An association which aims to grow and support the local blockchain community has been launched, and hosts its first event this week.

The Blockchain Association of Australia – registered as a not for profit incorporated association last month – meets for the first time at RMIT in Melbourne tomorrow night.

The association is led by Chami Akmeemana, director of blockchain software firm ConsenSys, with a board including Michael Hendricks from ME Bank and Paul Xuereb of AustralianSuper.

Akmeemana was behind a regtech hackathon in Melbourne earlier this year.

“The primary objective is to uplift the blockchain ecosystem and community and to address the critical skills gap in Australia with respect to blockchain technology. The association aims to educate, develop and empower the blockchain community of Australia and connect with both global leaders and best practice,” the group said.

Steven Marshall, leader of the South Australian state Liberal Party, and Dr Liming Zhu, research director, software and computational systems at Data61 sit on the group’s advisory board.

The association has set out a bold set of ‘critical success factors’ in its charter. By its third year the group believes blockchain will become “second nature” to industry, with the focus switching from the technology itself to the blockchain’s “transformational nature”.

Year three will also see a Blockchain company with a market valuation greater than AUD $150m, the association predicts.

The group hopes to host regular meet-ups, community hackathons and training programs. Details of the associations inaugural meeting can be found here.

The Blockchain Association of Australia is the third blockchain industry advocacy organisation to be set up in Australia, after the Blockchain Centre which launched in 2014 and the Australian Digital Currency Commerce Association (ADCCA) founded in the same year.

This article was originally sourced from CIO.

The SMSF Association will establish a 'policy think tank' to provide thought leadership for the retirement savings market on financial and non-financial issues.

The Global Centre of Excellence for Retirement Savings will be based in Adelaide and will cover a range of topics including the design of retirement incomes policies, behavioural economics and investment markets, aged care and mental capacity.

SMSFA chief executive John Maroney said the centre will focus on all social, economic and community issues that have an influence on a person's ability to enjoy a dignified and secure retirement.

"The centre will also act as a clearing house for existing literature and research into retirement issues, as well as commission and conduct relevant research into these areas via teams of experienced researchers, PhD students, industry participants and other interested parties," Maroney said.

The centre will serve to increase awareness of key issues related to retirement design and operation in Australia and other countries, driving improved efficiency and effectiveness of the Australian superannuation system and the public policy surrounding it, with a particular focus on the SMSF sector.

"Another key priority will be to advance the technological architecture of the SMSF sector by providing an industry hub to develop data standards for SMSFs and new applications of information technology to SMSF administration. This will pull together SMSF businesses, researchers, regulators and other industry participants to advance SMSF information technology," Maroney said.

All research provided by the centre will be structured to provide genuine practical value and will be sourced from universities, financial institutions, SMSF service providers and other associations.

The SMSFA has also engaged the University of Adelaide, Monash University, University of Western Australia, Curtin University, University of New South Wales and Macquarie University to provide input via an academic advisory group.

Adjunct professor at Monash University Dr Phillip Dolan will assist in establishing the group. Dolan is a former dean of the UWA Business School and former head of the Macquarie University Applied Finance Centre and Actuarial Program. He is also a former her of investment research at Macquarie Bank.

"Phillip has an enviable reputation is this field and we are honoured he has decided to accept this role," Maroney said.

The SMSFA expects the centre to be open by the end of the year.

This article was originally sourced from the Financial Standard.

The American Alliance of Orthopaedic Executives uses a volunteer matrix to recruit members to get more involved.

How to hack it? Last summer, Addy Kujawa, CAE, CEO of the American Alliance of Orthopaedic Executives (AAOE), realized she had a problem when looking around the room during a volunteer committee meeting. “We were trying to select topics for our annual conference and realized that we were in a room with only veteran volunteers,” she says.

To add greater diversity and inclusion to volunteering, Kujawa revamped AAOE’s committee structure and volunteer recruitment process by creating a matrix that identifies professional and demographic information for each volunteer. It’s a simple spreadsheet that tracks things like age, practice size, practice type, and professional experience.

