Top 6 Associations Now Articles of 2011

Every month, ASAE’s Associations Now magazine covers the trends and issues affecting those at member-based nonprofits and their vendor counterparts. Like any magazine (and I used to run one for an association, so I know), some of the content is pretty familiar and/or gets repetitive over time, but there are gems as well. Here are my 6 favorite stories from the 2011 editorial calendar:

The Association as a Planned Community (Feb 2011)
“In a vibrant neighborhood, walking is supported through connected street grids, appealing landscapes, and interesting cafes and local shops. One of the biggest obstacles to this is cars, so good designers work to slow traffic and buffer it from people, letting bikers and pedestrians know they’re welcome. An association’s challenge is also to slow traffic, so members will see your offerings and connect.”

Intergenerational Miscommunication (Feb 2011)
“Why did Jen write you a presentation and not a memo?” asked Rich as they walked toward Mike’s office. “I’m not sure. When Jen and I met last week, I mentioned to her that I needed some talking points when presenting this material to the Finance Committee. She smiled, nodded, and said that she’d get me the material by the end of the day. I’m just surprised that she put it in a slide set instead of a memo like everyone else does it. I told her to review the materials that we submitted last year, so I thought the standard format should be clear.”

Breaking the Rules for Open Community (July 2011)
“The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) encourages groups to form organically as well as in its official communities. The result is a complex ecosystem of websites and social sites where members and other stakeholders are connecting. NSTA has Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn profile pages, 13 topic-area listservers, and an official blog. There is also an online community portal within the association website.”

Map Out Your Content Strategy (Aug 2011)
“For a content strategy to be a success, Halvorson says, you need to “define what your key performance indicators are within your organization. What is it that you are trying to do as an organization? How is your content going to support those goals?” Once you answer those questions, “then you’ll know whether you’re a success. It might be tied to how much you’ve cut back on costs, how much your revenue’s increased—those are the kinds of questions to ask.””

How Your Association Can Be More Human and Less Machine (Oct 2011)
“As we look at our organizations today and their failure to keep pace with the innovation embodied by social media, we realize that we need to set our sights higher. Open, trustworthy, generative, and courageous are aspirational characteristics. We think they will drive our economy in the years to come, and that is why we need them to be more prominent in our organizations.”

Legal Risks of Social Media (Dec 2011)
“One area of social media that is starting to see more litigation is where it intersects with employment law. An August 2011 report by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce found that National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) had received 129 cases involving social media, most of which were in the initial stages of investigation. The most common claims were that an employer’s social media policies were too restrictive or that an employer had unlawfully terminated or disciplined an employee due to the content of social media posts.”

Tags: assocations, nonprofits

Category: NonProfit