ASAE Handbook of Professional Practices in Association Management

This book is dedicated to the memory of John B. Jack Cox, FASAE, CAE, whose vision became Professional Practices in Association Management and whose passionate leadership guided three editions of this work.

Preface

We come now to the third edition of a book that has become the go to reference work in the field of member-organization management. Quite a leap for something with far more modest aspirations, first created almost twenty years ago.

As noted in the two earlier editions, Professional Practices in Association Management was first conceived of as the one-stop guide for those studying for the certified association executive (CAE) designation. In a burst of serendipity, the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) board of directors at the time wished to identify the body of subject knowledge essential to managing the complex entities that nonprofit membership organizations are. It assembled the best and the brightest in this field and set for them the task of creating such a body. That group labored for more than a year, gathering information, opinion, data, and the critical taxonomy needed. As word spread of this endeavor, the effort quickly became known as the Body of Knowledge Project. When completed, it was a sparkling thing of beauty, instantly identifying everything known, and needed to be known, in the field of association management. I was serving on the CAE Commission at that time, and it became obvious to all involved that those creating the Body of Knowledge had just designed a guide for the CAE examination. Thus the fruits of all that labor quickly became adopted as the core framework for future CAE examinations and Professional Practices in Association Management. As society at large and nonprofit management in general evolved—sometimes almost to the point of revolution—so did the body of knowledge essential to managing in this field. The second edition of Professional Practices reflected those changes when it was published some eight years ago. And in what seems like a twinkling, those changes were surpassed and replaced with still more urgent imperatives, making a third edition absolutely necessary.

There are significant developments in this third edition, which is now titled ASAE Handbook of Professional Practices in Association Management. It integrates a focus on helping both CAE candidates and all association staff see how to think like a chief staff executive. Association management is populated with superb subject and functional executives, many of whom would never dream of, nor want, a CSE position. But wise ones know they have to think like their CSE in order to succeed in their own area of specialization. Thus the reader will note references in almost every chapter to the CSE perspective approach to management of a program, a project, or the entire organization. By thinking like a CSE, staff specialists will, in brief, be better in their own functional areas and will contribute more to the entire organization. In addition, planning has now been identified as a continuum, with many points across an extensive horizon. Each is sequential on that continuum, and taken together, they are invaluable for realizing optimal association management. And there is a far greater emphasis on the business of association management, from building different business models to identifying and acting smartly in the risk-management arena. There are other critical areas of both evolutionary and revolutionary change. Obviously, technology now permeates every aspect of association management, from something at once as simple and complex as social media to how association markets are now identified, how communications work with different audiences, how legislation and regulation are addressed, how financial issues are approached, and on ad infinitum. It is hoped that all are more than adequately addressed in this third edition.

In closing, it is a daunting task indeed to attempt thanking all the people involved in producing this work. Guidance was sought with and from other organizations in member-organization management. The work of three individuals, however, has to be recognized, for they were the sine qua non in making it happen. Creating the first edition was fairly much a solo act. The second edition was a working partnership between this writer and Baron Williams, CAE, ASAE's director of book publishing. This far more complex and detailed third edition simply would not have been possible without the additional, hands-on participation of Keith Skillman, CAE, ASAE vice president, publications, and Susan Radwan, CAE. Indeed, Ms. Radwan's contributions have been enormous. She helped identify and refine topical areas, coauthored two of the chapters, and wrote sidebars or original passages to still others. As a result of her insight gained in working for many years as an instructor in CAE preparation, she helped identify those issues most important to association executives in the field. Further, she was involved in review and editing of virtually every chapter in the book. But, collectively, it was a team effort, from the initial discussions of a third edition to what the reader now sees in this work.

So whether you are an individual sitting for the next CAE examination, a CSE, an aspirant to the chief staff role, a staff specialist who wants to better acquit your specialty, an individual new to member-organization management, or someone who just wants to know what you need to know in association management, it is genuinely hoped that ASAE Handbook of Professional Practices in Association Management, Third Edition, becomes the reference, the road map, the essential guide you are seeking to both thrive and succeed in this field.

—John B. Cox, FASAE, CAE

Acknowledgments

It takes a small army of minds to conceive and assemble a work of this length and complexity. Many, many people have our thanks: most particularly the authors of the individual chapters and those whom they enlisted in reviewing and refining their work; the CAE Commission for its ongoing stewardship of the body of knowledge in association management; and these professionals who, in addition to this book's editors, reviewed the previous edition in detail and provided input to help inform this new book: Carol L. Barbeito; Lauren Hefner, CAE; Sharon Swan, FASAE, CAE; and Nancy Macduff.

