INDUSTRY INSIGHTS YOUR PEERS ARE READING
It's not always obvious. In fact, sometimes it feels like you're not making any progress at all. But then, something happens that allows you to see what you've accomplished from an outsider's perspective, and suddenly, you realize that you ARE actually making a difference. What am I talking about? MORE
Here's a rare post on the subject of generations in the workplace. Recent readers of this blog may not be aware that I cut my blogging teeth on the subject when I hosted (with Jamie Notter ) The Hourglass Blog from 2009 to 2012. MORE
This week I reviewed the free e-book, Fueling Exceptional New Member Experiences , from Amanda Kaiser at Kaiser Insights and the Smooth the Path blog. My favorite part was the section that talked about the importance of making a positive first impression with new members. MORE
I'm not much of a sports fan, but one sports analogy I use pretty consistently is the term "inside baseball." I use it to describe a situation when I'm going into too much jargon and detail in front of an audience that doesn't understand or doesn't need such an in-depth explanation. MORE
This post in Associations NOW recently caught my eye, arguing, as it does, for association conferences that span a fewer number of days in recognition of the increasing desire for "work-life balance" among association members. I've got a different take. MORE
I attend a lot of conferences and workshops. I attended one last week and I'm attending another one this week. In fact, looking ahead on my calendar, I've got six more conferences or workshops to attend before the end of the year. Obviously, it's a big part of my job. MORE
I attended a trade show this past week. It's something I haven't done in a while, and I was surprised by how little things have changed. Aisle carpet, booth numbers, giant computer screens, shiny products on lucite display stands. And, of course, booth personnel. MORE
I attended a conference last week where one of the sessions was on the Hermann Whole Brain Model. Not familiar with it? MORE
Couple of conversations this week with members of my association's Board on the differences between strategy development and strategy deployment. I probably need to provide some background first. My Board recently decided to change our cycle of strategic planning. MORE
Not too long ago I wrote a post about Getting Out From Behind the Podium when giving a talk at my association's Annual Conference. MORE
Four weeks ago, in Step Four: Discussing the Strategic Implications, Part 2 , I continued a description of a Scenario Planning exercise my Board chair and I decided to conduct at our most recently completed Board meeting. MORE
This book was handed to me at a recent WSAE event I attended -- handed to me not by the authors (who were also there) but by the WSAE staff executive, and with a specific request. Eric, you like to read. Will you please read this book and write a review of it.” Sure,” I replied. MORE
Kudos to Amanda Kaiser and her Smooth the Path blog for her post, " Our Point of View is Not Our Members’ Point of View." In it, she reminds all of us association staff that what we think about the value of our membership benefits is often not what our members think of it. MORE
A shout out this week to Jeffrey Cufaude at the Idea Architects blog , who recently offered this piece of wisdom regarding the growth goals set by many an association board in many a strategic planning session: Double our membership. Increase conference attendance by 50%. MORE
I attended an educational conference last week and a wonderful thing happened to me there. I got a new idea. I don't know yet if it's a good idea or a bad idea. Maybe you can tell me. But that's not the point. MORE
This week we had a planning meeting for our upcoming Annual Conference. Because our Annual Conference is popular with members this year, and because we ran out of sleeping rooms at our conference hotel, we've moved our staff to another property about a mile and a half down the road. MORE
Back in May 2018, I participated in a virtual conference session on co-creation. It was called SURGE Spring 2018, and the organizers just posted a blog summary of some of the points I made in the session. MORE
As we end another year, here's a look back at the five posts on this blog that received the most page views in 2018. MORE
I interviewed a candidate for a position my association is looking to fill this week. I think I've written before about how interviews are one of those places where the values of an organization need to come into play, and my experience this week was a great illustration of why. MORE
Amanda Kaiser at her Smooth the Path blog gave me a good reminder this week about association membership dues notices. The most interesting result from the member research on renewal notices is that these letters, emails, and phone calls do not serve to change most member’s minds about renewing. MORE
Four weeks ago, in Step Four: Discussing the Strategic Implications, Part 5 , I continued a description of a Scenario Planning exercise my Board chair and I decided to conduct at our two most recently completed Board meetings. MORE
