The weekly list of free educational events and resources for the association community…
Peer advisory groups. When I worked at NAHB, I always thought the Builder 20 clubs were such a great idea. WBT Systems does too. This week, they discuss peer advisory groups for association members who want to learn from and with each other. They explain how these groups work and why your association may want to consider offering them.
Volunteer fatigue. I’ve been hearing lots of stories about volunteer fatigue lately—a dangerous trend for associations and chapters. MemberSuite shares nine strategies for preventing volunteer burnout so you can keep your leaders in office and your pipeline full.
Supplier members. The Vendor Value Manifesto is a must-read for association and event professionals who have anything to do with sponsorship, exhibitions and education. It comes from a group of legal vendors who met late last year “to explore the current state of legal industry conferences and discuss ways they might partner with conference organizers to build a better experience for all.” I imagine the suppliers in your industry would say the same things, but why don’t you ask them?
Hybrid events. Don Neal of 360 Live Media shares good advice at PCMA Convene about digital and in-person events. He also says there is no such thing as a hybrid event; there are digital events and in-person events. I can’t imagine any benefit to simultaneous digital and in-person events. Focus your attention on one audience at a time. Do you really think attendees on site care much about virtual attendees or vice versa? I doubt it.
Data cleanup. Wes Trochlil suggests how to tackle a big data cleanup project—one bite at a time. I needed to hear this advice again, but not for cleaning data. Thankfully, those days are behind me, although still very much in my memory.
The meaning of work. Stowe Boyd’s post is titled: The Ideal Worker Is All Work, All The Time: Is ‘Love Your Work’ Just Propaganda? Oh boy. His post will have you reflecting upon your attitude toward work and your expectations for how your employees should work. Happy Friday!
Good eats
Skip down to the list of free webinars if you prefer takeout.
- I could eat this one all week: Pressure Cooker Spicy Korean Pork Shoulder aka Korean pulled pork or Korean barbecue. You can make this in a crockpot or low and slow in the oven. Damn, it’s good. Crazy good. It’s a NY Times recipe so if you can’t get at it, email me and I’ll send you my Word doc version—warning, I double the sauce.
- I felt like shrimp-stuffed flounder but I was too lazy to peel and devein shrimp and had white grunt in the frig, not flounder. Instead, I mixed spinach (thawed and squeezed package of frozen), softened cream cheese, parmesan, fresh oregano and basil, garlic powder, panko breadcrumbs and melted butter, spread it out over a bunch of white grunt fillets and baked until the topping was slightly browned. Not as fancy as my shrimp-stuffed dreams but really good.
- Another night, a simpler dish: baked black sea bass fillets topped with chervil, Japanese 7-spice and melted butter.
Here are the educational events scheduled for next week. If you have a free webinar or event coming up, please send me the link before Wednesday morning the week before it’s scheduled. I’ll be happy to feature it as long as it’s not too product centric.
Fri 7/2 at 12 p.m.* – EventTech Chat
A weekly conversation about meeting and event technology, including software, hardware, and audiovisual for in-person and online events. More info/register.
Host: Brandt Krueger, founder Event Technology Consulting
*All times are Eastern Daylight Time unless otherwise noted.
Mon 7/5 at 1 p.m. – Mergers & Acquisitions (Chatting with Agnes & Cecilia)
This series of 15- to 20-minute videos cover hot topics and issues related to 501c organization management. New episodes are posted by 1 p.m. every Monday. Check out Cecilia’s Nonprofit Executive Spotlight series too.
Guest: Michael Butera, President and CEO, Association ActiVision
Hosts:
- Cecilia Sepp, CAE, CNAP, principal and founder, Rogue Tulips LLC
- Agnes Amos-Coleman, MBA, CMP, education, conference, event, certification consultant, Amos-Coleman
Tue 7/6 at 12 p.m. – Data Analytics Network “Office Hours”
For the first time ever, our Data Analytics Network planning team will be hosting an “office hours” style webinar covering topics of interest from our series registrants. Choose your own adventure: Visualizing Data with Christin Berry, Culture & Adoption with Jamie Paulsen, or Date Hygiene/Management with Jennifer Richards. Each session leader will explore the topic with attendees, moderate discussions and answer any questions you have. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: Association Analytics
Presenters:
- Christin Berry, VP of Business Analytics & Data Services, ASAE
- Jamie Paulsen, Director of Business Analytics, CASE
- Jennifer Richards, Director of Membership, AAAE
Wed 7/7 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. – Evolve Homecoming: The Big Industry Comeback
Learn the practical logistics of going hybrid and building communities. Hear expert insight on hybrid event design. Discover everything you need to know about going back to in-person safely. Network and learn from a global community of 13,000+ eventprofs. More info/register.
