Onboarding the Board—Your Opportunity to Promote Peak Performance

How would you describe your board’s performance? Is it— the organization’s greatest asset? They are wise stewards of our resources and visionaries who identify strategies for future growth. a thorn in the side? They are contrarians lost in the weeds who impede our progress. inconsequential? They are crickets, disinterested or afraid to debate and express […]

When the Talent Does the Shopping—Recruiting in a Crowded Market

Are you Gucci or Goodwill? Both brands have an audience. But when employees are shopping for a new look, it’s best to be the high-end option. Customer centricity doesn’t apply just to members anymore. Today, it’s equally important to give your employees that white glove treatment. And, if you’re looking for new talent, it’s time […]

To Stay on the Bull, Learn From Other Riders

Being a CEO today is a little like riding a bull. The experience is guaranteed to be bumpy. But, if you have half an hour to listen to someone else’s story, you can learn a lot about how others manage the challenge. The leaders I interview for my Association 4.0 podcast encourage me to think in unexpected […]

Diversity Can’t Stand Alone—It Needs Equity and Inclusion To Matter

Like a string of beads, it is our unique differences and intricacies that make us so appealing and attractive. We would not be as beautiful if we were all the same. It’s the contrast and asymmetry that makes us worthwhile.— Lindsey Lunsford, M.E.M., eXtention Foundation, 2019 Impact Collaborative, DEI Fellow One of my early jobs was […]

Have Your Cake and Eat It Too!—A Hybrid Model of Association Management

January 4, 2022Sherry Budziak Hybrid is not just for meetings anymore. The need to adapt to a changing environment has given creative legs to business thinking. We’re mixing, matching, and collaborating in remarkable new ways. Association CEOs and management firms are one example of a pairing that hasn’t always been viewed as a great date. […]

Grow Your Team’s Skills, But Don’t Forget Yourself

Smart CEOs understand that the quickest path to success is the one where the team travels with you. Skill-building across the organization isn’t just good leadership, it’s good for leaders. Professional development is a wise use of resources. Just be sure to make yourself part of the group. Your own growth shouldn’t be stunted because […]

A Day of Blue Sky Thinking—Recapping .orgCommunity’s 2021 Innovation Summit

Greg Larkin, our keynote speaker at .orgCommunity’s July 14 Innovation Summit, was quick to admit that he was feeling a little rusty being in front of an audience for the first time in over a year. “I’m freaking out,” was what he actually said. Personally, I counted down the days until my reentry to the conference world of […]

Eliminate Roadblocks to Planning—Integration Transforms Strategy into Action

Strategy  Meltdown—The screen play INT. The corner office of the Association for Ad Hoc Planning – Afternoon The executive director and membership team are seated at a conference table. They are hunched over laptops. The executive director is frowning. The membership manager looks like a deer in the headlights. Executive Director These numbers are (pause) […]

.orgCommunity – Shaping the Future Together!

Innovation & disruption has been happening and will continue to happen at an accelerated pace. But today is the launch of .orgCommunity’s Innovation + Disruption Conference — the beginning of answers to how associations can tackle and get in front of disruption. We have worked with the .orgCommunity “Think Tank” in workshops to challenge our […]

.orgCommunity – Shaping the Future Together!

As an entrepreneur in the digital technology and marketing space for more than 25 years, I can say with confidence and certainty that technology advancements are happening quicker than ever before. These advancements are affecting our identity and all the issues associated with it: our sense of privacy, our notions of ownership, our consumption patterns, […]