Three weeks ago, in Step Four: Discussing the Strategic Implications, Part 4 , I continued a description of a Scenario Planning exercise my Board chair and I decided to conduct at our two most recently completed Board meetings. MORE
Amanda Kaiser on her Smooth the Path blog had a good reminder last month for all us association professionals about the importance of speaking to members in a language they understand. MORE
Two unconnected things got connected this week in a fun and interesting way. First, at the beginning of the week I was in Texas for another one of the conferences I've been talking about. MORE
Two weeks ago, in Step Four: Discussing the Strategic Implications, Part 3 , I continued a description of a Scenario Planning exercise my Board chair and I decided to conduct at our most recently completed Board meeting. MORE
I participated in a SURGE Spring 2018 session on co-creation. Don't know what SURGE Spring 2018 is? It's an online, virtual conference put on by Association Success. Sessions have been recorded and are being posted this week (May 2-4, 2018). Mine will be posted on May 4. Go here for more info. MORE
I flew in and out of LAX this week. It's not a frequent airport for me -- I can't even remember the last time I was there. But something happened there that I thought was worth blogging about. When I arrived for my return flight home I didn't at first recognize anything as unusual. MORE
Last week, in When Decisions Get Made , I talked about when a member's decision to renew or not to renew their membership in an association gets made. MORE
My association sponsors an undergraduate education program we call the Fluid Power Vehicle Challenge. Essentially, it challenges undergraduate engineers to design and build a human-powered vehicle (typically a bicycle, but not always) that uses my industry's technology (i.e., MORE
I don't know when was the last time I've written about performance evaluations on this blog -- or indeed if I have ever written about performance evaluations on this blog before -- but they've been on my mind this week. MORE
I had lunch with a colleague this week and our conversation turned to staff bonus plans. In prefacing my description of the bonus plan I've put in place for the staff at my association, I described it (with a bit of tongue in the cheek) as "needlessly complicated." MORE
I was asked to facilitate one of the breakouts at the last conference I attended. (If If you're a regular reader of this blog, you know that last week I said I had six more conferences and workshops to attend before the end of the year.) MORE
I have to take issue with Amanda Kaiser of the Smooth the Path blog, who said in a recent post that trade associations don't really have organizational memberships. Your key contact member understands that some of their colleagues at their organization can be members. MORE
I've been thinking this week about metrics for the marketing and communications function of my organization. Specifically, what's the best way to measure the contribution of our marketing efforts in the achievement of our program goals? Maybe I need to explain that. In my organization there are program goals. We want to recruit new members. We want to increase the number of members attending our conferences. We want more members to volunteer their support for our workforce development programs. MORE
It worked. There's not much more to say than that. Last week, in Behaviors Are a Necessary Part of Values , I wrote about an upcoming discussion on values at my association's Board meeting. MORE
Something interesting happened this week. The office building where our association is located had a Halloween door decorating contest. MORE
The subtitle here is “A Personal Guide to Leadership and Career Fulfillment in Association Management.” How it came into my possession I no longer remember, but my copy is signed by the author himself. Sept 25, 2013 Eric - Thought you might find this of interest. MORE
This past week brought the Polar Vortex to the Midwest and with it record-breaking temperatures well below zero. MORE
I participated in a SURGE Spring 2018 session on co-creation. Don't know what SURGE Spring 2018 is? It's an online, virtual conference put on by Association Success. Sessions were recorded and were broadcast May 2-4, 2018. MORE
Last week I wrote about a presentation I would be giving at one of my association's major conferences -- a presentation on the work product of one of our technical committees. MORE
Eric Lanke
FEBRUARY 11, 2019
This week we had a planning meeting for our upcoming Annual Conference. Because our Annual Conference is popular with members this year, and because we ran out of sleeping rooms at our conference hotel, we've moved our staff to another property about a mile and a half down the road.
Eric Lanke
FEBRUARY 4, 2019
This past week brought the Polar Vortex to the Midwest and with it record-breaking temperatures well below zero.
Eric Lanke
JANUARY 21, 2019
Couple of conversations this week with members of my association's Board on the differences between strategy development and strategy deployment. I probably need to provide some background first. My Board recently decided to change our cycle of strategic planning.
