The weekly list of free educational events and resources for the association community…
Virtual events and inclusion. “If your association is serious about inclusion and diversity, make sure you know what ‘going back to normal’ really means.” WBT Systems explains who’s excluded if you stop hosting virtual conferences. Maybe more people than you realize according to the research they share. They also suggest ways to improve the virtual conference experience.
Attracting Gen Z. MemberSuite goes straight to the research to describe what Generation Z values and the type of experiences and programs your association can offer to align with those values.
Instructional design. Blue Sky eLearn’s step-by-step guide to instructional design helps you decide what educational programs your market needs, develop learning objectives and assessments, map the content, and design the program.
Hybrid workplace challenges. Moving to a hybrid work model is often a compromise solution, says Achurch Consulting. They describe eight serious challenges that can arise when you make the switch to hybrid without proper planning or guidance.
Sponsorship programs. In his work with associations, sponsorship consultant Bruce Rosenthal talks with a lot of sponsors about what they’re looking for in a partnership. At EventMobi, he shares advice for structuring and pricing sponsorship programs that deliver value to sponsors, members, and associations.
Market needs. As an Association Laboratory consultant, Nikki Haton Shanks sees association leaders make decisions in a vacuum and “create products and services that THEY would like, not what their members and other stakeholders (i.e., non-members) would like.” Instead, she recommends following her brewer husband’s practice: if your market wants Sour Patch Kids beer, your association should make them Sour Patch Kids beer.
Association podcasts. Launching a podcast isn’t as intimidating as it used to be, thanks to resources and people who can help you get started. Association Briefings explains how podcasts benefit associations and their audiences, provides tips for starting an association podcast, and reviews the planning process and issues to consider before you dive in.
Quick hits
Excellent list of ways to instantly show your product, membership, or program’s value. (Wes Kao)
Six ways to get your organization’s subject matter experts to start thinking like content marketers. (Pam Didner)
Twitter comes of age. (Tyler Cowen)
Good eats
Skip down to the list of free educational events if you prefer takeout.
Here’s my recipe for corned beef. Put the brisket in a baking dish, spread the spice packet over it, sprinkle about a teaspoon each of ground allspice, mustard, coriander, cloves, black pepper, cardamom, ginger, cinnamon and Aleppo or red pepper flakes all over it, and top with three or four small bay leaves. Bake at 325 under foil for 2-1/2 hours, then remove the foil and bake 30 minutes more or until the meat is super tender when tested with a fork, slim knife or cake tester. You wouldn’t believe the aromas while it’s cooking—heavenly!
On the side, cabbage, of course, sautéed with bacon (and ham, oink), red onion, red bell pepper, carrot, smoked paprika and chicken broth. I may be Irish-American but I don’t cook my corned beef and cabbage like one.
Another night, we enjoyed speckled trout fillets ala mummy Lorraine: a topping of crushed Ritz crackers, lemon zest, garlic powder and melted butter. On the side, a sauté of broccoli stems, carrots and red onion with basil pesto—my “I don’t feel like going to the store just for a vegetable, what’s in the produce drawer” side dish.
If you have a free webinar or event coming up, please send me the link by Wednesday afternoon the week before it’s scheduled. I’ll be happy to feature it as long as it’s not too product-centric.
Fri 12/9 at 12 p.m.* – AWTC Mindful Networking
Held the second Friday of each month, these intimate, virtual conversations are a chance to form meaningful connections with other women and allies in the association technology community. Each Mindful Networking will feature one of our amazing AWTC award winners, followed by breakout rooms with changing topics (selected by our featured guest). More info/register.
Host: Association Women Technology Champions
Guest: Himali Shah, Manager of Consulting at FusionSpan
*All events are online at Eastern Daylight Time unless otherwise noted.
Fri 12/9 at 4 p.m. – Engaging and Motivating Volunteers
Share your success (and failures) in working with volunteers. We all have stories to tell! More info/register.
Host: Fridays@4
Moderator: Heather Story, consultant, Volunteer Strategies
Mon 12/12 at 8 a.m. – B2B2C: Connecting to your Members’ Customers (Nonprofit Conversations with Cecilia Sepp, CAE)
Nonprofit Conversations features guests from around the world discussing topics of interest to the nonprofit community. Episodes publish at 8 a.m. on Mondays and can be found on all major podcast platforms.
Guest: Cathy Lada, DSc, CAE
Host: Cecilia Sepp, CAE, CNAP, principal and founder, Rogue Tulips LLC
Mon 12/12 at 12 p.m. – Membership Monday: Student/Young Professional Recruitment and Engagement
We will focus on a successful campaign for the recruitment and engagement of this membership segment. Do you have a success story you would like to share? We would love to hear from you. More info/register.
