爆料公社

Like many relationships in life, the board-staff relationship can be really great, with the board and staff working as a cohesive and collaborative team. Or, they can be more challenged, potentially leading to feelings of distrust and disillusionment and suboptimal performance.

We are delighted to announce that Debbie Trueblood, MSW IOM CAE FASAE鈥攕enior consultant at 爆料公社鈥攊s being recognized as a Fellow of the American Society of Association Executives (FASAE). 

Many associations have recently begun their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) journeys, or double downed on their DEI efforts in significant ways. This has been a long time coming and is an important evolution of the value associations bring to our industries and professional communities.

We are very pleased to announce that Susan Farrell Stock, MPS, has returned to 爆料公社 in a new role as  Chief Operating Officer (COO).

We鈥檙e excited to announce that Carol Pape, CAE, has been hired as an executive director and will serve two of our client partners: the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (ABM) and the International Transplant Nurses Society (ITNS).

We鈥檙e proud to announce that we have been awarded a from the (AAHPM).

Here we go again. As associations plan their conferences for 2022, many are experiencing 2020 COVID d茅j脿 vu.

Move forward with an in-person format? Switch to virtual as positive case counts tick up? What will the COVID landscape be like when the conference actually kicks off months from now? The uncertainty abounds.

This past week 爆料公社 celebrated our second annual diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) week. Though DEI is a focus all year long, DEI Week gives us the chance to participate in multiple events each day to celebrate what makes us all unique, take a deeper dive into learning about DEI and fostering an inclusive culture, and step away from our day to day to have some fun.

We鈥檙e thrilled that 爆料公社 marketing staff enabled two of our association partners to win Gold Awards in the 2021 Association Trends Trendy Awards!

We are very pleased to  announce that Hans Zetterstrom will join 爆料公社 in the role of Chief Information Officer (CIO) on December 1, 2021.

Colin Powell, a retired four-star general, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the first Black U.S. Secretary of State, died earlier last week at the age of 84, leaving an important legacy of leadership.

We鈥檙e excited to announce that Lauren Krauth and Michelle Whitworth have been selected as Forty Under 40 honorees by Connect Association and Association Forum, respectively.

We鈥檙e pleased to announce that 爆料公社 has been selected as the new management partner for the (ACVP). We began providing management services to ACVP on October 1, 2021.

Since March of 2020, association board leaders have been confronted with leadership challenges that few could have anticipated when elected to serve in volunteer positions. From conference cancellations, member distress, and financial uncertainty, to virtual meetings, burnout, and even grief, association boards and staff have to lead differently.

We鈥檙e excited to announce we have earned re-accreditation by the 爆料公社 Institute, the global trade association representing the association management industry.

It happened again. I was participating in a board of directors鈥� meeting and directors were discussing a critical issue. Discussion was flowing. Directors were offering good ideas, observations, and opinions, and suddenly everything stopped. This board was trying to run their board meeting using Robert鈥檚 Rules of Order, and one of the directors had just made not one, but two motions, one of which he explained 鈥�...was a main motion and the other one a subsidiary motion.鈥� 

We鈥檙e pleased to announce that Allison Lundberg, CAE鈥攚ho serves as the manager of marketing and communications for our client partner the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine鈥攈as been elected to the board of the (AAMSE) in the role of director. She will serve on the board in that role until 2024.

We鈥檙e proud to congratulate Wendy-Jo Toyama, MBA CAE FASAE, on being recognized as a Fellow of the American Society of Association Executives (FASAE). Wendy is a member of 爆料公社鈥檚 executive team and serves as the CEO of the (AAHPM).

We're excited to announce we've been recognized with a by the Daily Herald Business Ledger.

To succeed, associations depend on good governance practices and association staff are critical to implementing and promoting them. Drawing on its rich history of establishing frameworks in which boards of directors are able to function at a high level, 爆料公社 has developed Governance Essentials, a half-day workshop that provides  core governance practices with a focus on the "nuts and bolts" of good governance.  

Two 爆料公社 DEI, association leadership, and membership experts will be sharing their expertise at the  (AAMSE) Annual Meeting this week.