Eric Lanke
JANUARY 14, 2019
This post in Associations NOW recently caught my eye, arguing, as it does, for association conferences that span a fewer number of days in recognition of the increasing desire for "work-life balance" among association members. I've got a different take.
Eric Lanke
JANUARY 7, 2019
Amanda Kaiser on her Smooth the Path blog had a good reminder last month for all us association professionals about the importance of speaking to members in a language they understand.
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Eric Lanke
AUGUST 27, 2018
Amanda Kaiser at her Smooth the Path blog gave me a good reminder this week about association membership dues notices. The most interesting result from the member research on renewal notices is that these letters, emails, and phone calls do not serve to change most member’s minds about renewing.
Eric Lanke
OCTOBER 15, 2018
It worked. There's not much more to say than that. Last week, in Behaviors Are a Necessary Part of Values , I wrote about an upcoming discussion on values at my association's Board meeting.
Eric Lanke
DECEMBER 10, 2018
My association sponsors an undergraduate education program we call the Fluid Power Vehicle Challenge. Essentially, it challenges undergraduate engineers to design and build a human-powered vehicle (typically a bicycle, but not always) that uses my industry's technology (i.e.,
Eric Lanke
SEPTEMBER 17, 2018
I attended a trade show this past week. It's something I haven't done in a while, and I was surprised by how little things have changed. Aisle carpet, booth numbers, giant computer screens, shiny products on lucite display stands. And, of course, booth personnel.
Eric Lanke
DECEMBER 31, 2018
As we end another year, here's a look back at the five posts on this blog that received the most page views in 2018.
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Eric Lanke
DECEMBER 3, 2018
I flew in and out of LAX this week. It's not a frequent airport for me -- I can't even remember the last time I was there. But something happened there that I thought was worth blogging about. When I arrived for my return flight home I didn't at first recognize anything as unusual.
Eric Lanke
NOVEMBER 26, 2018
I'm not much of a sports fan, but one sports analogy I use pretty consistently is the term "inside baseball." I use it to describe a situation when I'm going into too much jargon and detail in front of an audience that doesn't understand or doesn't need such an in-depth explanation.
Eric Lanke
NOVEMBER 24, 2018
This book was handed to me at a recent WSAE event I attended -- handed to me not by the authors (who were also there) but by the WSAE staff executive, and with a specific request. Eric, you like to read. Will you please read this book and write a review of it.” Sure,” I replied.
Eric Lanke
NOVEMBER 19, 2018
Two unconnected things got connected this week in a fun and interesting way. First, at the beginning of the week I was in Texas for another one of the conferences I've been talking about.
Eric Lanke
NOVEMBER 12, 2018
I interviewed a candidate for a position my association is looking to fill this week. I think I've written before about how interviews are one of those places where the values of an organization need to come into play, and my experience this week was a great illustration of why.
Eric Lanke
NOVEMBER 5, 2018
Something interesting happened this week. The office building where our association is located had a Halloween door decorating contest.
Eric Lanke
JANUARY 15, 2018
I attended an educational conference last week and a wonderful thing happened to me there. I got a new idea. I don't know yet if it's a good idea or a bad idea. Maybe you can tell me. But that's not the point.
Eric Lanke
OCTOBER 29, 2018
I was asked to facilitate one of the breakouts at the last conference I attended. (If If you're a regular reader of this blog, you know that last week I said I had six more conferences and workshops to attend before the end of the year.)
Eric Lanke
AUGUST 20, 2018
Back in May 2018, I participated in a virtual conference session on co-creation. It was called SURGE Spring 2018, and the organizers just posted a blog summary of some of the points I made in the session.
Eric Lanke
OCTOBER 22, 2018
I attend a lot of conferences and workshops. I attended one last week and I'm attending another one this week. In fact, looking ahead on my calendar, I've got six more conferences or workshops to attend before the end of the year. Obviously, it's a big part of my job.
Eric Lanke
OCTOBER 1, 2018
I had lunch with a colleague this week and our conversation turned to staff bonus plans. In prefacing my description of the bonus plan I've put in place for the staff at my association, I described it (with a bit of tongue in the cheek) as "needlessly complicated."
Eric Lanke
JUNE 11, 2018
Not too long ago I wrote a post about Getting Out From Behind the Podium when giving a talk at my association's Annual Conference.
