Transform Culture

Jan
26

Technology: The Communication Enabler

We talk a lot about collaboration these days. We all want to reap the benefits of what company cross-pollination has to offer. But, how can we build authentic collaboration within our workplace and beyond? How do we go from identifying uncommunicative, silo culture as a general problem, to tackling it within our organizational spaces? As a […]

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Jan
25

What If: Imagining a New Association Business Model

Associations are no strangers to challenges. Recognizing, emphasizing, and working to overcome the common hurdles we face in our industry is a continuous and consistent feature of any associations’ efforts. The challenges we face, moreover, are further complicated when they are communal. Sometimes, systemic challenges are being tackled by a variety of professions (and, therefore, associations) […]

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Jan
19

Save the Date: SURGE is coming back!

Underpinning all our efforts at AssociationSuccess.org is a thesis: that the best, brightest, and boldest ideas come from minds meeting. Early November saw this thesis in action, with the unfolding of SURGE 2017, our free virtual summit, and our vanguard experiment in collaborative innovation. SURGE 2017 was a three-day virtual event, during which attendees had exclusive access […]

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Jan
11

Lean Impact in Action

In my last article, I introduced lean principles, from the innovative philosophy for increasing efficiency championed by Eric Ries in The Lean Startup. The article touched on the ways it can be adapted for organizations in the social sector and the association industry. I want to dig deeper into the possibilities of putting lean approaches into action […]

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Jan
09

Why the CEO is the Key to Innovation

I am very American in that I believe in the underdog (or maybe this is less about being American and more about being a product of the 80’s?). I would like to think that what it takes to succeed is the will, the grit, and the tenacity to get to the end. As a staff […]

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Dec
14

The Word With The Bad Reputation

The focus of many frustrations, the spurring of many strategies, and the point of much discussion and despairing, “silo” has become a bad word in the association space. But we should remember the role they fulfil in team-building, and consider the importance of fostering connections within an organization. Should we, in fact, be asking different […]

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Dec
07

Building Value: How Associations Can Leverage the IKEA Effect

You’ve been working for hours on your new IKEA wardrobe. First you unpacked the flatbox into meticulous piles on the bedroom floor. Then you opened the instructions and set carefully to work, tapping wooden dowels, twisting bolts, and holding random screws up to the page to make sure you weren’t using the wrong one. At times, […]

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Nov
30

Alexandria Brown Bag: Listening in Action

The Alexandria Brown Bag, founded by Talisa Thomas-Hall, ACB ALB, is a networking group for association professionals hosted by Marketing General, Inc. in Alexandria, Virginia. Meeting monthly, their remit is to connect for the purpose of sharing best practices and professional development, as well as networking and collaboration opportunities. Talisa Thomas-Hall is President and Chief Strategist […]

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Nov
23

Lean Methodology: Before and After

I first read The Lean Startup by Eric Ries in 2013. It was a lightbulb moment to see thoughts that had been percolating in my head over the years be articulated in such a way. Since then, I’ve been implementing the methodology with my team at the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) where I work […]

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Nov
14

How work with feedback

Picture the scene: After facing a problem at work, you have a brainwave of a solution to end all solutions. After a couple days of hashing out plans in your head and talking to a couple of close co-workers about it, you take the idea to your boss. They listen. Then they hit you with […]

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