How to identify actionable challenges in your association

You want to make a positive impact on your organization, but where do you start?  

Here are four ways to step out of your day-to-day work and find new ways to make improvements. 

By Christine Bergeron, Marketing Coordinator, Community Brands

You want to make a positive impact on your association. But with a small staff, you might find yourself thinking, “There’s already too much to do. How can I make a difference?” 

It can seem impractical to think beyond day-to-day projects when you have a full workload. But taking even a little time to consider your organization from a broader viewpoint can help you identify and address areas for improvement. 

Here are four approaches to help you uncover challenges and improve your organization: 

1. Consider the member point of view. 

Are you doing all you can to give your members a great experience? What better way to find out than to put yourself in their shoes?

One way to see their experience from the members’ point of view is to create journey maps. Journey maps are outlines of each step of the lifetime member journey that tell the full story of being a member and illustrate the member experience – from their first interaction and subsequent engagement to (you hope) a lifelong relationship. As you outline their experience, think about their career journey as well: What are their needs at each phase of their career, and how can you provide resources and support along the way? 

2. Conduct an assessment.

Assess your organization’s biggest challenges, and then think about the strengths and weaknesses of you and your team. When these attributes are identified, consider the areas of your organization in which each person could make the biggest impact. With this assessment, you can identify actionable challenges and begin to help bring about positive changes in your association. 

3. Build a “start, stop, and continue” list.
Look at your association’s key priorities and challenges. For each one, create three lists: a) What should we start doing?, b) What should we stop doing?, and c) What should we continue doing?

You can start by answering these questions yourself. But then also ask others in the organization for input. This approach can be a helpful launching pad for new ideas that can solve problems while enhancing your organization’s strengths.

4. Put association management software to work.
An association management software (AMS) system can help you find and execute on ways to work faster and smarter. For example, YourMembership AMS by Community Brands can help you,

• • Engage members – Online community functionality is built in to YourMembership AMS to help you connect members with each other and your organization in a convenient and efficient way. 
  • Automate processes – YourMembership association membership software gives you an easy-to-use interface and simple workflows to streamline day-to-day operations. You can do things such as schedule automatic email renewal reminders and offer members the option of automatic credit card renewal.
  • Gain useful insights– Using reports and dashboards in YourMembership AMS, you can quickly gain visibility into membership growth, retention rates, engagement scores, and more, so you can make more informed, data-driven decisions to move your organization forward.

Learn more. 

YourMembership AMS offers affordable, easy-to-use, all-in-one membership software for small to mid-sized organizations. Find out more about how it can help your organization work faster and smarter and ultimately make long-term changes for the better: Explore YourMembership AMS.