Host: Swapcard
Wed 7/7 at 12 p.m. – Succeed in Challenging Times by Being Negotiation Ready
Learn the first three steps in a practical, easy-to-implement approach for negotiating with clients, contractors, staff, vendors, and even friends or family, and find out how to adopt a positive negotiation mindset. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: Association Insights In Old Town
Presenter: Susan Borke
Wed 7/7 at 12 p.m. – Re-Engage Virtual: Planning the Event of Tomorrow
Sessions: How to Create an Effective Social Media Strategy for Your Event; How to Use Virtual Events to Promote Your In-Person Event; Reinventing Live, The Always-On Future of Events; The Future of the Event Industry – What Is Hybrid!? How to Use Creative Solutions to Engage Attendees; How to Become a Better Speaker/Moderator. More info/register.
Host: Airmeet
Wed 7/7 at 8 p.m. – Planners on Purpose July Book Club: Engaging Virtual Meetings by John Chen
Your virtual meetings need to be dynamic, engaging, and just packed full of amazingness. Want to know what you need to do to engage in virtual meetings? Join Naomi Tucker and author John Chen for a discussion about his latest book, Engaging Virtual Meetings. More info/register.
Host: Planners on Purpose
Thu 7/8 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. – Evolve Homecoming: The Big Industry Comeback
Learn the practical logistics of going hybrid and building communities. Hear expert insight on hybrid event design. Discover everything you need to know about going back to in-person safely. Network and learn from a global community of 13,000+ eventprofs. More info/register.
Host: Swapcard
Thu 7/8 at 12 p.m. – Community Book Club: The Art of Gathering
We’ll read Priya Parker’s incredible book The Art of Gathering and then watch her in conversation with Gali Kling Schnieder, SAP. The first 100 registrants will get a FREE digital copy of the book. More info/register.
Host: The Community Roundtable
Thu 7/8 at 2 p.m. – Selecting a Cloud System – A Guide for Association Executives
Hear tips, advice, and independent research on how to make a successful cloud technology investment for your association. We’ll guide you through all aspects of the cloud system selection process including: Cloud 101; the procurement process when considering a cloud system; how to ensure your business strategy drives your technology investments; the real costs of pay-by-the-month cloud systems—customizations, integrations, and upgrades; where accounting fits in the mix; common questions and concerns about moving to the cloud—including security, data storage, training, support and implementation; and what you should be looking out for and what you should be asking vendors. More info/register.
Host: Advanced Solutions International (ASI)
Thu 7/8 at 2 p.m. – Creating your Content Stream—from Marketing to Sales to Programs
Content is key to marketing and sales success across the entire member lifecycle from prospect to paying member to actively engaged volunteer and leader. It is used to drive marketing campaigns, anchor sales conversations, and fuel the member experience. Learn how to determine the content that’s going to serve each of your personas and ensure minimal overlap as you seek to move marketing leads to sales leads, sales leads to conversions, and conversions to ever deeper engagement with your organization. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: ASAE
Presenter: Aimee Pagano, HighRoad Solutions
Thu 7/8 at 3 p.m. – Community Case Studies
Learn tips, tricks, and best practices from experienced community managers that have overcome the same challenges you’re faced with every day. Leave with new online community strategies and tactics and meet peers who are experiencing the successes and challenges of managing an online community. More info/register.
Host: The Community Roundtable
Fri 7/9 at 12 p.m. – Strategy First, Software Next
Are your technology capabilities aligned with your mission? To explore this question, we are kicking off a 3-part series—the first will be “Strategy First, Software Next”. We will explore the importance of creating a technology strategy for your association that aligns with your organization’s mission and long-term goals. More info/register.
Host: AI Now for Associations
Fri 7/9 at 1 p.m. – Improve Your Email Engagement with a Conversational Email Strategy
Learn how to turn your static emails conversational. Find out how conversational email helps improve reply rates, scale outreach, and unlock email’s hidden potential. Learn how to send emails that people actually want to open, leverage proven strategies and tactics for writing conversational emails, and measure and optimize your conversational email results. More info/register.