Chapter One

A Prescription for a Successful CSE

Cheryl O. Ronk, CMP, FASAE, CAE and Susan S. Radwan, SMP, ARM, CAE

The success of chief staff executives (CSEs) can be tied to perspective and focus more than anything else. The CSE's perspective—the way of thinking about himself or herself, others, the team, the organization, and the positioning of the organization—is a key variable for success.

Perspective and focus alone, however, will not carry a leader. The CSE needs knowledge of association concepts and strategies while fostering important connections to provide for long-term success. CSEs must possess qualities that lead others toward a preferred future for the industry or profession. The CSE plays the pivot position to communicate, direct, and manage staff and volunteers, plus work with other entities as partners, collaborators, and contributors toward the preferred future.

What makes a successful chief staff executive? Many individuals who should be very successful, according to their credentials on paper, fail within an association culture. Yet others who did not hold comparative credentials to other candidates identified in the search process grew into very successful CSEs. There is no one magical element or combination. It is a combination of perspective, personal traits, knowledge, experience, communication style, and fit with the organizational culture that results in success.

What Does an Association Buy in a CSE?

When an organization selects a chief staff executive, what are they purchasing? Think about it. A scanner? A planner? A visionary? A leader? Consider the idea that they purchase culture and judgment.

The culture for the organization and the industry as a whole is heavily influenced by the long-term CSE. The CSE is responsible for the aligned values and vision across the whole organization: board, staff, and membership. The CSE's personal and professional values show through and set the tone for ethical behavior and organizational integrity. Staff asks for direction; the board asks for judgment. This judgment influences the culture and ultimately the brand of the organization.

Unique Position

One of the key elements of successful chief staff executives is that they understand their positioning within the organization. The board has primary authority and secondary commitment for the association. The CSE has the primary commitment and secondary authority for decisions made. It is critical for a CSE to understand this dynamic, recognize the appropriate role that needs to be played, and leverage the value that role can provide.

Inside this unique position, a CSE needs to offer the board and staff a skill set beyond being an expert in a particular area of association management or industry expertise. Savvy CSEs establish the role in the following ways:

They evaluate and recommend strategy based on alignment to the mission.

They collect, evaluate, analyze, and make meaning of relevant data.

They determine positioning and present recommendations to the board.

They recognize the role of and plan for an appropriately sequenced process that yields board and member support.

They build effective work teams and ensure a productive work environment.

These avenues make for better strategic decision making and stronger member buy-in.

Board Partner

The board and CSE are partners, with specific roles inside the partnership. The CSE implements the ideas of the board, which is accountable for its governance to the members.

Appropriately, the CSE brings ideas to the board to advance and position the association. A successful CSE ensures that board members are informed about the direction and achievements within the strategic plan, the capacity and efforts to expand the talent pool, and pursuits to enhance the industry or profession as a whole.

Much of the CSE's role is about working on the association so that it is relevant, efficient, and effective. The CSE often facilitates the board's work to create the what for the organization (for example, What is the preferred future? What strategies will be most effective? What values are important to our culture? What is member return on investment?) The CSE then works with staff on creating the how, or the means, to achieve the outcomes defined by the board. The CSE is the linchpin that keeps both alignment and focus on the right work. In essence, the CSE's role is synonymous with organizational performance.

Changing CSE Role

Not too long ago, to be successful, one had to know the other players in his or her industry; the association connection was the place to do just that. If you wanted referrals, you had to meet and greet. Who you knew was essential for effective communication and partnerships. Being elected to the board of an association equated to being at the top of your field. It was the ultimate recognition in the profession.

Over two decades ago, associations had a unique niche often related to why they were formed. Their golden-handcuff (affinity) programs were a guarantee of sustainability. Associations represented their members in the public policy, regulatory, or collective-bargaining arenas. The niche was driven by the members as a collective group, and the association only served specific needs that could be solved better together.

The formula for success was to follow a traditional association business model. For example, an association had to have a communications vehicle, a website, member education, a trade show, a public policy agenda, and the like.

Now we have moved to intensely analyzing what the members need and delivering it. The name of the game is mass customization. Thus the successful CSE has to know what can be delivered from an entrepreneurial perspective, listen for member needs, and provide solutions.

We live in a nonstop, dynamic environment in which we have few models to follow. It is even more important now to not only listen to members but also read between the lines and create member-supported solutions. It is equally important to know what is changing in the environment that will significantly affect members and the association as an entity so that you can prepare to meet the demands of that future state.

This requires a way of thinking that considers the association's relationship to allied associations around the world, regulators, legislators, and global partners. A CSE needs to focus on global competitiveness and strategic positioning of the association.