Eric Lanke
SEPTEMBER 10, 2018
A shout out this week to Jeffrey Cufaude at the Idea Architects blog , who recently offered this piece of wisdom regarding the growth goals set by many an association board in many a strategic planning session: Double our membership. Increase conference attendance by 50%.
Eric Lanke
SEPTEMBER 3, 2018
Last week, in When Decisions Get Made , I talked about when a member's decision to renew or not to renew their membership in an association gets made.
Eric Lanke
JUNE 18, 2018
I don't know when was the last time I've written about performance evaluations on this blog -- or indeed if I have ever written about performance evaluations on this blog before -- but they've been on my mind this week.
Eric Lanke
DECEMBER 17, 2018
I've been thinking this week about metrics for the marketing and communications function of my organization. Specifically, what's the best way to measure the contribution of our marketing efforts in the achievement of our program goals? Maybe I need to explain that. In my organization there are program goals. We want to recruit new members. We want to increase the number of members attending our conferences. We want more members to volunteer their support for our workforce development programs.
Eric Lanke
FEBRUARY 19, 2018
This week I reviewed the free e-book, Fueling Exceptional New Member Experiences , from Amanda Kaiser at Kaiser Insights and the Smooth the Path blog. My favorite part was the section that talked about the importance of making a positive first impression with new members.
Eric Lanke
JULY 2, 2018
I have to take issue with Amanda Kaiser of the Smooth the Path blog, who said in a recent post that trade associations don't really have organizational memberships. Your key contact member understands that some of their colleagues at their organization can be members.
Eric Lanke
JUNE 4, 2018
Two weeks ago, in Step Four: Discussing the Strategic Implications, Part 3 , I continued a description of a Scenario Planning exercise my Board chair and I decided to conduct at our most recently completed Board meeting.
Eric Lanke
AUGUST 13, 2018
I attended a conference last week where one of the sessions was on the Hermann Whole Brain Model. Not familiar with it?
Eric Lanke
AUGUST 6, 2018
It's not always obvious. In fact, sometimes it feels like you're not making any progress at all. But then, something happens that allows you to see what you've accomplished from an outsider's perspective, and suddenly, you realize that you ARE actually making a difference. What am I talking about?
Eric Lanke
JULY 23, 2018
Four weeks ago, in Step Four: Discussing the Strategic Implications, Part 5 , I continued a description of a Scenario Planning exercise my Board chair and I decided to conduct at our two most recently completed Board meetings.
Eric Lanke
JUNE 25, 2018
Three weeks ago, in Step Four: Discussing the Strategic Implications, Part 4 , I continued a description of a Scenario Planning exercise my Board chair and I decided to conduct at our two most recently completed Board meetings.
Eric Lanke
AUGUST 21, 2017
Last week I wrote about a presentation I would be giving at one of my association's major conferences -- a presentation on the work product of one of our technical committees.
Eric Lanke
MAY 28, 2018
Here's a rare post on the subject of generations in the workplace. Recent readers of this blog may not be aware that I cut my blogging teeth on the subject when I hosted (with Jamie Notter ) The Hourglass Blog from 2009 to 2012.
Eric Lanke
MAY 21, 2018
Four weeks ago, in Step Four: Discussing the Strategic Implications, Part 2 , I continued a description of a Scenario Planning exercise my Board chair and I decided to conduct at our most recently completed Board meeting.
Eric Lanke
MAY 14, 2018
Kudos to Amanda Kaiser and her Smooth the Path blog for her post, " Our Point of View is Not Our Members’ Point of View." In it, she reminds all of us association staff that what we think about the value of our membership benefits is often not what our members think of it.
Eric Lanke
MAY 7, 2018
I participated in a SURGE Spring 2018 session on co-creation. Don't know what SURGE Spring 2018 is? It's an online, virtual conference put on by Association Success. Sessions were recorded and were broadcast May 2-4, 2018.
Eric Lanke
APRIL 30, 2018
I participated in a SURGE Spring 2018 session on co-creation. Don't know what SURGE Spring 2018 is? It's an online, virtual conference put on by Association Success. Sessions have been recorded and are being posted this week (May 2-4, 2018). Mine will be posted on May 4. Go here for more info.
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