The Hourglass Blog

APRIL 11, 2011

Does this describe the staff people in your association? If they’re anything like the people in my organization, they’re making decisions every day that carry strategic implications. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006. Association Subculture.

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The Hourglass Blog

AUGUST 29, 2011

Theres a really critical lesson for association professionals in this guest post on Hugh MacLeods blog from Kathy Sierra. In it, she challenges the traditional wisdom many organizations have for customer loyalty programs. Reading the post made me think about my own association and my members. Association Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

DECEMBER 8, 2010

I think wed all agree that theres value in educating your association Board about how much things actually cost so they can make better decisions about the organizations competencies and capabilities. Labels: Association Management. That's an interesting take on association members, Eric. Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

DECEMBER 20, 2010

Instead, I will choose to view Wikileaks as a call-to-action, and a reminder that we can only achieve what our organizations need us to by making sure our private actions match our public ones. Labels: Communication , Leadership , Social Media. Association Management. Management. Social Media.

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The Hourglass Blog

OCTOBER 17, 2011

Rory Sutherland persuasively makes the case that organizations dont spend enough time working on the small stuff. That, in fact, there is a bias in most organizations that big problems have to be met with big solutions--solutions that have to be conceptualized by powerful people and executed with lots and lots of money. Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

FEBRUARY 15, 2011

What follows is a guest post from the first such professional to take me up on that offer-- Je nnifer Alluisi , Director of Educational Programs at Custom Management Group , an accredited association management company in Charlotteville, Virginia. This association has a couple of different challenges to face.

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The Hourglass Blog

JUNE 17, 2010

Socializing is important. Hearing everyones name and the organizations they work for is not enough. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006. Association Subculture. Im not questioning your competency by asking questions. Why are they here? at 11:49 AM.

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The Hourglass Blog

JULY 5, 2010

Listen to how Erickson describes the new equation that she says will form the basis of trust between corporations and workers in the decades ahead: The organization will provide interesting and challenging work. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006. About This Blog.

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The Hourglass Blog

AUGUST 16, 2010

I couldnt help but notice the similarities between this list and the Principles of Innovation recently drafted by the WSAE Innovation Task Force, including "an innovation culture led from the top of the organization" and "the commitment of resources to a process of innovation." Association Management. Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

NOVEMBER 2, 2010

This is another one of those posts challenging the assumption that as Millennials storm their way into the workforce theyre going to radically change the landscape and force organizations to adapt to their idiosyncratic ideals in order to harness their power and survive. Association Management. Management. Social Media.

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The Hourglass Blog

AUGUST 8, 2011

Unfortunately, from my point of view, only some of those lessons are good for the association community. Govindarajan describes the truism that it is the rare organization that lacks the ability to produce new and creative ideas. Its a strategy thats definitely biased towards large organizations with large resources at its disposal.

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The Hourglass Blog

MAY 16, 2011

Ill bet youve heard the same words said in your organization from time to time. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006. Association Subculture. How can we launch something thats only half done and not working properly? We have a reputation for quality to protect.

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The Hourglass Blog

MAY 11, 2011

As recently discussed on the Innovation Hub for Associations, innovation is fundamentally about change, and Schrage is asking us to consider not the change we would make within our own organizations to be more innovative, but the change we can create in our marketplaces to better accept our innovative products. Association Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

NOVEMBER 14, 2010

Maybe because of the way my brain works, I really like the mathematical model he uses to make his point: We like to think of an organizations capacity for innovation as creativity multiplied by execution. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006. Association Subculture.

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The Hourglass Blog

AUGUST 10, 2010

Like the SocialFish commenters, we spent some time there talking about trust in associations, especially as it relates to creating and sustaining a culture of innovation. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006. Association Subculture. A Note from Eric Lanke.

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The Hourglass Blog

JUNE 11, 2010

It is, in fact, Ludwigs practicality--his willingness to discuss with others in the organization what really stands in the way of them achiveing their goals and then working with people to find practical ways of addressing those barriers--that sets him apart in Beers analysis. Association Management. Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

MARCH 27, 2011

Listening up means empowering as many people inside your organization as possible to spend time talking to your customers to have those conversations, and empowering them to talk to one another openly. How many people are there in your organization? Association Management. Management. Social Media.

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The Hourglass Blog

SEPTEMBER 3, 2010

The boards dont ensure that the organization has a sound strategy, they tolerate mediocrity in management, they dont hold the organization accountable for results, and they dont ensure that resources are adequate to accomplish goals. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Membership.

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The Hourglass Blog

JUNE 12, 2011

In part one I talked about how the primary challenge for associations in innovating is a cultural one, and how organizational priorities need to move away from established structures and towards whatever mechanisms help the organization deliver better value for its members. Association Management. Image source.