It is essential to become an organizational designer. How the organization looked ten years or even four years ago may not be right any more. The CSE has to continuously scan the environment, prioritize strategies, and evaluate opportunities. Just because another organization is providing a specific service does not mean it is the right fit for your organization. In fact, if another organization is doing it, what should your organization do differently? What is your differentiated value proposition in the marketplace?

To be an effective organizational designer one has to be open to innovations from other industries or professions. Interacting with peers at the local, state, and national levels, industry leaders and leaders from other sectors through your association executive community, leads to the possibility of cross-pollination. As a CSE, it is essential to learn from others outside the profession you represent. To build on the brilliance of others, you have to reach out beyond your regular networks.

Consider the story of the chief executive officer of Federal Express who, during a business trip, visited a grocery industry trade show. He was introduced to barcode technology at this event, which at the time was primarily marketed to grocers. Tracking packages appeared soon afterward and is still one of the elements of FedEx's success. He saw the innovation as relevant for his own industry and leveraged the opportunity.

Staying within the same circles and hearing the same stories will get you the same results.

Deliver Results

Today, CSEs are asked to deliver results, not just activity—or reports on activity via dashboards or other means. Understanding the return on investment (ROI) for divergent stakeholders and communicating that ROI is essential in today's competitive environment. ROI communication can only be directed from the top of the organization.

Since today is different from yesterday, and tomorrow will be different from today, successful CSEs must have intentional learning about their personal and professional growth. Some CSEs believe they know all there is to learn and could teach other executives about leadership. Really? Do we ever truly master this profession? Savvy CSEs see the value of continual learning. Like the medical and legal professions, perhaps we should practice leadership. Practice means repetition, learning from the experience, and mastering technique; in other words, continual learning and coaching. Part of that practice might include gathering new tools to drive excellence in the field, being curious about how others think and achieve results, and being open to new perspectives that might optimize results.

Beacon to Others

As previously mentioned, the CSE is the linchpin that keeps both alignment and focus on the right work. The long-time CSE is the individual who is often in place longer than any board leader. The CSE must provide for continuity between volunteers and staff members who come and go. The long-term CSE provides stability to the organization and holds its institutional wisdom.

This wisdom recognizes the big picture of how a strategic plan builds upon previous success, and the CSE's perspective, if shared, can assist volunteers and staff in understanding how everything fits together. Leadership is essential in the CSE position, for it is the only position there is to create total alignment among the board, committees, task forces, and staff.

The CSE is compensated for creating the culture to achieve the preferred future, to make the judgments on how to accomplish it, and what opportunities should be considered to maintain the nimbleness of the organization. This high-level thought process is the accountability of the CSE.

Emotional Intelligence

A CSE with high emotional intelligence makes everyone better. That model from the top inspires both volunteers and staff to become continually better.

In general, emotional intelligence is the ability to practice ethical behavior, honesty, and integrity with yourself and others. According to social scientists, emotional intelligence includes

Knowing one's emotions; in other words, self-awareness.

Managing those emotions, which includes handling feelings in a way that is appropriate to the context of your situation.

Motivating oneself, operating from a place of emotional self-control—delaying gratification and stifling impulsiveness.

Recognizing emotions in others and practicing empathy.

Handling relationships, maintaining trustworthiness throughout the course of those relationships.

Those with high emotional intelligence understand the difference between authority and responsibility and expect themselves and others to be accountable for the proper use of authority.

Think Like a CSE: How You Think Is How You Lead Is How You Act!

From the top of the operational organization, a CSE has a unique position in the responsibility for the whole organization. To be successful, the CSE must hold the whole organization as his or her primary concern rather than favor one department over another. The CSE needs to be concerned about maximizing the whole by optimizing the parts of the association, rather than maximizing parts only to diminish the impact of the whole.

For example, in the budgeting process, if the CSE allocates funding to the government relations department at the expense of the IT upgrade, will that decision maximize or diminish the overall value proposition to the members? Of course, the answer is, It depends on the rationale. However, the question posed is a critical one for CSEs to consider in making decisions to allocate resources.

Successful CSEs build an aligned culture. CSEs need to understand the internal culture and strategize what it needs to become for optimal effectiveness in this time and place. Let's break this down in more detail.

The CSE recognizes the interdependent nature of what the organization does. He or she sees how all the parts have to be in good working order and in sync with each other to create the value proposition of the organization.

A successful CSE needs to exhibit advanced leadership skills. These skills go above and beyond the skill set of team-building, trust-building, and personal capacity-building. Advanced leadership breaks through traditional barriers of departments and going it alone. These advanced skills foster cross-functional teamwork and a culture of openness and continuous learning that results in

Integrating organizational outcomes across all departments, which brings added-value to the membership

Effective strategic positioning that creates global competitiveness and synergy through partnerships and alliances.