Why does it work? The volunteer matrix gives Kujawa a clear view into each of her councils, especially when there’s an open seat to fill. “Once we’ve identified an area of need, I can then use our membership database to personally invite or recruit new members,” she says. “It’s proven to be a successful way to attract rising leaders.”

What’s the bonus? So far, the volunteer matrix has helped Kujawa identify a replacement chair for her communications council. She selected a younger member who is a social media manager at a large academic practice. “He brought in new ideas and initiatives, like shooting video at this year’s conference,” Kujawa says. Those videos have turned into membership testimonials that AAOE can use to recruit (which, by the way, is another proven Membership Hack).

This article was originally sourced from Associations Now.

A grasp of the numbers helps, but an increasingly complex world demands better communication skills too.

If you’re on the hunt for a CEO job, it’s good to have some hard numbers to talk about—how much you’ve increased revenue, membership, attendance, and so on. But that’s not the only thing a recruiter and hiring committee are looking for.

Pamela Kaul, president and founder of the executive search firm Association Strategies, Inc., says she’s seen plenty of association executives fail because they’re lacking in so-called soft skills such as conflict resolution, relationship-building, and visionary thinking. Those things may seem relatively unimportant—that’s part of why they’re called “soft,” after all—but in Kaul’s experience, they’re why many CEOs get shown the door, or don’t make it into the office in the first place.

Boards these days really expect CEOs to have a global view.

“What I hear when I come into an organization is that boards might find an excuse about why they moved somebody out of an organization or invited a CEO to look at new opportunities, but the bottom line is that it was the behavioral style,” she says. “The person didn’t build relationships, perhaps destroyed relationships, and didn’t mend fences.”

And in the same way that matters of behavior style can spell the end of a CEO’s career, it can also eliminate potential executives from later interview rounds. The issue has become pronounced enough that it inspired a session at the ASAE Annual Meeting & Expo next month, “CEO Temperament and Leadership Success,” where Kaul will be joined by National Parent Teacher Association executive director Nathan Monell and Building Owners and Managers Association International president and CEO Henry Chamberlain.

So what are recruiters and hiring committees looking for? A capacity for addressing conflicts head-on, for one. “People tend to look the other way when there is a red ant or a problematic board member or other negative influence in a leadership role,” Kaul says. “Some execs think, ‘I’ll just wait it out and this issue will just go away at some point.’ But often people really don’t go away.”

A sense of the big picture helps too. “Boards these days really expect CEOs to have a global view,” she says. “What’s going on in the world that will somehow—not even related to our industry, profession, or cause—that might have some impact on our organization or industry, either as an opportunity, a threat, a potential collaboration, as a new product or business line? They really expect the CEO to be the eyes and ears on the global news.”

It can be hard to suss out that capacity in the interview process. Asking a candidate to list some of his or her weaknesses is likely a dead end paved with pat answers. (“I’ve heard all of them, and search committees see through them in a New York second,” she says.) But asking candidates to talk about moments when they faced conflicts and how they addressed them can be revealing on two levels: in terms of the specifics of what happened, and in how the answer reveals the candidate’s own level of self-awareness. How comfortable are you with expressing a professional shortcoming in a genuine way? And do you present yourself as somebody with the capacity to address it?

Self-awareness is a tricky business, as I discussed in last week’s post. Association executives (and those who wish to become them) do well to understand how they’re perceived by people around them. But doing so requires time, consistency, and a trust-building attitude. People resist all of that not just because it’s time-consuming, but because inevitably the process will reveal flaws. But candidates can take some reassurance in the fact that that hiring committees aren’t looking for perfection, just the appropriate fit. As leadership expert Ram Charan wrote in Harvard Business Review last December on the CEO selection process: “Every CEO has an open flank. The typical vetting process will bring candidates’ quirks and flaws to the surface, but wise selectors accept imperfection when they make their decision.”

In a pinch, though, Kaul suggests that there’s one way for you to get feedback about how you’re perceived. If you didn’t get offered the C-suite gig—and perhaps even if you did—get in touch with your references and have a candid conversation about what was discussed. The reference may not have delivered the glowing praise you’d expected. “I’m aware of situations where references have come forward about a candidate’s behavior….[and] isn’t moving forward in a job search because the reference’s information was not helpful to the cause of the CEO,” she says. “You have to find out from your references what was said.”

