Recently I’ve been asked what the key focus areas are for Associations. In my view, it’s all about staying relevant and connecting our respective communities with great people and great ideas.

Consistently, the number one benefit of belonging to an Association is being part of a community and connecting with colleagues to learn, share and advance careers. Reid Hoffman (co-founder and chair of LinkedIn) says “those who can conceptualize and understand networks – both online and off – have an edge in today’s fast-paced and hyper-competitive landscape, where the speed with which we can make informed decisions is critical.” A critical imperative for us is to create opportunities for our community to meet, collaborate and expand their network. It’s also about us facilitating introductions and connections to the right people for any given situation. The age old adage of “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” is possibly more true today than ever, especially when it comes to career progression.

In terms of staying relevant, innovation is all the buzz and includes everything from massive step change to small incremental changes to stay ahead of the curve. It’s important that changes relate to the core purpose of the organisation and help to mitigate against disruptors wanting to enter the market. Innovation is about changing tracks when the light at the end of the tunnel is an oncoming disruption locomotive.

Providing thought leadership and great ideas are essential. With easy access to a vast array of information, the traditional ownership of the knowledge hub by an Association has gone. It’s now the role of Associations to curate, interpret and distribute timely, relevant and meaningful information and resources. So how do we become thought leaders and access/choose the right information. There are many ways including social media, membership of your Professional Association and attendance at sector and international conferences.

In the interests of sharing, here are five insights from sessions I attended at the ASAE conference in Salt Lake City:

• Don’t sell what you make. Make what you can sell;
  
• Partner with good/smart people and organisations for members to access greater benefit;
  
• On promotional material list the top 3 benefits, not 18 features;
  
• Charge more! (for everything…);
  
• Create urgency and exclusivity by bundling products and services and promoting them for a short period of time.
  

I’d be happy to discuss key focus areas for Associations or the above insights in more detail if you are interested.

Brendon Ward

Chief Executive Officer

Australasian Society of Association Executives