Associations are filled with smart people who are used to making tough tradeoffs about how to accomplish their goals. Yet, when it comes to tactical planning, which is where staff weigh in on how a strategy will come to life, it is a challenge to get that brainpower applied strategically. People are often vague or …
Association strategy is not management, but it is so often muddled. Here’s the difference: strategy is the set of choices you make (and live by) to be successful. It’s doing this, not that. Going down this path, but not that one. Designing for these activities, not those. Management is about running the association. Which of course …
Recently, I wrote an article for CSAE Trillium’s Forum e-Magazine. Here’s the intro to give you a start, and the link to read more. Smart associations today know that they aren’t entitled to engagement from members – or from anyone else. But there aren’t that many robust frameworks on how to build engagement. Right now, …
Here’s the thing about decision-making. It’s not always about making a decision. Except when it is. Knowing when not to make a particular decision is not about doing nothing. Sometimes it’s saying, you know what, we’ll plant a few seeds and see what happens. Or experiment a bit. Or set a time to make the …
“How many of your members are in management or academic roles?” I asked. “Fifteen percent.” Looking around the board table, I then asked, “How many of you are in management or academic roles?” Almost every hand went up. Boards are the stewards of the organization, and most, if not all, members of an association board are …
In organizational change, we need to cultivate friends. If you were at the delightful CSAE Trillium Summer Summit last week, you’ll remember the keynoter Sunjay Nath’s talk about what he calls the 10-80-10 rule. He made the point that focusing on the least-engaged, most-resistant segment (the bottom 10%) results in everyone else feeling left out, and drains your energy. And …
One thing I suggest to clients is that communication leads to commitment. What we tell others we’re going to do, we’re more likely to do. I also talk about setting aside time to do the important things – drop them into a calendar. For instance, if you have a strategic and tactical plan, your commitment to it …
This week I wrote a blog post for the Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE), on the idea of a strategically skilled association. Strategy is more important than ever. Associations – and, more importantly, their members – face a changing environment, including significant threats to traditional association business models. Yet, associations are often disenchanted and disappointed …
This white paper, “Turning Strategy into Action: Tactical Planning for Associations“, is for association leaders who want to make sure their strategies become reality. It outlines a process for: Connecting high-level strategies to real-world operations through tactics. Bringing tactics together into a coherent, feasible—but still inspiring—plan. Using the plan to manage expectations—and make space for opportunities. Download …
Most of us can make the argument for the importance of strategy. Most of us can also make the case that strategy has to be turned into feasible tactics to actually get anything accomplished. But tactical planning? We may go a bit blank when we think about how to do that. What’s the process for turning strategies …