The weekly list of free educational events and resources for the association community…
Since webinars are winding down, this will be the last Association Brain Food for the year. I’ll be back on Friday, January 5. Until then, thank you for spending time with me here. I wish you and your loved ones a most joyful, loving, cozy and relaxing holiday season. Merry Christmas!
12 Days of Staycation. Are you taking time off during the holidays? If so, consider dedicating a day or more to a staycation as described by TopClass LMS. They explain how to plan and prepare for a staycation that’s more enjoyable and rewarding than normal days off. I particularly recommend Days 6, 7, 9 and 12.
Sponsorships. Bruce Rosenthal and Lori Zoss Kraska recommend scheduling regular conversations with your sponsors. In this post, they suggest questions to ask sponsors in the first quarter of 2024 and information you should share with them about your association. This cheat sheet of sorts helps you move from transactional sponsorships to transformational partnerships.
Event gamification. EventMobi explains the psychology behind gamification. They describe strategies for applying game mechanics to influence attendee behavior, including incentives and technology that help you achieve event goals.
Member onboarding. Tracy King of InspirEd describes the advantages of microlearning for your new member onboarding process. She says, “Microlearning can deliver a personalized choose-your-adventure experience incentivizing calls to action that help new members access their member benefits and feel the belonging within your professional community.”
AI for associations. Fíonta provides a recap of a recent UST webinar in which their co-founder Dr. Lisa Rau described ways associations can leverage AI, risks of using AI and guidelines for implementing AI responsibly.
AMS selection checklist. GrowthZone put together an AMS buyer’s guide with a feature/functionality checklist to help you decide what you need vs. what would be nice to have. The guide also describes vendor, training/support, data access and software issues to consider before signing a contract.
Industry analysis for members. Per MGI’s membership benchmarking survey, members rely on their associations for in-depth industry analysis. Bill Sheehan at Multiview explains the basics of creating valuable industry reports.
You never grow old at the table
Here’s an extremely satisfying dish for a cozy chilly night: coq au vin. You can make it in a slow cooker as the recipe instructs or do it on the stovetop, which is what I did for 1-1/2 hours—probably didn’t need that long. On the side, mashed potatoes and steamed green beans.
For leftover coq au vin and potatoes, I enhanced the green beans with sautéed red onion, mushrooms, tomatoes, garlic, and chicken broth.
Trying to make room in the freezer, I grabbed a pound each of yellowfin and bigeye tuna for my kicked-up tuna pasta casserole. I know it’s a travesty to freeze amazingly fresh tuna. But when I’m out of town and can’t pick up my weekly seafood share, they freeze it. What better excuse to use it than for this retro comfort-food casserole? Yeah, way better than mum’s.
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’m happy to feature it as long as it’s not too product-centric.
Wed 1/3 at 12 p.m.* – What Were You thinking? Ethics in Association Management
Join a scenario-based session about how to recognize an ethical issue, understand how to apply ASAE’s Ethical Decision Making Model, and work through the ethical issues in the workplace. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: Association Insights in Old Town (AIOT)
Facilitator: Rhea M. Steele, FASAE, CAE, ODCP, Chief of Staff and VP of Strategy & Governance for The School Nutrition Association
*All events are online at Eastern Standard Time unless otherwise noted.
Wed 1/3 at 12 p.m. – Creating Content Calendars: Prevent the TLDR Response
Learn how to build an effective content strategy and cadence, prevent inbox overwhelm and encourage interest in your initiatives, map out critical resources for each messaging campaign, reduce workloads and streamline your comms processes, and develop an internal communications roadmap that adjusts seamlessly as you grow. Leave with tools you can use today to build a strategy that best fits your organization. More info/register.
Host: L-12 Services Corp
Speakers:
- Meagan Camp, CEO, The Modern Take
- Lizabeth Wesely-Casella, Founder & CEO, L-12 Services Corp
1/4 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 1/4 at 2 p.m. – The Elephant in the Room: A Discussion of PE/VC in Association Technology
The association industry has undergone a significant transformation with the acquisition of association software systems by Private Equity (PE) and Venture Capital (VC) firms. This not only affects the products themselves but also the support services provided to associations. Gain a better understanding of PE and VC’s role in the private sector and association space. Recognize the significance of considering these issues when selecting a new software system for your association. Engage in a discussion about the current implications for the association ecosystem and how to effectively navigate them moving forward. More info/register.
Host: 501 Works
Speaker: Brendan Ballou, federal prosecutor who served as Special Counsel for Private Equity in the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, and author, Plunder: Private Equity’s Plan to Pillage America
Mon 1/8 at 8 a.m. – Associations and Climate Change (Radio Free 501c, the podcast of Rogue Tulips Consulting)
Every week Rogue Tulips brings the nonprofit community intriguing guests discussing vital topics affecting nonprofit organizations around the world—and we have fun doing it! Episodes are published Monday mornings in both audio and video format, available on YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, Apple Podcast, and Google Podcast (to name a few!).
Host: Cecilia Sepp, CAE, CNP, principal and founder, Rogue Tulips Consulting
Guests:
- Shelly Alcorn, Principal Futurist, Michelle Alcorn and Associates, and convener, Association Climate Action Coalition
- Elizabeth Weaver Engel, M.A., CAE, Chief Strategist, Spark Consulting
Mon 1/8 at 12 p.m. – ASAE Membership Monday
The topic will be announced before the start of the session. More info/register.
Host: ASAE
Tue 1/9 at 1 p.m. – Beyond Tradition: Association Transformation into Media Empires
Associations are no longer just conveners; they have the potential to become media empires themselves. Learn how your association’s unique knowledge, vast networks, and compelling stories can be leveraged to drive impactful narratives and shape public discourse. Explore strategies, steps and best practices to transition your association from a traditional convener to a dynamic, content-producing powerhouse. Hear about the potential benefits and challenges of such a transformation, from increased reach and engagement to new revenue streams, while learning how to navigate potential obstacles. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: UST Education
Speaker: Bill Mcglade, President, Community Leaders Institute & epIQ Creative Group
Wed 1/10 at 11 a.m. – Sales is Not Evil: Effective Sales for NonSales Professionals
With proven sales thinking, you can effectively engage your members and achieve your organization’s goals in an ethical manner. Learn how to unlock the power of sales thinking in your membership development efforts, increase member engagement and attendance at events with proven sales techniques that have helped other associations, leverage better speakers for your events and get members to take action in their community, make a more impactful connection with members through persuasive communication strategies, and be successful without the slimy sales tactics. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: UST Education
Speaker: Mark Bullard, Founder, BrainSquall
Wed 1/10 at 1 p.m. – Measure What Matters: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility and Belonging
When it comes to measuring success in the realm of diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging (DEIAB), it’s important to “measure what matters.” Learn what success looks like in terms of DEIAB initiatives, explore metrics organizations use to measure DEIAB success, and identify key obstacles in DEIAB success measurement and best practices for moving forward with practical action plan to make meaningful progress. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: UST Education
Speaker: Tim Hopkins, CAE, Chair, ASAE Diversity + Inclusion Committee, and practice director, McKinley Advisors
Thu 1/11 at 3 p.m. – Tech Change Can Do You Good!
If you’re about to embark on implementing a new tool or are struggling with adoption for an existing tool, learn how to develop and accelerate staff adoption of new technologies, make technology implementations successful, and unleash the hidden potential of your teams with effective change management strategies. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: UST Education
Speaker: Justin Burniske, MBA, Principal Consultant, Co-Owner, Meta-Dao
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 by Wednesday afternoon the week before it’s scheduled.
Creative Commons licensed photo by Nubia Navarro via Pexels
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