On social media
1. Social media is no longer a separate medium; it is another communication channel that needs to be utilized with the same planning, thought and interest level as traditional media.
2. Legal ramifications of social media use by staff, volunteers and members need to be considered as a major part of any policy discussion.
3. A digital strategy is not the same as a social media strategy.
On products
4. There is a need to evaluate how “free” is impacting your space, market, or membership. Free continues to change the rules of the game for associations. Information that is abundant should be considered free; scarce information is valuable and worth paying for access.
5. How can your next product or offering meet a new or emerging need in your marketplace?
6. Develop assets that provide advertisers with the access they need. Association media products –whether print or online—not only need to place the profession or field in context for the members, but they also must allow advertisers to be a part of that relationship.
On meetings
7. Meeting attendees want real value above all else: tools that will help them justify their profession to stakeholders in the industry.
8. Technology available for communications and meeting enhancements are developing at a rapid pace. Time and resources must be devoted to regularly reviewing these tools to ensure your association is not missing out on opportunities for the members you serve.
9. Use that technology wisely: Announce a membership special to your attendees or promote a new book or member tool.
10. Pay attention to the traffic flow of the show floor. Traffic “builders” and “connectors” like refreshment stations at prime locations are a key to the success an exhibitor finds on the floor.
11. Provide more than an “approval toolkit” for members to have their boss approve the conference registration and expenses. Make sure every attendee goes back to the office with a new suite of tools, knowledge and insight, so that next year’s conference is a given in the budget.
On leadership
12. More than ever, leaders need to be developed at every level of your organization. Leaders at all levels exist to serve and to improve their own immediate environment every day.
13. Hire staff who know more than you, and your organization will always excel.
14. Acting with integrity is an essential ingredient for any organization, especially in the association space. Making decisions with integrity will always improve the big-picture, long-term view for your association.
15. Create white space–space to think, to experience, to enjoy. Consider how the concept of white space can apply to your work life and your home life, and turn off the things that suck white space out of your life.
16. Make sure that your work aligns with the direction you want for your life. Find a true North and it will help get you through tough economies, tough bosses, tough assignments.
17. Inclusive environments are not optional for our workplaces. It is considered a requirement for many constituents.
18. It is okay to FAIL. Now more than ever, when we are being pushed to innovate, we need to let our teams know that it is okay to have ideas and concepts fail. Learning and moving on is part of the process to creating success.
On workplace technology
19. Take a good look at the operational technologies used in your office. Where can you make changes that will allow for more sharing at a lower hard cost? Consider open source software like OpenOffice or enterprise apps like Google Enterprise for calendars, documents and e-mail.
August 30, 2010
Missed the #asae10 session on technology yesterday? Here are a few things lessons learned.
Association’s (like the rest of the world) want more out of the technology investments that they are making. They want to invest in technology solutions that will fill a space and gap within their industry or organization. Investments in licensing, hardware and break/fixes continue to make this a challenging proposition. There are alternatives, however, to high-priced tech solutions. Associations and businesses are finding ways to lower their costs and still provide staff access to the tools they need.
Consider Alternatives: Microsoft is not evil, just a choice that can be made. There are a number of Microsoft alternatives out there.
Executive Conversation: If you want to look at alternatives to Microsoft, plan to engage executive leadership to consider new options. You will need support from a number of key organizational consituents to get both buy in and implementation
Hardware: Both Network and the Society of American Florists have been successful in working with thin box dummy machines. The desktop machines that provide access are inexpensive and meant to be quickly replaced if there is some type of failure. Staff time is not spent supporting a desktop environment.
Open Source: move away from robust desktops into open source solutions. Consider options like www.openoffice.org for word processing or www.drupal.org for content management.
Google!: Consider Google enterprise as an option to an Exchange server for email, calendars, shared documents and other key functions. There is robust functionality and use, and for $50 per person per year it can be a good alternative.
Server Virtualization: Virtualization can give organizations flexibility and redundancy in their environment.
Tech budgets will always be scrutinized, but they do not need to be a necessary evil to your organization. Others are tapping into lower cost options without losing the functionality and demands of the organization.
Special thanks to Renato Sogueco, CIO of Society of American Florists, for teaming up with Jim Cooke, VP, Network for this session.
August 25, 2010
COO Carrie Hartin preps for the ASAE Annual Conference at 30,000 feet
At the gate: By the time I arrived at BWI yesterday evening, I was convinced I was the last person heading east to west for the ASAE annual meeting. The #ASAE10 feed has been alive for hours, if not days, and I was just starting my trek. My carry-on was full of prep work, industry magazines, a few overdue projects. But I stopped at Hudson News for an US Weekly and a new book, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, just in case.
Boarding: Waiting for my seat mates to appear, I quickly made it through the entire US Weekly. Guess I should have saved myself the $3.99–it wasn’t that good. Time to move on – work first, the book will wait.
In flight: With five hours to go before arriving at ASAE’s Annual Conference in LA, my to-do list for this flight is a long one.
First, I took time to review my notes and schedule for the next four days: prep for client meetings, attend Learning Labs, and review the social schedule of events. Done. One step closer to cracking open that new book.
Overdue projects were next and the in-flight movie was just starting. Shrek 3. That was an easy choice: overdue projects. (Strangely, my seat mates brought nothing to read or do on the 5 hour flight and seemed satisfied with an animated flick.)
Finally, industry magazines. I had the latest issues of the Association of Forum Chicagoland’s, FORUM; ASAE’s Associations Now; Association Media & Publishing’s Signature.
Assocations Now was my kick off–I am on the way to #asae10 after all. The issue easily warranted a cover-to-cover read resulting in several dog-eared pages. My favorite was the article on “The Elected Association” detailing ideas of what the workplace will look like in 2020.
Onto FORUM: Two articles in and I dug out my arrow-shaped Post-It tabs. This issue has filled my brain with all of the take-aways on meetings and event sponsorships with content marketing. Dog eared pages would no longer cut it.
At this point, I had forgotten about the book and moved to the next magazine. Signature has such strong content for print, digital, and “hybrid” publishers. “A Tale of Two Magazines” is a must read.
Deplaning: Nearly to LA I am inspired by my three member magazines and ready to pull out the laptop to organize my thoughts. The in-flight movie has moved onto The Simpsons and I am ready to rock ASAE. I am committed to learning. I am committed to the technology that is shaping publishing and events. I am committed to finding a great idea, resource, or take-away for every Network client and staff member at this year’s ASAE Annual Conference. Fortunately, my in-flight reading has given me a great jump start.
–Carrie Hartin, Chief Operating Officer, Network Media Partners, Inc.
Don’t forget to follow Carrie at @CJHartin.
August 22, 2010
Previous page