The CSE sets the tone for cross-functional teamwork: the leadership across teams. This is a difficult task because the CSE needs to bridge departmental turf to create an aligned culture that recognizes the interdependence inside the value proposition for members. Core to this culture is valuing diversity of viewpoints and perspectives. Better solutions are devised when different and relevant viewpoints are shared. Whether there is diversity of staff functions at the table or diversity of social experience, the synthesis of these shared perspectives will yield a much richer result.

When there is a shared vision for what creates value for members, positive energy will emerge that will move the organization forward. Savvy CSEs remember that people support what they help to create.

In this collaborative style of work environment, the CSE sets the tone for open communication in which feedback is sought, genuinely considered, and acted upon. This collaborative culture is much more effective than a competitive environment in which one department is intent on winning or dominating at a cost to others. To be effective in making the transition to this cultural style, the CSE has to inspire team leaders to be focused on outcomes for the members every step of the way.

Successful CSEs Master Systems Thinking

Successful CSEs apply high-level thinking to advance the association. This thinking, known as systems thinking, synthesizes these concepts into an aligned whole:

Focus on value to the beneficiaries, members, and stakeholders rather than the organization itself.

Recognize and embody interdependence rather than independence.

Focus on outcomes and bottom-line results rather than activity results.

Focus on convergent solution-seeking rather than linear problem solving.

Focus on the total organization rather than departmental silos.

Foster cross-functional teamwork rather than siloed solutions.

Foster a culture of openness and feedback rather than a closed environment to which outside influences can't get in.

Foster a culture of communication and collaboration rather than a not my job delineation.

Consider systemic changes rather than isolated change.

Adopt circular cycles to foster internal learning rather than linear processes.

Hold the whole organization as the primary concern so that you optimize the parts in order to maximize the whole.

Leadership to Successful Strategy

No CSE is successful without the leadership attribute. However, let's review here a few traits that set the best CSEs apart.

Communicating

Choosing the tone and frame of a message is one of the key elements of communication success. Watch any news program or read the newspaper and notice the tone and frame the spokespersons use to frame a situation so that others understand it.

The process for communication, however, starts with thinking through what you want to achieve. It begins with defining, What is my desired outcome for this communication? For example, is it the desired outcome to alarm? To energize action? To inform? To create peace of mind? Once you decide, then consider appropriately framing and crafting the message.

When framing an issue, the CSE needs to think about how to position the issue so that the language chosen and the message crafted connect with the audience and the desired outcome is achieved.

For example, how would you frame a message for your board when a significant segment of membership has not renewed? You might frame the message in terms of comparative results, such as As many organizations have experienced in this economic downturn, membership has decreased. Or you might frame the message in terms of a crisis to solve, such as, The drop in renewals is a clear indication that we need to evaluate our relevance to the membership. Or you might frame the message in terms of long-term impact, such as, If we continue to lose members at this rate, we will need to close our doors or merge. You might frame the situation in terms of a commonly understood metaphor, such as, We view this loss more like a spring pruning, when we can make room for new growth. Which frame will achieve the desired outcome?

Successful CSEs layer tone in their communication as well. For example, if you have bad news to share, do you create a just the facts tone, a remorseful tone, a panicked tone, or a serious crisis tone? There are many options, but the bottom line is that the CSE's communication must always take a professional tone. The choice of tone used will heavily influence the response of the receiver of the message.

The frame and tone you choose are critical to create the desired outcome of the message.

Delegating

To be a leader means there are followers. The job of the CSE is to create an environment in which people can be productive. To be productive, delegatees have to see that they are contributing to the accomplishment of some goal or outcome. This usually requires giving initial guidance, tools, resources, and a degree of autonomy to do the job.

Delegating could be to volunteers, partners, or staff. Communicating about a project, including the rationale and the expected results, clearly allows for more effective delegation. Structuring what is needed, by when, and why can result in better productivity. Of course, appropriately matching talent to the project is part of the assignment as well. Fit your people to the job.

CSEs understand the importance of providing direction and then trusting but verifying that the work is being accomplished. They establish and check in on milestones, not specific tactics, with the delegatees.

Managing Growth and Change

One of the best tools for managing growth and change is business planning with a keen eye on the flow of money, sources of revenue, and the feasibility and sustainability of revenue streams.

CSEs see how all the pieces fit together and what may need to be realigned for new direction and opportunities. Successful CSEs manage the processes that run through the association's departments, rather than the silos created by departmental boundaries. Examples of processes that run through departments include revenue generation, membership retention, and knowledge management.