What has worked well for you as an executive when going through the hiring process, and how do you get comfortable expressing your shortcomings? Share your experiences in the comments.

This article was originally sourced from Associations Now.

How to encourage your members to get the most from their membership. Also: Why work-life balance may not be as simple as you think.

Just like a gym membership, what you get out of an association membership depends on what you put into it. If you don’t bother showing up, then they’re not going to see the benefits of joining.

That’s a comparison that Elizabeth George makes in a recent article in Association Success. She also shares a few ways associations can encourage people to make the most out of their membership.

Make sure you’re creating opportunities for your members to connect and collaborate. “Implementing a membership engagement cycle that includes opportunities to become active and involved through peer collaboration demonstrates that we value their thought leadership and subject matter expertise,” writes George.

To get people more involved, leverage your active members as influencers within your organization. Consider developing an engagement program in which “enthusiastic volunteers work personally to welcome new members, assist with member-to-member connectivity at events, and if requested, serve as a mentor within their specific area of expertise.”

Many of us think we understand work-life balance: It’s just a matter of scheduling and hours. All an organization has to do is provide plenty of time off for their employees and it’s part is done, right?

A recent article in Entrepreneur says it’s not so simple. “The new generation of workers tends to view this as a false dichotomy where work is not seen as a quantifiable measure, but a meaningful life choice,” writes Ric Kelly.

Kelly contends that baby boomers put a lot of focus on being present in the workplace, but millennials prefer more flexibility. “They are more likely to connect with global colleagues at unsociable hours and do all-nighters to complete projects,” he says. “But in return, they want flexibility and time off during core working hours to catch up with their lives.”

This article was originally sourced from Associations Now.

Competitors emerge every day. There is someone out there who claims to do it better, faster and cheaper. Associations see this today with for-profit competitors entering the marketplace and providing your members with free education, multimillion-dollar trade shows, guaranteed ROI, and subscription-based media communicating with your industry.

They’re stealing your husbands or wives, kissing your babies and making your association less and less relevant every day. OK, the stealing spouses and kissing babies part is far-fetched, but replace that with non-dues revenue: Your competitors are stealing your non-dues revenue by wooing your members to invest in their brand, their trade show, their publication and their hosted-buyer event – leaving you in the cold.

There is something your association can do about this though. Branding expert David Avrin, CSP, discussed why branding is essential in today’s marketplace at the Meeting Professionals International World Education Congress (MPI WEC) last month in Las Vegas. Here’s how a few of Avrin’s solutions can help associations strengthen their brand and increase non-dues revenue.

First, recognize associations are in a buyer’s marketplace.

In his session “Visibility Wins: How to Attract the Best Customers and Create an Army of Raving Fans,” Avrin explained that we’re in a buyer’s marketplace. That’s no secret. There are five different grocery stores within a mile radius of my house. It’s the same shopping scenario for prospective association members looking for education, professional connections and development. They can choose to become a member of your organization or not because, let’s be honest, there’s no shortage of for-profit competitors contacting them constantly.

It’s all about the brand. It’s one reason why I choose to shop at Publix – “where shopping is a pleasure” – verses the other stores that sometimes offer the products I buy at lower prices. What valuable experience are you offering to members who join your association? Regardless of which competitors rise up in the marketplace, associations have to be brand experts and convey their value. Promote the exclusive experience offered by being an active member of your association and the official, association-based benefits and resources, such as your education conference, local lunch and learns, online community, industry-specific publications, newsletters and networking events. Be humble but honest. You really are that awesome, and it’s OK to brag about it.

Second, scream your value from the rooftop.

Working with powerful professional and trade associations daily, I have been searching for the answer to keep our associations strong, relevant and moving forward. One thing that still shocks me daily is when an association doesn’t understand their own value. That’s a problem. Avrin said, “Doing business without promotion is like winking at someone in the dark. You know what you’re doing, but no one else does.” This is exactly what many associations do daily. Your association is fighting for your respective industry, lobbying for positive change on Capitol Hill, providing members with invaluable education offerings, and connecting buyers and suppliers through face-to-face networking opportunities year round. The problem is you’re not telling anyone (and everyone) about what you’re doing!