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The Hourglass Blog

MAY 26, 2011

In part one I talked about how the primary challenge for associations in innovating is a cultural one, and how organizational priorities need to move away from established structures and towards whatever mechanisms help the organization deliver better value for its members. Association Management. Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

MAY 21, 2011

In this regard innovation can be viewed as another association business practice—like program management or marketing—something that all organizations can do, albeit with varying levels of expertise and success. The innovation problem for associations is not about process. How about the organization itself?

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The Hourglass Blog

MAY 1, 2011

They start measuring their success by their numbers and not by the objectives of the association hosting the meeting. As you hone your organizational skills, it starts being less about the mission of your organization and starts being more about sleeping rooms, banquet event orders and LCD projectors. Association Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

APRIL 26, 2011

Trying to put myself in the shoes of our typical association member, a realized that a thoughtful response--the kind on which we would like to base our action--would require them to gather information from different parts of their organization and give some thought as to how to compose that information into the format we were seeking.

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The Hourglass Blog

APRIL 16, 2011

The better strategy is to focus on what your association is trying to achieve and do it the best you can, recognizing that those who appreciate what you do and want to beneift from it will join--those who dont wont. Like a lot of association leaders, I do a fair amount to welcome and on-board new members into our organization.

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The Hourglass Blog

FEBRUARY 20, 2011

A couple of posts ago I mention a post from HBRs Andrew McAfee about how the connected habits of Millennials are benefting organizations. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006. Association Subculture. Sunday, February 20, 2011. Its worth a read. About This Blog.

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The Hourglass Blog

JUNE 5, 2011

I had a fantastic opportunity this past Friday—an opportunity to take the principles and ideas about innovation that are being developed through my work with the Innovation Task Force of the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives , and apply them in a real-world situation with a real-world organization.

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The Hourglass Blog

DECEMBER 14, 2010

But I want to focus in on the underlying concept--that for an innovation process to succeed, it must align with the organizations culture and way of thinking. Thats an important lesson for any association executive interested in increasing the ability of their organization to generate and execute innovative ideas. Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

NOVEMBER 26, 2010

A conference planning committee is currently being assembled to help organize this event, and we hope to attract association executives from around the nation to participate. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006. Association Subculture. About This Blog.

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The Hourglass Blog

JANUARY 1, 2011

Rather than the originial "exploring generations and leadership in associations and in society," I felt "exploring a new generation of leadership issues in associations and in society" was more descriptive of this sense of mission. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006.

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The Hourglass Blog

SEPTEMBER 21, 2010

Team members were all creative thinkers, usually from different departments in the organization, and brought a variety of experiences and perspectives to the table. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006. Association Subculture. Eclectic teams. Nimbleness.

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The Hourglass Blog

JUNE 27, 2011

Leadership has to be about building the capacity and infrastructure for an organization to thrive in the future. He used the example of a cobbler and asked why it's standard practice in organizations to reward someone who excels at a skill such as making shoes with a promotion to managing other shoemakers. Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

.” So “the silent, sullen boy at the mall’s game store may be next in line for an underemployed, lonely adulthood if we don’t teach him how to maintain effective social contacts with others.” Labels: Millennial Perspectives , Social Media. Association Management. Management.

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The Hourglass Blog

JANUARY 31, 2011

Like our readiness tool, these discussion spaces are organized into three key tracks: a. Creating a culture of innovation in your association. Designing a process by which innovation will occur in your association. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006.

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The Hourglass Blog

SEPTEMBER 15, 2010

The task force met again on September 10, and one of our tasks this time was to create a tool that would allow association executives to assess the "innovation readiness" of their organizations. The first and most important piece of the puzzle is the culture of your organization, and your leadership is the key to your culture.

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The Hourglass Blog

OCTOBER 3, 2010

Indeed, Ericksons thesis is that Generation X, because of its formative experiences in the 1980s, has a unique set of leadership traits that are precisely what organizations need today to see them through the difficulties many of them are facing. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Membership.

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The Hourglass Blog

JUNE 29, 2010

An experienced association CEO can take ownership of that culture in a way new CEOs cant, shaping it Board member by Board member in a positive direction and then reinforcing its best elements for the good of the organization. Association Management. Management. Social Media. Daring to Lead 2006.

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The Hourglass Blog

JULY 17, 2010

By examining how innovation is successfully employed by the organizations profiled we hope to identify practical strategies for applying innovation in the association environment. Weve now examined enough case studies where we feel ready to start writing a "white paper" on innovation for the association community.

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