In 2015, Association Management Center (AMC) was faced with upgrading Personify, its association management software, and realized there was a problem: The upgrade would not solve a number of challenges; however, the organization expected the new version to magically do exactly that! There was a misalignment of business goals and project goals, and the project, as initially planned, would have left us with many of the same usability issues, such as:

Your cab drops you off in the middle of a changing Chicago neighborhood…Fulton Market; once a gritty meatpacking district, is being transformed into a tech and foodie hot spot. The glimpse of the Google office and the new Ace Hotel flash past your window and you are delivered into the urban Morgan Manufacturing space – the location of Association Forum’s June 28, 2017 Forum Forward conference event. With one step in the door, you’re already excited about what’s ahead…

The American Pain Society’s (APS) beloved educational program Fundamentals of Pain was initially developed to educate and engage early career practitioners and researchers in the field of pain medicine in order to meet the growing need for research and practitioner support for those in pain. The Fundamentals program was held annually as a preconference to the association’s Annual Scientific Meeting and included education, mentoring, and networking components. In the beginning, it was 100% funded by a singular corporate funder.  However, after nearly a decade, the sponsor’s funding initiatives changed, and they decreased funding for the program. At the same time Fundamentals attendance slowly began to shrink. 

Being onsite for conference is the best, isn’t it? Sure, the hours are long, your legs are tired from schlepping your bags across a convention center, and you’re breathing recycled air for about a week, but it is nearly unrivaled in building connection to our work and members.

An inclusive environment promotes continual reflection, opportunities for growth, and helps individuals feel welcomed. Most importantly, participants are able to be themselves. Do your members feel a sense of inclusion within your association?

There I was, standing face to face with a large, bemused group of boys about eight years old. I had just emerged from an idling bus along with seven other members of our board of directors. These kids were staring at us like we were aliens emerging from a space craft. Why the stares? Because our board of directors – composed of nurses in their 30s 40s 50s and 60s - had just converged at a laser tag facility and this horde of eight year olds was no doubt not accustomed to being booted out by a group of people the age of their parents or grandparents.   

My wife and I are in the market for a new patio on the back of our house. It’s our one big purchase for the year and it’s important to us that it’s done right. Like most people in this situation, we want to get some quotes and determine who can do the job best. We reached out to three local companies to come out and give us a quote, providing each with the same request and specs for the job.

Expectations of board members in the association world are high. Upon election to the board, members are expected to have a solid understanding of the association’s mission, strategic plan goals and objectives, financial status, programs and services, and governance structure. In addition, board members bear a legal and fiduciary responsibility for the health and future of the association. These expectations can be daunting. As a member of the governance team at the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) it is our job to ensure board members are informed and prepared for their roles so that they can participate fully on day one.

Old news: Membership retention in the current millennium is a key challenge for organizations, especially for those not connected with mandated licensures or certifications.  

Bad news: There is no magic bullet to overcome this challenge quickly. You need a loooong term strategy.

Good news: There are a few short term tools that may help slow the rate of loss and stem some of the decline. 

Let’s focus on the good news. 

In the past, Nominating Committees started their work a few months before elections began by identifying those who were next in line for the open positions. This process assumed that the most qualified candidates for the governing board were those who had worked their way up through the ranks of committees and participated in other volunteer opportunities.

Social media has taken over our lives. It seems as though a new social network pops up each month, giving us one more thing to check up on each day. Associations are digging through social networks to study our members, find where their interests lie, and determine where our organization should target our efforts.

If you’re one of the millions of Americans who read USA Today, you probably noticed an extra-special source featured in the March 31–April 2 weekend edition: Association of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nursing (APHON) President Kathleen Ruccione, PhD. Her piece, “Nurses Create a New Paradigm of Cancer Care,” detailed the role of nurses in health care—and of oncology nurses specifically in the treatment of patients with cancer, helping readers understand the impact of these integral members of the medical team and the future of cancer care.

Regardless of political affiliation, the 2016 election played on the heartstrings of the American people. These emotions have given rise to several grassroots political movements, such as the Women’s March on Washington and those surrounding immigration and healthcare issues. With thousands of people participating in these movements across the country, as associations we must at least ask ourselves the question of whether or not our association should be involved with those movements that impact our members. 