Aligning with Mission

Shiny pennies. This is a term used to describe distractions that catch the eye of leaders and staff. A program may sound great and be sold as a revenue generator—but does it relate to what we do? Is it in alignment with our mission or our strategic plan? When a shiny penny does align, it is the CSE, and in larger organizations, the senior team, who sets the tone across departments to make sure the concept is properly vetted, planned, and implemented. As a manager, she or he assesses the impact and opens capacity, if appropriate, by eliminating activities that are no longer productive.

Successful CSEs assess and learn when to say yes and no. They do their homework with a focus on mission. They scan the environment and assess opportunities with clear criteria. They sense when to take risks and assess the level of risk that will be tolerated by the volunteer leaders.

Creating a Learning Organization

The CSE needs to set the tone and lead continuous learning for the industry or profession, the association's members, and the organization as an entity. What does this mean? It means that knowledge is freely and regularly shared and highly valued. It also means that insights of how this knowledge affects work processes, jobs, initiatives, and opportunities is shared. It is learning through each and every interaction and conversation. It is seeking to understand rather than seeking to be understood. A successful CSE models how to listen to shared experience and draws out lessons to be learned, applied, and integrated into the way we think and do, and encourages others to follow in this path.

We live in a nonstop, changing environment. Association leadership not only guides their members through these changes but actively shapes the future and responds to changes that will better the industry or profession.

The CSE Sequence of Thinking

Successful CSEs play out a particular sequence of activities in seeking solutions as they come across problems, challenges, activities, and opportunities that present themselves in day-to-day activities. One such way of framing that sequence is scan, plan, implement, and evaluate, or SPIE.

This sequence is applicable to any situation, be it a major transformational change for the association, an accusation of wrongdoing at the staff level, or planning for a meeting.

A misconception is that an effective CSE will recognize a problem and quickly jump in and do something about it. This command-and-control approach is only effective if the CSE is dealing with a crisis when people and property are at risk, such as there is a fire in your building and evacuation is necessary. However, that jumping in impulse is not the best option in most situations. In fact, that implementation phase—the doing something phase—is really the third step in the desired sequence of action.

A successful CSE is not an impulsive player. For success, a CSE knows that one needs to have all the relevant facts to execute appropriate action (a scan function). Knowing what I want out of this situation before I jump in is the plan function.

All four of these steps are process oriented, offering a particular thinking sequence that will lead one to or toward the desired result.

Let's look at each of these steps in the sequence.

Scan

The process of scanning is all about intelligence gathering at whatever level is relevant to the situation. Scanning could include assessing how you feel about an issue, gathering facts about an interpersonal conflict situation, scanning past events to assess where you are today, observing the interactions between managers and their subordinates, conducting a survey with relevant players to understand how they think about an issue or what they need in a solution, environmental scanning to understand the influences at play, and even future environmental scanning to anticipate how change drivers will affect the association and its members.

A successful CSE will scan for the relevant intelligence, including facts, contributing factors, motivations, and pertinent relationships, to fully understand the issue before planning a response.

Plan

Any planning process implies that you wish to make some change in the environment. Identifying the change—beginning with the end in mind—creates an efficiency in the planning, allowing the planner to identify the key steps in reaching the desired goal. Consequently, the first step in any plan of action is to answer the question, What is the desired outcome?

It would be important to note that you may desire multiple outcomes. For example, what is the outcome you want to achieve at the end of the process? What is the outcome you want to achieve among the players in the process? What is the outcome you want to achieve as you personally engage in the process? Identifying the outcomes for all the various levels involved will point to certain ways to plan your implementation process.

For example, you have an interpersonal staff conflict that you must address because it is impeding progress of your senior management team. What is the desired outcome you wish for your intervention? Resolution of the conflict. What is the desired outcome you wish for the players involved? Mutual respect, valuing differences, and shared resolution to the situation. What is the desired outcome you wish for you in the intervention? Become less reluctant to deal with tough interpersonal issues, better understand the interpersonal dynamics of strong personalities.

The planning should consider the process to be used, who should be involved, and how you might frame the messaging, all focused to achieve the desired outcome. You may want to pre-think likely objections to your actions and be ready for appropriate responses that will override the objections presented.

The process to be used is a critical component of planning. The politics of who gets invited first or who sits next to whom in a high-level meeting at the head table is the stuff that creates hard feelings and political faux pas. For a CSE, designing and sequencing the process is a critical task for effectiveness and success in achieving the desired outcomes.

Implement

Executing your plan is the focus of implementation, rather than impulsively jumping into the fire and making things happen. Implementation requires focus on the end prize—your desired outcomes. Effective execution of your plan requires that your actions track with your plan. Of course, there are times when you need to make modifications, particularly when you run into unplanned responses. However, tracking your actions with your plan will likely get you a better overall result versus shooting from the hip in the moment.