To recruit members and industry partners who will invest in your vision, you must be visible in the marketplace. After identifying your target audience for membership and industry partnerships, get where they are and scream from the rooftop how you are impacting your industry. Associations are powerful. They do collectively what one person, company or competitor can’t do on their own. But your association is only as strong as your membership recruitment and retention efforts. If prospective members don’t know what you’re doing, don’t count on them to be loyal to you or your cause. You are only as strong as your belief in your association and your ability to convey that belief.

Third, recognize your brand is not your own.

What is your brand? Avrin said, “It’s your reputation – what you’re known for in the marketplace.” Your reputation doesn’t belong to you because – put simply – you can’t control what others think of you. This is why it’s important to convey clearly to your members and prospective members who you are, what you stand for, what you’re fighting for, and what you’re the absolute best at. Otherwise, count on your for-profit competitors to fill in the information gap.

“You have to be known as the best choice in the marketplace for one thing,” Avrin said. Is it your event experience reaching key decision makers in your industry? Education? Legislative influence? Customized member experience? What do we think when we hear your association’s name? Carefully craft your messaging and make sure all departments involved with your association’s brand convey the same message in all forms of communication. Avrin reiterated, “Marketing is not a department,” it’s everyone’s job and responsibility.

This leads to the next point, your existing members, staff and stakeholders need to have a clear view of your brand. This ensures a consistent message of value is conveyed. If you’re promoting a customized member experience, then get testimonials from members who have experienced that within your association. The worst thing you can do is promote your brand and then not deliver on it.

Finally, storm the castle.

It’s time to take your membership and their support back. In my job as a member communications partner for associations, we ask your association members for support through advertising and sponsorship in your publications, newsletters, online buyers’ guides, trade shows, hosted-buyer exchanges and more to drive non-dues revenue for your association while helping your members build their brand in front of their target audience. But with the shift from a sellers’ to a buyer’s market, advertisers have more choices now than they ever have. They’re shopping around and they’re buying with your competitors. As Avrin said, “It’s nothing personal.” However, money talks and your members and prospective members think for-profit competitors can deliver more value than you can. That’s not the truth. No one can deliver more targeted connections than your association can by connecting your regular and affiliate members.

You have the power of your association and respective industry as your foundation, and it’s time for you to stand firm, rebuild your brand as the leading professional and trade associations fighting for your industry, and storm the castle your competitors have built with your members support. It’s time for you to pick up the phone and ask your members why they are advertising, sponsoring and supporting your competitors versus you. You might be surprised to find it’s because they don’t know what you do and they don’t know your brand. Rise up associations and build your brand. Your relevance depends on it.

This article was originally sourced from Association Adviser.

Like fine wine, Communities get better with age. And the best is yet to come for most Organisations!

What did you envisage for your Community at the beginning? When it was a few months old? When members weren’t very active and you felt like engagement could be better?

Every Community has a unique set of milestones and goals, no matter its age. All hope that engagement growth happens with time – the older the community, the better chance for highly engaged members. And we know that higher engagement means higher retention and a greater spend per member.

Regardless of age, measuring and analysing your KPIs will always be integral to community success. Knowing where exactly you are at, what value you provide to your members is challenging but vital to succeed.

According to 2017 State of Community Management Report by the Community Roundtable “only 32% of Communities say they can measure value, and only about 9% can measure ROI (Return On Investment), too.”

A model has been developed by The Community Roundtable to help assess the maturity of a Community. It defines four stages - Hierarchical (Stage 1), Emergent (Stage 2), Community (Stage 3) or Networked (Stage 4) – and spells out eight different areas in which attention needs to be focused to drive maturity.

Although it is true that every Community has a lifecycle, not every Community makes it to the next developmental stage.

Different stages in the Community Maturity Model require different approaches at different times. You can’t simply jump over the stage - you need to do the work in order to demonstrate the readiness to move to the next level.

