Knowledge Sharing And Engagement

June 18, 2014

Knowledge Sharing And EngagementKnowledge Sharing And Engagement. In a knowledge economy, it’s all about having just in time sources that help members drive their business and professional outcomes (http://bit.ly/1g8g1J2). With more information and knowledge sharing sources, corporate and individual members can vote with their feet and connect somewhere else.

New Norm

With today’s new norm, how do Association’s differentiate their organization from all of the alternatives? Moreover, how do organizations:

  • Have the information tonight for the member question they need to answer tomorrow morning?
  • Create a differentiating “experience” that makes members think of your organization first (before they Google or Bing for other sources)?
  • Build a connected community that positions organizations and their constituencies for long term success?

Knowledge Sharing

Members only care about “outcomes” that address their business and professional challenges and opportunities. Change the conversation from selling and testing satisfaction to engaging members in ways that facilitate knowledge sharing and collaboration with other members and watch what happens.

ACCA, the Air Conditioning Contractors of America,www.acca.org, invested in and recently expanded its online sharing capabilities. President and CEO Paul Stalknecht sees an increase in engagement in their knowledge sharing portals.

Knowledge Sharing And Engagement

Evolving technology capabilities are rapidly, and cost-effectively enabling effective knowledge sharing among members. Increasingly, associations are recognizing, especially when facing in particular stiff competition, that member engagement strategies can be their true differentiator and game changer in the marketplace.
Members value and make contributions to activities helping them achieve something they care about. Treat each member as having a piece of the puzzle and the association’s job is to facilitate 24/7 knowledge sharing which will lead to innovative solutions and increased member engagement.

Free eBook “Accelerating Strategic Member Engagement” for Association Executives upon request at www.potomaccore.com, www.verticalleapconsulting.com, and www.icimo.com.

Strategic Association Boards?

June 11, 2014

Strategic Association Boards? New CEO’s who want their association boards to have a more strategic posture are more likely to be successful if they’ve first demonstrate their business and operations expertise. Having balanced budgets, a focused staff team, and satisfied members help newly minted CEO’s earn the trust they need. Once this is accomplished, they can focus their board’s attention to important strategic issues like member engagement.

Time Of Dramatic Change

New CEO’s recognize that today’s corporate and individual members view their participation with associations through a very different lens. They also understand that associations have experienced wide swings between the good times as they try desperately to identify new sources of short term revenues and to be perceived as relevant. However, getting their arms around complex and dysfunctional operations is the first order of business.

Trust From the Board

strategic association boardsAlthough boards had confidence when they hired their new CEO, they want their hiring decisions confirmed. This is best accomplished with balanced budgets and sound business operations says Christopher E. Laxton, CAE, Executive Director, AMDA, www.amda.com,The Society for Post Acute and Long Term Care Medicine:

Move Association Boards to Mission Focus

With a solid foundation, boards are more likely open to conversations about strategy and the mission. After having earned trust and confidence, CEO’s are ready to ask questions to redirect the board’s focus from tactical to strategic outcomes. As Board Members and Staff are busy putting out fires, CEO’s can now ask the “why?”, “why us?,” and “what’s the relative impact?”

Strategic Association Boards?

Without question, having a strategically focused board magnifies an Association’s positioning and impact. Highly engaged and strategically focused Boards have a very high correlation to the Association’s operating results (see 3/19/14 post) http://bit.ly/Uh09AY.

Free eBook “Accelerating Strategic Member Engagement” for Association Executives upon request at www.potomaccore.com, www.icimo.com, and www.verticalleapconsulting.com.

strategic association boards

Is Association Member Engagement About Selling Stuff?

May 28, 2014

Is Association Member Engagement About Selling Stuff? Imagine the discussion that took place when an association’s founders first convened. Did they say: “Let’s go hire some staff and ask them to sell us stuff.” Likely not at all. Why? Intuitively, founders understood that people seek out others who have a common interest, and become most engaged with those who express appreciation for their contributions. Ultimately, Association founders recognized they could achieve more powerful outcomes collectively than individually.

Defining Strategic Member Engagement

selling stuffIn the eBook (http://bit.ly/Q9SUI4 ), Strategic Member Engagement is defined as “Creating unparalleled and sustainable value by bringing people together in ways that they find meaningful and practical, because they perceive an ability to impact something they desire, individually and collectively.”

