Decision to Join/Decision to Volunteer

1. Decision to Join/Decision to Volunteer Tennessee Society of Association Executives December 4, 2008 Bob Skelton Chief Administrative Officer ASAE & The Center for Association Leadership

2. 7 Measures of Success: What Remarkable Associations Do That Others Don’t • Customer Service Culture • Alignment of Products and Services with Mission • Data-Driven Strategies • Dialogue and Engagement • CEO as a Broker of Ideas • Organizational Adaptability • Alliance Building

3. Mapping The Future of Your AssociationEight Super-Trends • Customer: Demassification – expectation of individualized attention • Competitor: Unbundling –a la carte service offerings, often for free • Economic: Scrimping– focus on ROI • Technological: Wave 3.1– knowledge, not information, is key • Social: Virtualization– social networking • Political: Cyber-Mobbing – interest groups coalescing quicker • Legal: Scrutiny – transparency required, new regulations • Geophysical: Counter-Americanism – the American model is not dominate

4. Designing Your Future: Key Trends, Challenges, and Choices Facing Association and Nonprofit Leaders • Socio-demographic trends – Gen Y, aging population, diversity • Technological Trends – Internet evolution, social media • Economic Trends – recession, global economy • Environmental trends – “green” priority, climate change • Political trends – governance, transparency

5. Membership Recruitment2001 to present • 52% report 5% increase • 30% report no change • 18% report 4% decrease

6. Membership Retention • 91% Trade organizations • 85% Individual Membership organizations

7. The results show Membership has remained virtually unchanged since 2001

8. The Big Question: Why some individuals join associations while others do not is one of the most critical questions of association management.

9. Presentation Information

10. Three areas for discussion: • Unique Value Proposition • Affiliation/Volunteerism • Generations and Career Levels

11. What is the value of Associations? • Current members rank the highest • Former members the lowest • Never members rate value almost as high as current members

12. What do we mean by value? • Corporate • Government • Association

13. Peter Drucker notes…. Associations are about advancing a cause based on a common vision and shared values

14. What’s in it for me vs. What’s in it for the industry or (public)

15. Personal and Business Benefits

16. Benefits to the Field or Industry • Promoting the value of the field or industry to the larger society • Increasing public awareness of the field or industry • Influencing legislation and regulations that affect the field • Providing standards or guidelines that support quality • Gathering, analyzing and publishing data on trends in the field • Conducting research on significant issues affecting the field • Supporting student education and entry into the field • Attracting competent people into the field • Certifying those who meet critical competency standards • Providing awards or recognition for excellence in the field

18. Current, Former and Never Members all agree that Most important association functions: • Networking • Technical information, industry trends • Education

19. Some differences • “Timely information about the field” less important to former members and very important to current and never members. • Current members rank advocacy highest and never members rank this lowest • “Creating and sharing industry standards, codes, etc” – most valued by former members

20. Small Group Questions • How can you show that your association represents both the member and the industry? • How can you show that your association is solving problems or providing solutions for both the member and the industry?

21. Involvement The Key to Maintaining Affiliation

22. What percent of your members are involved in the work of the Society? (Do not include attending events)

23. Involvement Govern/Admin Committee Ad Hoc 15.5% None 69.9% 14.6%

24. Volunteers Findings: • Governance-level members rank benefits differently than rank-and-file members • Probability of being a “promoter” of the association increases with level of involvement • Advocacy, networking and leadership opportunities become more important as level of involvement increases • Super-Trend: demassification (members expect a different experience at different levels of involvement)

25. Essential Thought Leaders, Speakers Attends annual meeting & major conferences and events Provides knowledge to profession (gives back) Value to Organization Value of Membership Sense of Community Retention Joins browses website, receives magazine, fairly non-engaged member... Unknown Levels of Engagement Content Leaders, Volunteers Certification, speaking, write articles, recruits members Participates in education and E-programs; purchases books Future-member (discovery)

26. Importance of involvement • Members who do not become involved are similar to non members in the way they rate the overall value of the association. • Uninvolved members less likely to promote joining • Number 1 reason for joining – referral from a peer or colleague

27. Small Group Questions • How can you expand opportunities for members to become involved? • How can you help your current volunteers become promoters of your association?

28. Generations • GI Elders (born before 1925) • Silent Generation (1925-1945) • Retired • Still working • Baby Boomers (1946-1964) • Gen-X (1965-1979) • Millennial/Gen Y (1979- 2000)

29. Generation or Career Stage? • The generational model focuses on characteristics that influence decisions. • The career stage model looks at needs that change over time in a predictable manner.

30. Smith Bucklin Study cites… • Generation X and Y show great promise to join associations as they move into their peak earning years. • Given rising incomes and improving job opportunities, younger workers show every indication of joining assns at even higher rates than boomers.

31. What does this mean for us? Look at where members are in their profession/business Target messages and deliver benefits that fit where they are today.

32. Take Aways… • Promote the benefits to the industry and the personal/business benefits • Create an adhocracy – increase the number of volunteer opportunities • Respond to member needs based on where their business is today

33. Break

34. The Second Big Question • The Decision to Join highlights the importance of volunteering to the recruitment and retention of members. • Why do members volunteer, and why don’t they?

36. Keep these Questions in Mind • Why do you have volunteers? • How do you manage their experience? Decision to Volunteer sheds light

37. Key Findings

38. People who belong to associations are more likely than other adults to volunteer. Not all volunteers are alike.

39. Ex: Patterns of association volunteering

40. Focused on local chapter board and committee service Mentoring, coaching, tutoring, and membership recruitment Two thirds at entry or mid-career levels of employment Local Leaders

41. The “subject matter experts” of your organization: Presentations, expert panels Publishing Standards review Writers

42. Mentoring, coaching, tutoring, professional advice and membership recruitment Contribute the fewest volunteer hours for the cosponsor organization Teachers

43. Engaged in every activity and perform the majority of volunteer work within the associations participating in this study. Mentoring Membership recruitment Local and national board and committee service Presentations Fund raising Older ages, longer membership span, more academic backgrounds, more senior career levels. Shapers

44. Acting on The Findings • Consider the strengths of volunteers to effectively match them with available opportunities • Keep track of any information you have about your volunteers and the activities they perform • Do you offer sufficient opportunities to account for time commitment, required expertise and location?

45. Volunteering and the Family Life Cycle

46. Younger members are less engaged in association volunteering now but more likely to see the benefits of volunteerism generally. Older members are more engaged in volunteering now but less likely to intend to volunteer in the future. Many Paradoxes

47. 2007 U.S. Rates of Volunteering by Age Group(Bureau of Labor Statistics)

48. Members with families less likely to volunteer for associations but more likely to seek connections to professional world through volunteering. Non-U.S. volunteers less likely to volunteer now but more likely to volunteer for professional reasons. Many Paradoxes

49. Acting on the Findings • Does your volunteer pool reflect various life stages? • Do you offer different opportunities that appeal to people in these various stages? • Do you provide flexible options ideal for volunteers with family obligations?

50. Understanding Why People Volunteer