Host: American Marketing Association
Presenter: Drift’s Sr. Director of Demand Generation Charm Bianchini
Fri 7/9 at 4 p.m. – Play to Win: Developing Your Political Intelligence
It’s no longer enough for leaders to have just IQ and EQ. These days, successful leaders must also have political intelligence (PQ). Find out what would change if you managed workplace politics with a new PQ mindset, and how to approach workplace challenges with a “how do I want to play this?” approach. Learn about the six behaviors that chip away at organizations and how to address them, and the play-to-win strategy to strengthen your PQ muscle. More info/register. (Must join Fridays@4 for free first.)
Host: Fridays@4
Presenter: Kathleen Zwarick Shanley, PhD, CAE, ACC, ELI-MP
Tue 7/13 at 1 p.m. – Member Engagement in 2021: How Associations are Navigating Engagement in the Post-Pandemic Environment
The pandemic has reshaped every aspect of our lives: how we do business, how we communicate, and how, when and where we interact with each other as human beings. With that big of a cultural shift, associations have no choice but to adapt their engagement strategies to stay relevant in 2021. The panel will discuss societal observations, new engagement tools and tactics, updated association business models, and how data can help us make sense of this all. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: MemberSuite
Presenters:
- Ryan Costello, Chief Strategy Officer, MemberSuite
- Julie Sciullo, CEO, Association Analytics
- Greg Melia, CAE, CEO, Customer Experience Professionals Association
Wed 7/14 at 12 p.m. – Emails That Don’t Creep But Get You…Like Really Really Get You
Members and prospects are more likely to engage with your content and programming if you demonstrate that you know and understand their needs. It’s the underlying principle of Inbound Marketing. How do you personalize a digital experience across multiple channels that doesn’t come off as creepy or stalkerish? It starts with data, but association marketers need to be selective with the data they choose and map it to programming and content. Better yet, they need a continuous feedback loop to keep the content personalized and relevant based on what their audiences consume. Learn how you can create a hyper-personalized email experience without needing a staff of 10 to pull it off. More info/register.
Host: HighRoad Solutions
Presenters: Maneesha Manges, Director of Services, Kim Cregan, Strategic Account Manager, and Chris Park, Development Manager, HighRoad Solutions
Wed 7/14 at 2 p.m. – The Race for Relevance in Post-Pandemic Times
Years before COVID-19, time pressures, higher member expectations, increased member diversity, differing generational values and accelerated advances in technology challenged the relevance of traditional association structures and practices. The pandemic acted as a powerful accelerant to these changes, forcing association leaders to think differently and reinforcing the need for real change. Hear association execs share their experiences creating more intentional approaches to governance; rethinking the scope of their programs and services; and intensifying their adoption of “digital first” thinking. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host/presenter: Mary Byers, CAE, CSP, former association executive, consultant, professional speaker, and association advisor
Presenters:
- Harrison Coerver, president of Harrison Coerver & Associates
- Mark Dorsey, CAE, FASAE, CEO of the Construction Specifications Institute
- Karen Silberman, CAE, Executive Vice President of the American Chiropractic Association
- Len Toenjes, CAE, President of AGC of Missouri
Wed 7/14 at 3 p.m. – Beyond the New Normal, Part 2: Implementing Work Anywhere Future for Associations
In the second installment of Beyond the New Normal, we’ll be checking in to see how associations are implementing changes to create the Work Anywhere Era for their organizations. After a panel discussion, we’ll go into breakout rooms for a deeper exploration into implementing different facets of the Work Anywhere Era (e.g., technology, human resources, physical space, leadership, engagement, etc.). 1.5 CAE credits. More info/register.
Host: Association Women Technology Champions
Presenters:
- Rebecca Achurch, PgMP, PMP, CSM, CAE, Chief Executive Officer, Achurch Consulting
- Genevieve Borello, CAE, Senior Manager, Member Engagement, ACTFL
- Emily Kirkpatrick, MBA, Executive Director, National Council of Teachers of English
- KiKi L’Italien, Chief Executive Officer, Association Chat
- Tori Miller Liu, MBA, CAE, Information Systems Director, American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
- Janet McNichol, SPHR, CAE, Human Resources Director at American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
- Barbara J. Armentrout, CAE (Moderator), Client Engagement Manager, Aplusify
Wed 7/14 at 3 p.m. – How to Use Data to Create Relevant Content
Learn how to discover your top trending topics by analyzing member engagement data, as well as expressed and implicit interests; targeted interests and needs for different member segments based on demographics and engagement behaviors; potential volunteers by drilling down into your most active members; and speakers for events and webinars by identifying community influencers and thought leaders. More info/register.