Excellent editorial work is invisible to readers, but errors are not

I often joke that to be an editor is to have an invisible profession鈥攁fter all, the editor鈥檚 role is only apparent to everyone else when it is done poorly.

Join 爆料公社 Senior Consultant Debbie Trueblood, MSW IOM CAE, on July 15 at 1 pm CDT for a session on .

We are excited to announce that Debbie Trueblood, MSW IOM CAE, has joined our team as a senior consultant for 爆料公社 Consulting Services.

You hear a lot about 鈥淶oom fatigue鈥� these days and the draining effects of being on video meetings for hours a day. As offices in our area consider reopening and ending capacity limitations, some are relishing the novelty of being able to return to holding meetings in person with their teams and staff. 鈥淭eams need to be together in person to truly connect鈥� is often cited as a reason for returning to in-person meetings. Do people connect better in person? Sometimes. Do in-person meetings create an inclusive and equitable space? Not for everyone.

We are excited to announce that we have been selected as the new management partner for the   (SCMR) and will begin providing operational and  management services to the Society on July 1, 2021.

Priya Parker, author of The Art of Gathering, highlighted a tweet in her March newsletter that helped to further articulate one of the troubling reasons about the possible move back to in-person meetings. The tweet referenced how disabled people have been asking for years for remote conferences so they can participate and how they have been told no, it鈥檚 too difficult to do, at least until the pandemic made remote events a necessity for everyone.  In her newsletter, Priya challenges us to 鈥渂uild our gatherings around the needs and insights of the marginalized.鈥�

How do we take stock of the past 525,600 minutes or a year like the one we鈥檝e just experienced?

In March 2021, the murky waters of COVID-19 and its crippling effect around the world began to clear. With levels of infection rates going down, indoor activities re-opening, and optimistic vaccination announcements, summer looks like it could return to some semblance of normalcy.

In 2017, I approached Mark Engle, DM FASAE CAE, Association Management Center (爆料公社) principal to learn about the board selection process (BSP) research that he and Professor William Brown, PhD, Busch School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University had conducted. The research explored board competencies and processes that lead to exceptional and high-functioning board of directors.

In the first post of the How Can I Write Better Headlines series, I talked about things you SHOULD do to write great headlines for association audiences and beyond. Telling you what works is helpful, but you also need to know which headline errors to avoid. So, think of this as the 鈥渨hat not to do鈥� in headline writing.

Headline writing is an art. You can even win awards for it. (As the managing editor of the Awards and Personalization Association, I鈥檓 well aware that there are awards for expertise in just about everything鈥攂ut headlines might be a new one for you.)

On February 25, governance experts Mark Engle and Erin Volland will lead an interactive virtual workshop on Governance Essentials鈩�, walking association professionals through the foundational practices needed to ensure good governance in their association. Sound governance practices are critical for high-performing organizations but are rarely taught to association staff, leaving them to learn as they go.

2020 was defined by many things鈥攆or associations and the staff who support them, the ability to pivot and adapt to the unforeseen were top among them. As 2020 began, 爆料公社 staff were busy preparing for the typical  20+ events we manage each year for our association partners.

We are proud to announce our new partnership with the (ACAAM) and the (ABAM). As of January 1, 爆料公社 began providing management services to ACAAM and ABAM.

According to recent industry data, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated trends that were already in the works (). Will advancing towards a competency-based board be part of this trend? The pandemic has certainly forced many associations to review their volunteer leadership structure, particularly around their decision-making process and the distribution of authority to make key, timely decisions. 

This past week we celebrated our first virtual diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) week to create a space where we could learn more about what makes us all unique and to support 爆料公社鈥檚 commitment to DEI. It鈥檚 easy enough to find ways to celebrate and learn together when you鈥檙e able to gather in person, but what happens when everyone is still working remotely? As many of us have discovered since the start of the pandemic, virtual events take a bit more creativity and planning for attendees to feel engaged and connected.