Moving from Stage 1 to Stage 2, in many ways, is about introducing the very basic elements, such as drafting a strategy, recruiting staff and identifying key members. Communities in Stage 3 are more interested in integrating their platform with a business system, developing engagement strategies, advocacy, governance structures, understanding shared values and empowering their members. Stage 4 is where the organization has become fully networked; there is an infrastructure that supports an integrated approach to customers and a shared value approach that generates more value for every stakeholder group.

According to the findings from the 2017 State of Community Management Report, most Organisations are in Stage 2, or are developing their way towards Stage 2. Only a small number moves into Stage 3 or 4 each year where the majority of benefits can be found.

No matter what stage your community is in, you need some tactics to apply. Here are my three favorites from the 2017 State of Community Management Report:

Define or review your strategy

• You can’t just “wing it” these days. The most successful Communities rely on a strong strategy to guide decision-making, resources and initiatives.
• Do a health check on your community – how mature is it?
• Try finding where your community lies on the Community Maturity Model and choose some best practices from there.

If your Community doesn’t already have a business strategy—one that aligns Community and Business goals—your Team should start working on one!

Quality over Quantity

• Focus on member-generated content and discussion threads providing substantive answers. It’s not just how many members join in that matters but how much time, energy and expertise members can commit.

Think back to your Community’s strategy—how are incentives used to encourage members to contribute meaningfully?

Community can demonstrate ROI (but you need to capture the data!)

• Proving current Community ROI will help create targeted engagement goals.

Think about how would you define and measure the value of your Organisation and then translate that into a financial return on investment (ROI) How could the Executives and Stakeholders benefit from having this information?

Platform Village can help you mature your Community to the next stage! As a Business Partner of AuSAE, we specialise in enabling Communities to succeed. Contact Austin Wilson for further information on 0408 39 28 50, hello@platformvillage.com

The Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) has hit back at Cricket Australia (CA) chairman David Peever, saying his intervention into the pay dispute has done "nothing to further any progress" in finding a resolution.

Peever has written a column in The Australian newspaper, defending CA's approach to the pay negotiations and criticising the ACA for being "reckless".

Negotiations to resolve the impasse are continuing, with 230 cricketers out of contract, while doubt has been cast on upcoming tours of Bangladesh and India, as well as this summer's Ashes series.

"The imputation that the players and the ACA are sabotaging the game is wrong," the ACA said in a statement.

The parties are at odds over CA's attempt to dismantle a fixed-revenue-sharing system of player payments, which has been in place for the last two decades.

Critics of Peever say he is motivated by an ideological, anti-union agenda, but he dismisses the suggestion, saying it is "a myth, and deeply insulting to many people across the cricket spectrum".

Peever is a former managing director of Rio Tinto's Australian operations and he once made a speech publicly campaigning for "direct engagement between companies and employees … without the competing agenda of a third party, constantly seeking to extend its reach into areas best left to management".

Many observers see the fingerprints of this philosophy in CA's approach to the current pay dispute, particularly in its attempts to bypass the ACA and offer senior players individual contract offers.

Peever said those earlier comments were given in a "completely different context" but nevertheless defended their substance.

"It's an uncontroversial view shared by all reasonable people," he wrote in The Australian.

But this "uncontroversial view" is not shared by the players, who have repeatedly asked CA to stop contacting them directly, and instead go through the ACA.

Peever also took aim at the association's PR strategy, describing it as "a campaign of such sustained ferocity that anyone could be forgiven for thinking CA was proposing the reintroduction of slavery".

ACA refuse to apologise for 'holding CA to account'

In its tone and message, Peever's column stands in sharp contrast to the narrative of the past week, where piecemeal progress had been reported from both the ACA and CA.

CA director Mark Taylor said on Tuesday compromise was needed on "both sides", while CA chief executive James Sutherland and his ACA counterpart, Alistair Nicholson, came together for a face-to-face meeting earlier this week.

Against that background, the ACA said the timing of Peever's column was "disappointing".

While the bickering continues, domestic cricketers are continuing to train with their respective state squads. These squads are now split between a minority who have contracts that extend beyond the most recent MOU (70 players nationally) and the rest who are no longer being paid.

"It is almost two weeks after CA have forced the players in to unemployment and is refusing to back-pay them, despite the players training for free," the ACA said in its statement.