Mission

Christopher E. Laxton, CAE, Executive Director, AMDA, www.amda.com,The Society for Post Acute and Long Term Care Medicine applies principles of Strategic Member Engagement to keep his organization focused on the mission and future positioning. Leveraging a strategic board and focusing on the needs of the average member, Laxton encourages his Board to keep their eyes focused on the mission:

Is Association Member Engagement About Selling Stuff?

At the majority of associations, member engagement takes a back seat to fighting fires and meeting budget expectations. Few association executives describe it as a “differentiating strategy”, a “growth accelerator”, or “game changer”.

There are early indicators including AMDA, and NIRI (National Investor Relations Institute), www.niri.org (http://bit.ly/1jUQESa) of new ways to think about member engagement. Executives Like Laxton, and NIRI President and CEO Jeff Morgan are demonstrating the direct linkages between their efforts, member outcomes, and their association’s business model.

The free eBook “Accelerating Strategic Member Engagement” is available for all Association Executives upon request at www.potomaccore.com, www.icimo.com, and www.verticalleapconsulting.com.

Will Engagement Change the Association Conversation?

May 22, 2014

conversation

Moving away from selling and testing satisfaction with Association “outputs” to engaging members in knowledge sharing and collaboration is crucial. The process begins with a highly engaged and strategically focused Board.

Association CEO Moves the Needle

Understanding the complexities and realities facing Associations Christopher E. Laxton, CAE, Executive Director, AMDA, www.amda.com,The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine, uses a strategic board approach.

Driving Toward Member Outcomes

Associations really get into trouble when internal discussions infer “we know what’s best for our members.” When members don’t feel that they can impact something that they care about, they form their own coalitions, forums, and online communities outside of the association. Knowing these pitfalls; Laxton and other CEO’s utilize a strategic board focus to ground their organizations in member outcomes:

Focus on Members’ Success

Highly engaged and strategically focused Boards have a very high correlation to Association’s operating results. Organizations with upward trending 3 year operating results report strategic boards and their CEO’s have strategic conversations about the needs of average members.

Will Engagement Change the Association Conversation?

For Laxton, strategic member engagement is a potent resource that positions his Association for long term impact. Notably, the member outcome focus sets the stage for AMDA members to contribute and collaborate in developing new solutions to achieve their objectives.

Does Member Engagement drive the Association’s business model? Although just eighteen months in his tenure, Laxton reports 6 years of operating deficits were replaced with a 6 figure surplus.

The free eBook “Accelerating Strategic Member Engagement” is available for all Association Executives upon request at www.potomaccore.com.
conversation

Is Your Association Positioned for the Long Term?

May 13, 2014

positioned

How to engage members has evolved over time, driven by numerous factors as associations and their members navigate the rapids of economic, technological, and political turbulence. Associations experience wide swings between the good times and trying desperately to identify new sources of short term revenues and to be seen as relevant.

Today’s Members

Corporate and individual members view their participation with associations through a very different viewing lens than when they had relatively fewer go to sources for information and knowledge sharing. In a knowledge economy, it’s about having just in time sources that help members drive business and professional outcomes. And to really value the information, members must be actively engaged. This is the new norm.

Long Term Impact: Strategic Member Engagement

With today’s new norm, how does your Association differentiate itself from all of the alternative sources to which your members have access? How do you have the information tonight for the question they need to answer tomorrow morning? How do you create a differentiating “experience” that makes members think of you first before they conduct a Google or Bing search for other sources? And critically, how do you build a connected community that positions both your organization and your constituencies for long term success? These questions are at the core of today’s confusion about “member engagement”.

Is Your Association Positioned for the Long Term?

positionedStrategic Member Engagement is really about long term, sustainable strategies to enhance your organization’s long term health. It is not about short term band aids. Strategic member engagement has huge implications for your competitive positioning and business model. In fact, for some associations, it can be a game-changing accelerator to your growth strategy.

The free eBook “Accelerating Strategic Member Engagement” is available for all Association Executives upon request at www.potomaccore.com

Durability: Association Strategic Member Engagement

April 23, 2014

Durability: Association Strategic Member Engagement. In a dynamic and rapidly changing global economy, Associations face competition and unpredictable business cycles. Rather than leverage short term sales cycles, some organizations are instead leveraging a longer term value added approach.

durabilityStrategic Member Engagement is an important resource helping Associations develop long term strategy and effective competitive positioning. For Jeff Morgan, President & CEO of NIRI (National Investor Relations Institute) www.niri.org, building for the long term means “durability.” His focus is to consistently position his organization as a strategic ally and a more essential member resource.

