Tag: association best practices


Are Pirates Running Your Social Media?

Arrrr! Ahoy Mateys. We be here to take over th’ seven seas. We want ye gold. We want ye social media engagement. ‘Tis better to do ‘n ask fer forgiveness than wait fer ye approval. Translation: Hello social media friends, followers and connections! We don’t care about unspoken, traditional, bureaucratic practices and procedures. We are … [Read more…]

Being More Innovative: Acting And Thinking Differently

You can learn to be more innovative! That’s right. You can learn to think differently. You can also learn to act more like an innovator. Your ability to be innovative is not only a function of your mind. It is also a function of your behaviors! If you change your behaviors you change your creative … [Read more…]

Leader, How Do You Lean? Opportunistic Or Risk Adverse?

2 x 4 is half of 16! All for opportunity do the lean-a-lean! A lean-a-lean a-lean-a-lean, a-lean-a-lean. A lean-a-lean a-lean-a-lean, a- lean-a-lean. Do you remember that school cheer? I can remember my high school standing and “doing the lean” to show our support for our team. So leader, how do you lean? Are seen as … [Read more…]

Three Winning Strategies To Convert Organizational Intentions Into Action

Good intentions don’t move mountains. Bulldozers do. You’ve probably heard that old saying. There’s great truth to it. The Mission And The Plan For many organizations, the mission and the plan–if that’s all there is–are nothing more than good intentions. Many leaders spend great time and resources helping their teams plan for the future. Afterwards, … [Read more…]

Association Members Want Movement Not Organizational Institutions

I have devoted more than twenty years of my adult life to nonprofits and associations. I have spent countless hours volunteering my time to help nonprofits succeed. I have given many staff hours to helping an industry progress. When a nonprofit works, it is a thing of beauty. It is uniquely able to do radical … [Read more…]

What Isn’t Going On In Your Conference Committee!

I understand what is going on in most annual conference committees: personal agendas, conference schedule deadlines, speaker favorites, leaders seeking control, volunteers posturing for their own ideas and power. What I struggle to comprehend is what isn’t going on. What Isn’t Happening It seems to me that annual conference committee volunteers should be serving the … [Read more…]

The Next Big Conference Job Of The Future: Conference Content-Curator-Strategist

Most organizations receive hundreds of emails and phone calls asking about their speaker call for proposals. In one of my past jobs, we received 30-50 inquiries a month from professional speakers trying to land a speaking gig. And we were flooded with industry speaker requests as well. We hated those inquires. They were like speaker … [Read more…]

Dying, Boundary And Emerging Meeting Practices: Barbecuing The Sacred Cow

Does your organization have any meeting planning practices that are sacred cows? Don’t you wish you could grind them up for a barbecue? Well, it’s time to kill those traditions and make way for new, emerging ideas. e4 2011 Innovation Labs Recently I attended Experient’s e4 2011 conference, “Outside the Lines” as one of their … [Read more…]

Dear Association Executive, That Is Not Education!

Dear Association Executive: Education is in your mission statement, right? If not, it’s probably in your strategic plan. Isn’t it? (If not, it should be!) How Much? So let me ask you an important question: If education is in your mission or strategic plan, how much of your budget is dedicated to educating your members? … [Read more…]

3 Ways To Leverage Content Marketing To Align With Your Goals

A growing number of your supplier members are shifting their focus to content marketing. They realize that traditional push marketing by itself is dead. By hosting their own webinars, virtual conferences, online communities and providing whitepapers, research and content, they compete for your members’ time and share of mind. Communicating Without Selling Junta42, a content … [Read more…]