Host: ASAE
Facilitator: Amy Hemphill, ASAE
Mon 12/12 at 4 p.m. – AWTC Happy Hour at ASAE TEC 2022
Join Association Women Technology Champions as we celebrate women in technology and a successful 2022. More info/register.
Tue 12/13 at 10 a.m. – How to Create a Member-Centric Community
For your community to thrive in the long term, you must prioritize members’ needs and experiences above all else. Learn how (and why) to put members at the front, right, and center of your community, how to create an intentional human-focused user experience, how to map your members’ community journeys, and best practices for harnessing storytelling and user-generated content. More info/register.
Host: Hivebrite
Speakers:
- Margaret Hedderman, Communications & Editorial Director, Startup Colorado
- Vanessa McCrann, Community Engagement Manager, Startup Colorado
- Amber Cooper Jorez, Senior Customer Success Manager, Hivebrite
Tue 12/13 at 12 p.m. – Chapter Culture Reboot: Strategically Guiding Chapters through Change (Crunch n Munch)
Each month the Component Relations and Volunteer Management Council joins members of the community to discuss a topic of interest. More info/register.
Host: ASAE Component Relations and Volunteer Management Council
Tue 12/13 at 12 p.m. – Rockin’ Around the Inbox: Fireside AMA with the Email Experts
What’s on your holiday wish list this year? If the answer is better email performance, you’re in the right place. We’ve assembled a crack team of Validity Email Strategists who help email marketers across the world solve their trickiest email challenges. They’re prepared to answer any and all of your burning email questions in this “ask me anything” style roundtable webinar. More info/register.
Host: Validity
Tue 12/13 at 3 p.m. – Successful Recruiting, Hiring and Onboarding in a Remote or Hybrid Environment
Learn how recruiting power has shifted post-pandemic, how to integrate and embrace flexibility into your recruiting process as a long-term strategy, rather than a reaction to post-pandemic trends, how to develop concrete strategies for successfully onboarding remote and hybrid workers, including creating a sense of belonging. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: UST Education
Speakers:
- Jaime Hirschfeld, Director of Client Sales, FlexProfessionals, DC
- Ashley Moore, Director of Client Sales and Service, FlexProfessionals, Boston
Wed 12/14 from 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. Holiday Roundtable Event (Washington DC)
CNG is bringing together industry experts to discuss topics pertinent to your work with certification programs, including accessibility and fairness in testing, non-traditional item types, soft skills in credentialing, certification program revenue drivers, and DEI and adverse impact in credentialing. You will have the opportunity to move from table to table and learn from the table host and your peers in lively discussions. More info/register.
Host: Certification Network Group
Roundtable hosts:
- Marc Vanhasselt, Vice President for Customer Experience and Accessibility, Prometric
- Clarence “Buck” Chaffee, President, The Caviart Group
- Ibidun Layi-Ojo, Director of Examinations, CFP Board
- Bill West, Chief Credentialing Solutions Officer, Cornerstone Strategies
- Kyana Beckles, Founder, Leverage Assessments
Wed 12/14 from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. – New Year, New ME
In four interactive break-out sessions, learn how to be more aligned with members events to drive member engagement, utilize your online community to strengthen member engagement, prioritize members’ career and personal development, and foster and excite cheerleaders for your association and industry. 3 CAE credits. More info/register.
Host: Community Brands
Wed 12/14 at 11 a.m. – Inside the 2023 State Legislative Agenda
Hear a review of the results of the midterm elections and NCSL’s extensive preview of the 2023 legislative sessions, which are set to begin in just a few weeks. Learn about the biggest issues ahead for state legislatures and how your team can prepare in the weeks ahead. More info/register.
Host: Quorum
Speaker: Tim Storey, CEO of the National Conference of State Legislatures
Wed 12/14 at 1 p.m. – Drive Deeper Member Engagement While Growing Non-Dues Revenue (NDaP Expert Series)
Learn how two associations, with two separate challenges, monetized content that increased member engagement and created a positive source of net new non-dues revenue. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: Non-Dues-a-Palooza
Speakers: Association of Corporate Counsel, American Public Transportation Association, and Lead Marvels
Wed 12/14 at 1 p.m. – 2023 Meetings & Events Outlook
Hear where our panel thinks we’re headed in 2023 in terms of prices, labor, venue availability and other important issues that are key to planning successful meetings and events. Find out about key results from our annual Meetings Trends Survey. 1 CMP credit. More info/register.