3 Strategies Accelerating Engagement

It’s essential to understand how an association is currently impacting member objectives. This requires securing actionable data about member perceptions of their environmental and operational challenges. Through this process Associations obtain actionable data, understand member “up at night” issues, and assess culture to formulate products and services to address member outcomes.

NIRI  utilizes three strategies to accelerate Member Engagement:

 Actionable Data. Conducts impact surveys to understand its Association’s impact on key member outcomes.


“Up at Night” Issues. By member segment, learns desired future member outcomes and provides solutions matching these outcomes.

Culture. Over a six year time frame, NIRI transitioned its’ culture from a “me/you” focus to a “we” focused highly engaged solutions community.

Durability and Metrics

Morgan reports accelerated member engagement in key segments,  6% operating revenue growth, annual conference attendance 15%  higher than 2013, and 20% international membership growth.

Durability: Association Strategic Member Engagement.

Strategic Member Engagement is not about short term revenue growth, it’s about Long Term Association Strategy & Competitive Positioning. Through NIRI’s experience and our research  http://bit.ly/1g8g1J2 ,we’re learning just how much of a driver strategic member engagement is for an association’s business model.

Additional information on Strategic Member Engagement and our eBook are available at no cost at www.potomaccore.com.

durability

New Engagement Opportunity for Associations?

April 4, 2014

New Engagement Opportunity for Associations? Global Competition, political turmoil, and the digital economy are creating new opportunities for Associations and Professional Societies. Some organizations are leveraging external challenges to partner with their members to help them achieve business and professional outcomes. This type of “shared outcome” approach can help Associations move the conversation away from “what do I get for my dues?”

A Highly Engaged Solution Community

ACCA, the Air Conditioning Contractors of America, www.acca.org, works through ANSI (the American National Standards Institute) to develop industry standards for heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and building performance. They collaborate with members, engage experienced small business owners, and consistently recognize volunteer thought leadership contributions in their standards setting process.

The organization’s engagement practices help reinforce a “we” focused & a “highly engaged solution community.” Recognition of Air Conditioning Contractor Expert Contributions throughout the process in a target member segment also increases member “connectivity” to the Association.

engagement opportunityPaul Stalknecht, ACCA President & CEO, says the Standards Program is “effective because it’s driven and led by accomplished small business owners.” He emphasizes that their standards setting initiative has influenced how the organization structures their offerings to Air Conditioning Contractors across multiple platforms.

New Engagement Opportunity for Associations?

A “shared outcome” focus similar to ACCA’s will motivate more members to contribute and be connected if they believe that the outcomes they care most about will be achieved. The Association reports upward trends in retention, annual operating revenue, and fee for service offerings.

Organizations who most often reported (http://bit.ly/1g8g1J2) upward 3 year business trends were the ones who reported an understanding of member “up at night” issues and then engaging members in becoming active on those needs.

For a free copy of the “Accelerating Strategic Member Engagement” eBook, request your copy at www.potomaccore.com.

engagement opportunity

 

Association Member Viewing Lens

March 26, 2014

Strategic Member Engagement: The Association Member Viewing Lens.  Nowadays, Executives no longer make membership decisions per se, they make business decisions. The lens in which these decisions are evaluated and made is all about business, professional, and personal outcomes. Associations who align their offerings do so by first understanding member “up at night” issues.

“We”  Focused Community

viewing lensFor Tino Mantella, President & CEO, the Technology Association of Georgia, www.tagonline.org, listening and reinforcing their engaged solution community is a consistent mantra. Annual membership surveys, focus groups, market studies, and dedicated relationship resources provide Mantella, his senior team, and their Board of Directors with connectivity to member “up at night” issues. (http://bit.ly/1aT4qmn)

TAG also emphasizes collaboration throughout its community and rewards, welcomes, and recognizes “thought leadership” contributions among its 34 different Special Interest Groups.

Test: Is the Association a Highly Engaged Solution Community?

Entrepreneurs, a key TAG membership segment, wanted the organization to help achieve enactment of a $100 million investment fund to assist early growth stage firms. Working as part of a broader business coalition, TAG marshaled its resources. The legislation achieved final passage in the Georgia State Legislature on March 28, 2013. (http://bit.ly/1lcl9Ud)

Data Drives Alignment With The Association Member Viewing Lens

Mantella says “we think about all the ways we listen, learn, and respond to our members.” In 2014 member retention stands at 98% with annual corporate membership growth at 35%.