Evaluate

Evaluation is a space that we tend to forget as a key to process improvement. Evaluation can take place during the process (formative process evaluation) and after the process (summative evaluation).

In formative process evaluation, you continually evaluate your every move and assess whether it advances the likelihood of achieving your desired outcomes. If the planned moves are not leading in the right direction, you have to modify your plan.

In summative evaluation, you debrief on the process used, identify the lessons learned in the experience, and ultimately integrate those lessons into your future activities. This activity is critical to being a learning organization.

The Future

If you are the CSE of an organization or hope to be one in the future, take to heart the importance of continually learning to master the profession of association management. Learn how to stay connected to your leadership, staff, and partners to build trust and avoid surprises.

Be intentional and strategic in your knowledge, relationships, and perspectives. Learn from every interaction. Observe and listen. Align your decisions to be consistent, since this is what sets the culture and brand of the organization and influences the profession as a whole.

The Authors

Cheryl O. Ronk, CMP, FASAE, CAE, is the chief staff executive of the Michigan Society of Association Executives (MSAE).

Susan S. Radwan, SMP, ARM, CAE, is the owner of Leading Edge Mentoring, an international consulting firm based in Grand Ledge, Michigan. Since 1996, Ronk and Radwan have partnered to teach the MSAE-sponsored CAE online exam preparation program, supporting CAE candidate learning around the world.

Chapter Two

Mission

Kerry C. Stackpole, FASAE, CAE

Mission is the pathway to the hearts and minds of your membership, donors, customers, stakeholders, and the public. Done well, a mission statement illuminates and reflects their values and aspirations. Without those aspirations, your organization is just another business enterprise, jockeying for revenues from a fickle marketplace defined by measures of lesser means and values.

Don't misunderstand. Believing in dynamic capitalism, revenue generation, and spirited entrepreneurship are noble causes. Believing that making money is the core purpose of not-for-profit organizations confuses their essential role of serving, instead of selling. If this is confusing, or seemingly at conflict with your experience, that is completely understandable. Not-for-profit organizations of all shapes, sizes, and purposes have partnered with commercial for-profit interests for decades to deliver perceived value to their members in the form of group buying discounts and other types of benefits.

We live in a world in which commerce crosses over into not-for-profit missions in ways few would have imagined. As just one example, the factories that bake Girl Scout cookies surely benefit financially from the $800 million generated by Girl Scout cookie sales to fund local Girl Scout councils. Cookie sales are the cornerstone of the group's ability to fulfill the Girl Scouting mission at the community level, to build girls of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place.

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service has clear definitions of how it sees the role of tax-exempt organizations, which generally must file an annual Form 990 or Form 990-EZ information return with the IRS. For example,

501(c)(3): The exempt purposes set forth in section 501(c)(3) are charitable, religious, educational, scientific, literary, testing for public safety, fostering national or international amateur sports competition, and preventing cruelty to children or animals. The term charitable is used in its generally accepted legal sense and includes relief of the poor, the distressed, or the underprivileged; advancement of religion; advancement of education or science; erecting or maintaining public buildings, monuments, or works; lessening the burdens of government; lessening neighborhood tensions; eliminating prejudice and discrimination; defending human and civil rights secured by law; and combating community deterioration and juvenile delinquency.

501(c) 6: The Internal Revenue Code provides for the exemption of business leagues, chambers of commerce, real estate boards, boards of trade and professional football leagues, which are not organized for profit and no part of the net earnings of which inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual.

A business league is an association of people having some common business interest, the purpose of which is to promote such common interest and not to engage in a regular business of a kind ordinarily carried on for profit. Trade associations and professional associations are business leagues. To be exempt, a business league's activities must be devoted to improving business conditions of one or more lines of business as distinguished from performing particular services for individuals. No part of a business league's net earnings may inure to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual and it may not be organized for profit to engage in an activity ordinarily carried on for profit (even if the business is operated on a cooperative basis or produces only enough income to be self-sustaining).

Your organization can be tax-exempt without being not-for-profit, and vice versa—though most associations are both. The authority for tax exemption derives wholly from the federal government, whereas the categories of nonprofit or not-for-profit are—except in cases of quasi-governmental agencies (such as the American Red Cross)—granted exclusively by the corporate authority granted state government. In its simplest form, the designation of nonprofit or not-for-profit requires that no one who supports or serves the organization make a profit. While state statutes vary, none limit a not-for-profit organization's ability to earn a profit, create reserves, buy property, or otherwise engage in activities to support their mission and purpose. This unique distinction often serves to confuse board leaders, members, donors, stakeholders, and the general public. It is easy to understand why.