Finding new and exciting ways to engage members and inspire loyalty is the secret sauce for successful associations. Getting creative about the types of engagement opportunities—everything from leadership roles on the board to a few minutes of social networking on behalf of the association—allows organizations to reach members willing able to help despite limited availability. Associations everywhere are embracing microvolunteering as a means to engaging folks with the least amount of time to give, but a desire to contribute. And the concept is taking off! So much so that this Saturday, April 15, the U.S. celebrates National Mircovolunteering Day for the 4th year in a row.

If you’re like most people, you likely didn’t learn about the association industry in undergrad. In fact, you may not know much about it today. But the truth is there’s a whole world of rewarding work in the nonprofit space, focused on helping organizations work toward the greater good.

As of this year, experts report as much as 74% of online traffic consists of video content. In our daily lives, we see countless videos on Facebook, in emails, and even on websites. According to a study done by Insivia, viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video compared to only 10% when reading it in text. In the association industry specifically, video communication is still considered a growing trend helping more organizations connect with members and prospective members like never before.  

My guess is you’re asking one of two questions right now… “What were you thinking when agreeing to coach kindergarten basketball?” or “What could that experience possibly teach you about associations?” Believe me, as this post formed in my mind, I asked myself the same two questions and what I’ve found is, kindergarten basketball coaching and association membership are definitely related.

One of an association’s most important responsibilities is to act as an advocate for its field. That’s why finding new and innovative ways to engage membership and communicate the needs of the industry to lawmakers and regulators is an integral part of operations for our clients.

The quote that best defines the current state of the healthcare debate came in a meeting with the nation’s governors at which President Trump exclaimed, “Nobody knew healthcare could be so complicated."  Earlier this month, the president delivered his remarks to a joint session of Congress where many were anxiously awaiting directives on how to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

The Hematology/Oncology Pharmacy Association (HOPA) is headquartered in Chicago, a major hub for nationally-recognized hospitals and health systems. That makes us, the HOPA staff, lucky! Lucky to have so many of our members nearby and easily accessible.

The mentorship program for members of the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (ASPHO) began in early 2013 as an effort by the society’s professional development committee to engage members and provide a resource to early-career members on a variety of issues. Because of the complexity of the pediatric hematology/oncology profession, the committee created a mentoring system to customize the experience and serve member needs.

One of the biggest challenges in the association space can be that, as staff, our business goals and daily tasks mirror those of the corporate world, only without the corporate-sized budgets and resource pools to help us get them accomplished.

Picture this: There are 3 weeks until you leave for your annual meeting. Your schedule is finalized, the keynotes and speakers are accounted for, your marketing campaigns are starting to wrap up, and your staff is now shifting into the “hosting” phase of conference. But then you receive a phone call from a game-changing potential speaker.

Regardless of the size or focus of your association, you’ve likely experienced a situation in which you didn’t have the expertise required to tackle a goal in the most effective way. Eventually, most of us encounter situations that could benefit from professional consulting expertise. But how do you know when your association has reached that point? Here are six signs to look for that indicate bringing in external consulting expertise might be right for you:

How should association leaders respond to member requests for more openness, communication, and accountability from their board of directors? This is the question AMC governance and strategy consultant Anne Cordes and AMC principal Mark Engle, along with Jed R. Mandel, Esq, discussed in their 2016 article on the role of transparency in association governance. While there are several benefits from the policies and practices called for in the name of transparency, it can also do harm when applied without regard for board privacy.

It’s no secret that social media has taken over the lives of millions—and our many association members are no exception! That’s why AMC clients use this low-cost, high-impact advertising and engagement tool to its fullest with innovative initiatives that truly are worth Tweeting about.

As the season of holiday gatherings winds down, I am sure that on more than one occasion a dinner was interrupted by unsolicited political banter. Around the association table, I would like to offer my gift of five reasons to be optimistic for the 115th Congress and the new presidential administration.

It’s that time of year again – time to light the menorah, decorate the tree, and celebrate the end of what was hopefully a fantastic year! It’s also the time when many people make resolutions for the coming year and plan how they’re going to do things differently to make it even better than the one before.

We all fall into the same trap. “This is what we’ve always done,” we say. These are dangerous words for associations. They lead us to complacency and we risk losing our ability to feel fresh to attendees. The National Association of Neonatal Nurses (NANN) recently ran into the same issue – and decided to approach it head on.