"The ACA don't apologise for holding CA to account or for asking the hard questions on behalf of our members that must be answered for the betterment of cricket."

Some players have already sought assistance from the ACA's player hardship fund, while others are considering part-time work outside of cricket.

Retired Australia Test bowler Jason Gillespie has called on both sides to end the game of "tit for tat" in the media.

"Why have there been so many press releases stating disappointment at the lack of meaningful talks?" he asked in a column for The Roar website.

Gillespie was meant to be in South Africa coaching the Australia A team, before that tour became the first on-field casualty of the pay dispute.

"Find a compromise and let's get on with the cricket," he said.

"It's not a great look for our game."

Australia is due to play a two-Test series in Bangladesh in late August, leaving the parties with about four weeks to reach an agreement.

This article was originally sourced from ABC online.

Mission Australia’s Chief Executive Officer, Catherine Yeomans, will step down from her full-time CEO role at the end of this year.

Yeomans, who joined Mission Australia in July 2011 and was appointed CEO in February 2014, has decided to step back from her full-time city based role, in order to spend more time with her family – particularly her husband, who retired several years ago.

Mission Australia Chairman Ken Dean paid tribute to Yeomans’ significant achievements in transforming the organisation over the past few years to better achieve its objectives to reduce homelessness and strengthen communities, through providing extensive family and community support programs, including early learning, youth services, social and affordable housing and drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs.

“Catherine has built a strong platform for future growth and delivery of our objective to assist Australians in need regain their independence,” said MA Chairman Ken Dean.

“Her ceaseless advocacy for the homeless and socially and economically disadvantaged Australians and her development of effective partnerships with our supporters, community and charitable organisations, public companies and state and federal governments, has contributed to real progress in Australia’s approach to homelessness and addressing disadvantage. In particular, the May 2017 Federal Budget initiatives for a more sustained and co-operative approach to homelessness are a major step forward, and reflect the advocacy Catherine has developed and supported.

“I know that everyone at Mission Australia will be sad to see Catherine stepping down from her leadership role, but will join me in heartily wishing Catherine and her family many blessings in their future plans together.”

Yeomans said she was delighted that Mission Australia was facing a successful future, with a strong and talented team of staff and volunteers; a clear and dynamic growth strategy and a sustainable financial foundation, from which to assist the 130,000 people who use our services each year.

“I would like to thank everyone at Mission Australia for their passionate dedication, hard work and perseverance, to ensure that each one of our service users is valued and supported to live independent and fulfilling lives, and participate as fully as they would wish in our society. It has been a great privilege to share in this work,” she said.

“I would also like to thank our supporters and donors, who give so generously to enable us to continue our work”.

Dean said the Mission Australia Board will be engaging in an executive search for a new CEO, including both internal and external candidates. An announcement will be made about a successor to Catherine once that process has concluded.

This article was originally sourced from Third Sector. 

Peak professional body Engineers Australia today announced Mr Peter McIntyre FIEAust FAICD as its new CEO.

“As an experienced CEO, Mr McIntyre brings a wealth of leadership and governance experience gained across a career spanning both corporate and not-for-profit roles,” said John McIntosh, National President of Engineers Australia.

“Over the last few years the Board of Engineers Australia has introduced a modern and transparent governance and operating model, and we’ve taken clear steps to increase public awareness of the engineering profession in Australia.

“The Board looks forward to Mr McIntyre advancing this work. His experience as a professional engineer, not-for-profit board director and energy sector executive in leading progressive business change processes, will bring a unique perspective to Engineers Australia’s role as a peak professional body.

“Engineers Australia remains committed to growing our organisation in a sustainable manner that delivers clear member value and stays true to the community service ethos embedded in our Royal Charter.

“As an electrical engineer with significant experience across the energy sector, including as the former Managing Director of TransGrid, Mr McIntyre will also provide a valuable perspective on some of the biggest policy challenges facing the nation. 

“On behalf of the Board, members and staff of Engineers Australia, we welcome Mr McIntyre as the new CEO of Engineers Australia,” said Mr McIntosh.

This media release was sourced directly from The Institute of Engineers Australia and was written by Catherine Garrett.