Federal law mandates certain limitations. In recent years the Internal Revenue Service has required tax-exempt organizations with gross income of $1,000 or more (gross income is gross receipts minus the cost of goods sold) from a regularly conducted unrelated trade or business to file Form 990-T and to pay taxes on that income. This amount has changed over time, and it's always good to confirm the reporting thresholds with your auditors. IRS regulations clearly define the rules. Unrelated trade or business income is the gross income derived from any trade or business regularly conducted and not substantially related to the organization's exempt purpose or function (aside from the organization's need for income or funds or the use it makes of the profits).

So how does a leader reconcile the increasingly blurred border between commerce and commitment—serving or selling—in a marketplace holding high expectations and demands for effective and efficient solutions to the challenges of an industry, profession, community, or charitable cause? As Socrates reminded us, the beginning of wisdom is the definition of terms. In this case defining your mission is at the heart of it all.

Revisiting Mission

The mission in its most basic form defines why your organization exists and what you as an organization leader are here to do on behalf of all stakeholders.

The purpose of a mission statement is to define the organization's business. What are we are here to do? Who do we serve? How will we accomplish our purpose?

Mission is often intertwined with purpose and values. A scan of the leadership and management literature sometimes uses these words interchangeably.

Unless you were a founding member of your organization, you will most likely inherit the mission. It is exceedingly rare for mission to receive more than passing attention even as organizations grow and change and consider new strategies and directions over the course of their existence. Unlike the vision statement, which is often reworked to calibrate with strategy, mission is viewed as bedrock, underpinning the very reason for the existence of the organization. That need not be so.

One of the chief staff executive's responsibilities is to ensure that mission aligns with strategy, value, and purpose as well as with the activities and initiatives of the organization. If the elements are out of alignment, the task for bringing them back falls to the CSE and the governing body.

On occasion, even with a beneficial and clear mission, a revision or reconsideration may help bring greater focus and deliver significant benefit. One such example is the American Red Cross, whose original 1900 charter articulated the mission, To furnish volunteer aid to the sick and wounded of armies in time of war, in accordance with the spirit and conditions of the conference of Geneva of October, 1863. In subsequent revisions, the Red Cross came to today's considerably broader mission: The American Red Cross prevents and alleviates human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors.

Take a moment to consider these two mission statements. More than anything, seen in comparative fashion, they acknowledge the evolving purpose and goals of the American Red Cross in an understandable and clear fashion. While not widely understood, mission is taking on greater significance as members, donors, contributors, and stakeholders consider their decisions to engage with membership and charitable organizations. Research by ASAE explored this question in the course of collecting data from 16,944 individuals to create The Decision to Join study, written in 2007 by James Dalton and Monica Dignam.¹

In their research, Dalton and Dignam point out that associations face a dilemma in answering questions surrounding mission. While individual perspective is a consideration, they point out that the real organization question comes down to, Who are you and what utility do you offer? The need for a member, donor, contributor, or stakeholder focus—a customer-oriented view—is critical to overcoming the inherent limitations imposed by a producer oriented view.

The reasons this becomes so important are made clear by shifts in the way the next generation of members, donors, contributors, and stakeholders are likely to engage with associations and charitable organizations in the future.

Charitable giving is developing a new face as the new wealth displaces the old wealth as major sources of philanthropy and giving. Where the names Rockefeller, Ford, Mellon, and Carnegie were once the predominant sources of vast giving power, they are being supplanted by new names such as Gates, Bono, Buffett, and Case, and organizations created by celebrities such as Sonja Sohn, whose experience on the streets of Baltimore filming the HBO hit series The Wire inspired her to create Rewired for Change to empower at-risk youth, families, and communities living in underserved areas through educational programming, community building support, and media and social advocacy.

There are new philanthropy models emerging as well. Venture Philanthropy Partners (VPP), created by technology moguls Raul Fernandez, Senator Mark Warner, and Mario Morino, invests in high-performing nonprofit organizations that are serving the core healthy developmental, learning, and educational needs of children from low-income families in the greater Washington, D.C., area. Rather than serve as a funder, VPP aspires to serve as a trusted advisor, helping great leaders build stronger, more effective, more enduring organizations to better serve children. The venture fund's investments are not intended to fund program costs. Instead, the focus of every VPP investment is helping leaders build the strength of the organization behind their programs, often referred to as organizational capacity.

Mission and Leadership

One of the greatest challenges for leaders is honoring the mission of the organization as part of day-to-day leadership. Keeping the reason your organization exists at the forefront of your leadership may seem unnecessary; however, it is shockingly easy for mission to be subverted in the pursuit of competing needs.