Strategic Member Engagement: The Association Member Viewing Lens

Associations who regularly conduct member impact surveys (not merely satisfaction surveys) fare better. The survey of 307 Association Executives conducted by Potomac Core Consulting, Vertical Leap Consulting, and icimo, shows that organizations who conduct annual member impact surveys with annual revenue perform 15% higher over a 3 year period than those who do not.

For complete survey results and the “Accelerating Strategic Member Engagement” eBook, sign up at www.potomaccore.com.

viewing lens

Strategic Member Engagement: Accelerant to Association Membership Growth And Retention

February 26, 2014

Strategic Member Engagement

Strategic Member Engagement: Accelerant to Association Membership Growth & Retention

A groundbreaking survey on Strategic Member Engagement shows that Trade Associations and Professional Societies reporting upward 3-year operating results are far more likely to have better data about  member issues, have a very high level of board understanding and strategizing about the outcomes members seek and, importantly, actively engage members in creating new solutions. A great deal of actionable data about how these associations are positioning for long-term success is uncovered in a joint survey conducted through the collaborative effort of Vertical Leap Consulting, Icimo, and Potomac Core – Association Consulting.

The Survey, polling 307 executives of national/international trade associations and professional societies, was conducted in October and November 2013.

Strategic Member Engagement Seen As Driver

In reporting the survey outcomes, Bryce Gartner of Icimo, LLC,  Dan Varroney of Potomac Core – Association Consulting, and Steve Lane of Vertical Leap Consulting emphasized “strategic member engagement is not about touchy feely member interface, short term sales strategies, or administering tracking reports. Instead, it is a game changing accelerator of Professional Society and Trade Association growth and positioning strategies. Our research surfaces just how much of a driver strategic member engagement is for an association’s business model and  the long-term, differentiating value provided to its profession or industry.”

Strategic Member Engagement: Accelerant to Association Membership Growth And Retention

Organizations with upward trending 3-year operating results reported the strongest capabilities are far more likely to better understand member up-at-night issues and to engage members in acting upon those needs. These Association Executives were far more likely to report strong performance in Member Retention, Annual Operating Revenue, Registrations to Primary Annual Meetings, Annual Revenue from Fee for Service Offerings, and Timely Membership Renewals.

losing large association membersA free copy of the “Accelerating Strategic Member Engagement” eBook, is available at Potomac Core – Association Consulting, Vertical Leap Consulting, and Icimo. 

 

3 Reasons Why Association CEO’s Must See These Results

February 20, 2014

association3 Reasons Why Association CEO’s Must See These Results.Vertical Leap Consulting, icimo, and Potomac Core Consulting are poised to release results from a groundbreaking Strategic Member Engagement Survey on Wednesday, February 26, 2014. The Survey was conducted between October and November,  2013, with numerous national/international trade associations and professional societies participating. This survey focused on Strategic Member Engagement as an accelerant to growth and positioning strategies.

Call to Action: 3 Reasons Why Association CEO’s Must See These Survey Results

Executives from trade associations and professional societies will be interested in how their peers are experimenting with new approaches and demonstrating how these are driving their long term impact and organizational health.

According to the survey’s collaborators, there are 3 factors why these results are a must read:

  • Bryce Gartner, CEO of icimo. “Successful associations are leveraging their data to make better decisions for membership, growth, revenue and ultimately to better engage their members. “
  • Dan Varroney, President & CEO, Potomac Core Consulting. “We’ll be sharing key linkages between member engagement practices and an association’s business model.”
  • Steve Lane, Vertical Leap President. “Leading associations pay attention to member outcomes in addition to association outputs.”

Define Future Member Engagement Levels

Survey results will be shared by Potomac Core Consulting, Vertical Leap Consulting, and icimo  at the following locations:

3 Reasons Why Association CEO’s Must See These Survey Results

“The number of Trade Association CEO’s who participated in the survey is impressive. We look forward to a robust conversation on strategic member engagement with the association community,” says Bryce Gartner of icimo, Steve Lane of Vertical Leap Consulting, and Dan Varroney of Potomac Core Consulting.

For a free copy of the “Accelerating Strategic Member Engagement” eBook, request your copy at www.potomaccore.com.

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