In my last post, I explained how I entered the association sphere after a career in newspaper journalism. I learned a lot with this career shift and have a few tips that can apply to anyone starting a new job or switching industries.

How did I get here? It鈥檚 been a beautiful combination of hard work and sheer luck, to be honest.

As a senior content marketing and editorial manager in the Creative Media Services (CMS) department at 爆料公社, I work with our association partners on a wide variety of projects, including managing the  production of traditional print products, such as postcards and meeting brochures; writing feature articles and crafting marketing messaging; and assisting my colleagues with client-specific knowledge as they work on search engine optimization (SEO), analtyics, and others services that aren鈥檛 quite in my wheelhouse.

We are honored to announce that two 爆料公社 staff are being recognized this year with an Association Forum鈥檚 Forty Under 40^庐 award.

2020 feels like a year filled with an excessive amount of hardship, loss, and grief.

When I heard about the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg last Friday evening, I gasped and my heart sank. I knew her cancer had returned, but she always seemed to bounce back. Perhaps I was buoyed by the images of her morning workouts that are famously featured in the documentary The Notorious RBG and forever etched in my mind. She seemed eternally and unusually resilient.

Highly functional committees and task forces are equally as important to organizations as a high-functioning board. Both depend on the other to govern well. And both can suffer if there is discord or lack of direction. Read this by 爆料公社 Senior Consultant Erin Volland for insights into why and how you can ensure your committees and task forces are functioning as effectively as possible so they can advance your organization鈥檚 strategy and serve your mission.

Dropped Members. They can make even the most seasoned association membership professional shudder. Why would a member end their membership with your organization when you very clearly offer a ton of valuable benefits? Are they aware of the value you offer? Maybe not.

2020 is not business as usual鈥�2021 looks scary, too.

Members are the lifeblood of associations and 爆料公社 clients. As association professionals, we鈥檙e here to serve them, and our bottom lines depend on their support through dues payments, meeting registrations, and product sales. So, when a global pandemic and a recession challenge those goals, how can we keep up?

In today鈥檚 environment, it鈥檚 critical that associations have an effective, responsive, and cohesive governance strategy that is committed to organizational success. In this special virtual edition of , Mark Engle and Mary Byers provide the tools and resources needed to create a high-performing, response-ready board.

In her Conversations by Association , Marilyn Jansen, 爆料公社鈥檚 executive director of business development, discusses her mentoring relationship with former coworker Lindsey Nelson, CAE, and also recalls how finding female mentors was greatly different when she was just starting her career.

Like many offices, 爆料公社 transitioned to a fully remote work environment back in March. I was happy about the change and envisioned sailing through my to-do list each day and checking off all of those lingering tasks I鈥檇 been meaning to finish. After all, I鈥檇 been very productive working from home 1 day a week for years.

At 爆料公社, our Creative Media Services (CMS) team includes 8 editors who take great pride in correct grammar, following style guides, and beautifully worded phrases. You may have seen earlier posts on grammar faux pas and misused words, but in this age of digital communication鈥攚hich is especially augmented now that many offices will continue to work remotely and organizations are taking great care to communicate their plans, intent, and social justice stances鈥攊t remains even more critical to effectively communicate what we are trying to say. At best, you avoid embarrassment, and at worst, you avoid a public scandal.

We have gathered the CMS editorial team鈥檚 top grammar blunders. We鈥檒l break it down for you, so stop! It鈥檚 grammar time.

It would be clich茅 and perhaps too obvious to say that for nonprofits and associations, this year is unlike any other. And yet, here we are. Most of our in-person conferences have been cancelled. Many, if not most, of us are implementing virtual meetings and conferences. Our traditional forms of content delivery and revenue streams have been disrupted.

I have loved books ever since I was a kid. It鈥檚 more than simply the act of reading鈥擨 enjoy the tangible feel of books, the cover design. I have way too many books at home, and it鈥檚 kind of a problem.

However, that love for books has translated into a passion for the act of publishing books. As a managing editor on 爆料公社鈥檚 Creative Media Services (CMS) team, I have helped manage the publication of six healthcare-related books, and I鈥檓 currently managing two other book projects.