Host: Meetings Today
Speakers:
- Drew Holmgreen, Chief Brand Officer, MPI
- Jack Johnson, Chief Advocacy Officer, Destinations International
- Howard Givner, CEO, Event Leadership Institute
- David Caldwell, Managing Vice President, Sales, Maritz Global Events
Wed 12/14 at 1 p.m. – Event Trends Lookahead: Taking Your Events Team Into 2023
2022 was the year of trying new things, and as it comes to a close, we’re diving into emerging event trends that will take your events into 2023.Take a deep dive into data-driven trends and what to expect from in-person, hybrid, and virtual experiences. We’ll also discuss audience expectations and show how you can deliver these trends through real-life examples and best practices. More info/register.
Host: Webex Events (formerly Socio)
Speakers: Yvonne deFuria, Event Production Manager, and Lisa Vogel, Leader, Field & Event Marketing, Webex Events (formerly Socio)
Wed 12/14 at 2 p.m. – 3 Trends for 2023: Are You Ready?
Find out how to inspire attendees to realize their best individual experience, what meeting planners need to know about new data privacy laws going into effect in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, and Utah, and what to expect for event costs in the year ahead. 1 CMP credit. More info/register.
Host: MeetingsNet
Speakers:
- Steve O’Malley, Enterprise Vice President, COO, Maritz Global Events
- Greg Bogue, Enterprise Vice President, Brand, Experience and Innovation Ecosystems, Maritz Global Events
- Jill Blood, Vice President, Deputy General Counsel, Maritz
Wed 12/14 at 3 p.m. – How Smart Is Google at Detecting Duplicate Content?
Google does not like duplicate content and often penalizes pages and websites with duplicate content. Learn what duplicate content is, how to fix it when duplicate content is published, and how to ensure your rankings are not affected by your content. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: UST Education
Speaker: Jon Rivers, COO, Marketeery
Thu 12/15 at 11 a.m. – Brain-Based Practices for Leadership Development
Hear insights from an award-winning program for brain-based manager training. Discover how to create engaging learning for both managers and certified facilitators using platform and authoring tools. Utilize learning science best practices (habit design, memory enhancement, transfer) to design/deliver effective training. More info/register.
Host: Training Magazine Network
Speaker: Britt Andreatta, MA, PhD, CEO of Brain Aware Training and former CLO for Lynda.com (LinkedIn Learning)
Thu 12/15 at 12 p.m. – The Community Check-In
A weekly community chat on Slack for black professionals working in the events industry. More info/register.
Host: Black In Events Network
Thu 12/15 at 1 p.m. – Nonprofit Leadership Roundtable
Join your nonprofit and association colleagues for a reflection and planning session. Take a look back at 2022 and envision your 2023. More info/register.
Host: Carol Hamilton, founder, Grace Social Sector Consulting
Thu 12/15 at 1 p.m. – Become a Survey Savant: Modern Strategies for Building Actionable Insights
Surveys are the least demanding, most scalable way to collect insights about your members. And if you’re not surveying them regularly, everything your association does—from communications to program design—is merely guesswork. This age-old method is alive and well in the array of modern marketing technology. Learn the six principles of good survey design, how to create a survey strategy that collects the data you actually need, and how to analyze the data objectively so you can make meaningful changes in your organization. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: UST Education
Speaker: Brianna Martin, Director of Brand Marketing at Mighty Citizen
Thu 12/15 at 4 p.m. – Executive Transitions: Review How to Make it Painless for the Organization
When top executives retire, organizational succession plans become the top focus of any board. Hear the latest tips on how to be prepared. More info/register.
Host: ASAE Reston-Loudoun Idea Swap
Speaker: Erica M. Poff, CAE, PMP, IOM
Fri 12/16 at 4 p.m. – Year-End Successes and Holiday Networking
Join your Fridays@4 colleagues as we celebrate a successful year of building our professional networks and improving our career and professional development. We will also have open networking time. Don’t forget to wear your ugliest holiday sweater. More info/register.
Host: Fridays@4
Tue 12/20 at 2 p.m. – Mad for the Metaverse: Association Use Cases That Aren’t Stupid
What are the practical applications for the metaverse today, and what could they be in the future? Join KiKi as she explores the metaverse for associations with Mike Aaron and Andrew Wilson. More info/register.
Host: KiKi L’Italien, senior consultant, Tecker International
Guests:
- Andrew Wilson, executive vice president and chief marketing officer, Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau
- Mike Aaron, founder, Visit Real Cities
Association Brain Food Weekly is published Friday mornings. If your organization offers free professional development for the association community, please send me the link via email or Twitter by Wednesday afternoon the week before it’s scheduled.
Association Brain Food 