Posts Tagged ‘#assnconsult’
Tired of Operational Surprises? Ask These Strategic Questions
Surprise parties can be fun. If the balloon tower featuring your age got cancelled—even better. Surprises in business aren’t so welcome. When the membership director springs a dashboard on you with every indicator trending south, it’s not a good day. Distraction is an invitation for the unexpected. If you’re playing Whack a Mole with details,…
Read MoreDisruption Sunny Side Up
Disruption gets a bad rap. We are quick to see it as a faceless villain itching to lay waste to our future prospects. But shattering the status quo is positive and necessary. We call that type of change innovation. It happens when smart people with guts and irrepressible creative energy are left to their own…
Read MoreTo Get Close to Members, Follow MarTech Trends
Whether I’m writing about marketing, strategy, or technology, one idea always surfaces. Understanding members at a granular level has never been more important. We all know this, right? Yet, it seems that even big corporations are struggling to deliver the level of personalization that customers expect. Harvard Business Review Analytic Services recently released a report…
Read MoreCommit to Your Team’s Success—They’ll Return the Favor
When you are the leader, you drive the team dynamics. Others take their cues from your behavior. This is an unavoidable consequence of being the boss. We feel at ease with people who are like us. So, it’s easy to promote this self-centered perspective without realizing it. But CEOs who head exceptional teams reject an…
Read MoreBeyond Bronze, Silver, and Gold—Grow Success With Purpose
“People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.” Simon Sinek A colleague recently referred to the time before the pandemic as “innocent.” That description struck a chord with me. She was talking about how unprepared we were for the dramatic changes we experienced. Our lost innocence isn’t a bad thing. We…
Read MoreBuild a Mission-Worthy Team
When the first crew of astronauts departs for Mars, Suzanne T. Bell’s work will play a large role in their success. Bell is an associate professor of industrial and organizational psychology at DePaul University. She studies team composition. During the Mars mission, the astronauts will be confined in a space the size of a studio…
Read MoreRule Your Market—Blue Ocean Strategy Sidesteps the Sharks
Are sharks circling your member base, eyeing bites for their next meal? Even if your association is trapped in a sea of competition, you can change course and sail toward possibility. Sharon Rice, .orgSource Managing Director of Business Strategy, is our expert for guiding associations through tough markets. At .orgCommunity’s recent Innovation Summit, Sharon explored…
Read MoreMix the Ones and Zeros With Xs and Os—Give IT Some Heart
I’m writing this post on Valentine’s Day. In honor of this warm and fuzzy holiday, I want to encourage you to put Xs and Os in a place where we typically find ones and zeros. The IT Department is the home of logic, analytics, data, and all things factual. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a…
Read MoreAre Marketing and Membership at Opposite Poles? Take the Journey to Collaboration
Is your marketing team hanging out at the North Pole while the membership group chills in Antarctica? If these two drivers of engagement are a world apart, it will be challenging to deliver the seamless experience customers expect from their favorite brands. There was a time when associations didn’t think of their members as customers.…
Read MoreFor Better Virtual Work Vibes—Try EI
Remote work was the pandemic’s big gift to employees. While no one enjoyed isolation, almost everyone was thrilled to shorten their commute, spend more time in sweats, and have their favorite tunes and snacks close at hand. But like the kid who gets a puppy for Christmas, and on December 26 realizes that whether the…
Read More