Host: Association Analytics
Presenters: Bill Conforti, SVP of Strategy & Solutions, and Greg Pollack, Vice President of Sales, Association Analytics
Thu 7/15 at 11 a.m. – How To Do Hybrid: Practical Tips for Delivering Successful Events
Join us for insights on designing hybrid events and leveraging technology to deliver personalized experiences that resonate with your attendees and sponsors – whether they’re online or on-site. Learn how to successfully transition from online to hybrid events, deliver superior experiences for attendees and sponsors, choose the right technology to deliver your events (regardless of budget), and ensure ROI for your organization. More info/register.
Host: Results Direct
Presenters:
- Katie Atkinson, President & CEO, Results Direct | RD Mobile
- Jeanette Brown, Sr. Director, Strategic Marketing & Communications, America’s Blood Centers
- Michelle Dickinson, Marketing & Communications Coordinator, Virginia Assisted Living Association
- Brian James, Assistant VP, Conference Operations, National Association of Manufacturers
Thu 7/15 at 11 a.m. – How to (Really) Engage Members for Short-Term Success & Long-term Survival
Learn how to attract more members, keep members longer – and at lower cost, increase member satisfaction, improve member meetings and conferences to drive retention, add or change programs to address real member needs, decrease acquisition and maintenance costs to retain members, and build self-sustaining membership communities. More info/register.
Host: Lee Gimpel, Better Meetings
Presenters:
- Lee Gimpel, Better Meetings
- Nick Beadleston, founding partner, Good Impacts
Thu 7/15 at 11 a.m. – Talent Generation: Getting Members Ready for the Future of Work
Future workforce is a hot-button issue in many industries. The lack of incoming talent, coupled with a wave of approaching retirements, and gaps between education preparedness and industry needs, have long been predicted as urgent workforce needs. Hear from the associations prioritizing workforce development, job creation, and partnerships with youth and education to better prepare their industries for the future of work. More info/register.
Host: Sarah Sladek and Company, Save The Associations
Thu 7/15 at 2 p.m. – Thriving During a Pandemic, Thanks to Tech
How did the National Association of Episcopal Schools (NAES) manage to not just survive, but thrive, during the COVID-19 pandemic? How were they able to deepen their members’ involvement with the organization during this difficult time? Learn what the NAES staff did to serve members, how they struggled, how technology was critical to their success, and how they tied all of their offerings together through their membership database. More info/register.
Hosts: 100 Reviews and Matrix Group
Presenters:
- Jonathan Cooper, Communications Manager at NAES
- Joanna Pineda, CEO and Chief Troublemaker of Matrix Group
- Teri Carden, founder of 100 Reviews and ReviewMyAMS
Thurs. 7/15 at 2 p.m. The CIO Hour: PCI in July
Processing credit cards means you need to manage PCI compliance. Learn about the latest in PCI requirements and how a modern payment processor can help with this critical function. We’ll also discuss how Finance and IT departments can work together to lower costs and increase security in the online purchase process. More info/register.
Host: 501Works
Presenters:
- Christian Fadel, CFO, Affinipay
- James Marquis, Chief Information Officer, 501Works
Thu 7/15 at 8 p.m. – Talent Generation: Getting Members Ready for the Future of Work
Future workforce is a hot-button issue in many industries. The lack of incoming talent, coupled with a wave of approaching retirements, and gaps between education preparedness and industry needs, have long been predicted as urgent workforce needs. Hear from the associations prioritizing workforce development, job creation, and partnerships with youth and education to better prepare their industries for the future of work. More info/register.
Host: Sarah Sladek and Company, Save The Associations
Fri 7/16 at 1 p.m. – The No BS Guide to Digital Transformation
The research is clear: the key to lasting, responsive digital transformation is intentional and focused culture change. Still, associations struggle to get beyond “digitizing” and truly “go digital.” Hear some of the findings from the new, deeply researched whitepaper, The No BS Guide to Digital Transformation: How Intentional Culture Change Can Propel Associations Forward. Find out how the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) embarked on their digital transformation project on behalf of their members and their industry. More info/register.
Host: Propel
Presenters:
- Elizabeth Weaver Engel, M.A., CAE, founder, Spark Consulting
- Hugh Seaton, Head of Construction Technology Practice, Cimatri
- Maddie Grant, founder, Propel
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 before Wednesday morning.
Creative Commons photo byRobert Woeger via Unsplash
Association Brain Food 
Thanks for the mention!
Wes
>
LikeLike