Jennifer GoodSmith wasn’t always a “tree person,” but over the course of a branding campaign for the Morton Aboretum in Lisle, IL, she’s come to know more about trees—especially the arboretum’s trademark oaks—than she ever thought she would.

600,000 to 1,000,000.

That’s how many business books are published each year in the U.S. alone, according to a recent Forbes article. How in the world do you know which ones are worth your time?

Queue AMC’s Management Team members, who took the time to share their favorite leadership and business books and articles. If you’re looking for career-impacting reads, you’re in the right place! AMC asked:

Quick Tips for Video Production, Part 1

So you’ve planned out your video, and everything seems to be in place, but now you need to make it happen.

I’ll be honest. Conferences cause me great anxiety. Working for an association management company has provided me with an “out” in that I’m typically working at the there is a collection of coworkers, familiar faces with whom I’ve some sort of established relationship.

A group of staff from the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) recently participated in Association Forum’s Centennial Day of Service at The Fred Matthews Senior Housing Center, a 60-unit affordable housing unit for seniors. They had a great afternoon visiting and playing bingo with residents, while spending time with other members of the association community.

All good content marketers – corporate and nonprofit alike—dream of elusive viral posts and skyrocketing social growth. But how do you get there? How do you find and engage your audience and better yet, elicit likes, shares, and retweets beyond your wildest dreams?

The association world is constantly changing and it’s key to make sure each segment of your association continues to expand and adjust with the current market climate. Special Interest Groups (SIGs) are an important part of any association, and it is essential to revitalize SIG meetings that have become stale over time. The Administrator/Coordinator SIG at Association Management Center recently went through this process and, by using the steps below, had amazing results. The SIG boosted attendance by 30 percent, had increased member engagement, received tons of positive feedback, and had much happier members overall. Consider the following to revamp your SIG today:

More Solutions for Common Web Problems

As mentioned in the first article in this series, there are a variety of ways to complete a task on the Web, but some solutions are better than others. Below is a continuation of the list of common Web problems you may encounter in your website updates and some more-optimal ways to solve them.

Better Solutions for Common Web Problems

There are a variety of ways to complete a task on the Web, but some solutions are better than others. While looking at items that are part of a typical Web update routine, I listed below some common web problems, possible solutions, and then much better solutions. Because there are so many ways to address items on a website, these certainly aren’t all the possible solutions, nor are all of the “poor solutions” always incorrect. The goal for any website is to keep things clean, consistent, and engaging. The “better solutions” listed below are recommendations with this intent in mind.

When reading Seth Godin’s blog post from back in January, Who Is Us?, I got excited. In only four sentences, he spoke volumes about numerous issues associations have had for what seems like forever without ever mentioning our industry.

Quick Tips for Video Preproduction Part 2

Now that you’ve figured out what you have to make videos and what you want to do with it, it’s time to start planning. Using your established purpose, goals, message, and resources, now you can begin writing a script, setting a timeline, and creating a distribution plan.

Quick Tips for Video Preproduction Part 1

You’ve made the decision to start making videos, and now comes the scary part: where do you start?

Right now, the world looks like your oyster. You could go so many ways and do so many things in your new medium. The sheer number of possibilities can make beginning this process seem very daunting. Done properly, video marketing can add personality to your marketing strategy and grow a valuable connection to your audience, as you read in our previous post on video marketing. Before you begin, it’s necessary to narrow your focus by answering a few questions.

It’s time for the next installment of Associational Management Center’s Ask the Management Team question series. This quarter, we reached out with a question about something everyone can relate to: BUDGET! But instead of focusing on the challenges related to limited budget, we wondered what our executives would do if they had more money to spend. We asked AMC leaders to answer the following question:

If your budget increased by $200,000 for the year, with the expectation all of it must be spent in 2016, where would you invest to make the biggest impact? Why?

It’s easy to feel lost when it comes to video marketing, especially when what first comes to mind is big-budget commercials produced by large companies. At first glance it looks daunting, but video is more accessible than ever and can be done on a budget.

Rebranding has been a hot topic in the association community for years, and 2015 is no exception. Associations regularly have been seeking to better understand tips and tricks for effectively rebranding their organizations. Here at AMC, our client, the Awards and Personalization Association recently went through the process and we thought we’d share our experiences with you.