Every organization needs resources to accomplish its mission. The two largest are human (members, volunteers, donors, staff) and financial (revenues, contributions) capital. In pursuit of securing these critical resources, leaders wrestle with a daily barrage of opportunities to exchange access to the organization's human capital typically for financial gain. Consider the number of tax-exempt organizations offering health, life, and property insurance programs; group buying discounts; 401K plan administration; bookstore publications; or other professional services to their members, donors, or other stakeholders.

Mark Levin, CAE, CSP, is an association executive and professional speaker who specializes in helping associations grow their membership. When reviewing membership literature as part of his membership workshops, he is fond of asking association leaders the question, What is all of this stuff?, referring to the myriad programs and services offered universally by organizations. Is your organization's rental car discounting that much better than another organization's? How about book discounts? Can you truly compete with Amazon, and should you try, if it's not a core component of your mission?

As leaders it's easy to rationalize our decisions to add yet another discount program or to justify the next partnership because in the broadest form it leans into our mission to educate, advocate, or enhance our member's or donor's interests. The real question is, is it at the core of our mission? Straying outside the strictest interpretation of your mission may be a resource necessity; however, straying too far may bring the unwanted attention of regulators and the sudden departure of valued members, donors, or stakeholders.

In 2012, leaders of the Susan G. Komen Foundation, the nation's largest nonprofit devoted to preventing, treating, and curing breast cancer announced the organization was eliminating $680,000 in funding for breast cancer screenings conducted by Planned Parenthood. The foundation issued a statement at the time saying it cut funding to Planned Parenthood as part of its effort to evolve to best meet the needs of the women we serve and most fully advance our mission. While Komen ultimately reinstated the funding grant, the damage to the foundation's charitable brand and reported declines in contribution resulted in major leadership realignments within the organization and prompted cutbacks in other grant giving.

In 1997, members and outsiders criticized marketing plans by the American Medical Association to allow Sunbeam Corporation exclusive use of the AMA logo on its medical wares. Although the AMA did not plan to test the devices, the deal was expected to bring in millions of dollars for the association. In the resulting furor, there were allegations the AMA was seeking deals with private companies to make up financial shortfalls resulting from declining membership. Ultimately the debacle cost three association leaders their jobs, the CEO stepped down, and the American Medical Association found itself in the midst of a crisis affecting both the board's oversight and the organization's reputation.

While there are likely other situations of similar nature, the real purpose of sharing these stories is to encourage leaders to exert a higher degree of caution and due diligence in decision making when considering activities and services outside the circle of your organization's primary mission.

Aligning Mission with Work

Working to ensure the integrity of mission to the vision and goals of your organization is vitally important to avoid critical missteps. One of the ways leaders ensure the integrity of an organization's efforts and its mission is to conduct a regular audit of the organization's products and services to examine both their value and their alignment with organizational mission. While often described as mission impossible, sunsetting programs that do not align with your mission is an essential part of overall strategy. In some instances, the shifting needs of your membership, donors, or stakeholders may require a revision to the organization mission. A regular review of the activities of your group gives you a basis to explore, examine, and act as necessary to ensure that you remain on course.

In his research book Good to Great and the Social Sectors, author Jim Collins makes the point that aligning purpose and mission relies on asking the right questions. Collins in his work on aligning actions and values suggests leaders ask themselves and those around them, If these are our core values and this is fundamentally why we exist, what are the obstacles that get in our way?² It is not an idle question.

As a leader you are likely familiar with the idea that you cannot truly motivate anyone to do anything. You can, however, remove the barriers to motivation to encourage forward progress. Determining precisely what allows your organization to thrive and removing the obstacles to success offers a parallel pathway worthy of consideration and implementation.

The Changing World of Mission and Leadership

Over the past century, as businesses and professionals formed not-for-profit organizations to represent, support, and sustain their chosen industry or profession they have more actively engaged in bringing along the operational structures, titles, and frameworks to many not-for-profit organizations. The chief staff executive's title has followed a historical migration from secretary or executive secretary to managing director, then executive director, on to executive vice president and, for many organizations—trade, professional, or philanthropic—finally to president and chief executive officer.

This has led to considerable confusion among board members and other stakeholders who imagine their association or society is aligned with a bottom line business-like structure, instead of a more diffuse community service structure addressing and serving the needs of a broad-based group of individuals, organizations, and communities. That confusion often manifests when a board member or stakeholder suggests or attempts to impose structures, frameworks, or policies of the industry or profession they serve on the association, professional society, or charitable entity.

The confusion has also been exacerbated as both privately held firms and publicly traded companies have entered the membership space. For many, it began with the charge card company American Express shifting its advertising and marketing messages in 1987 by asserting that cardholders were card members with the ubiquitous tag line, membership has its privileges. They were not alone.

On a growing basis, health insurance providers, Internet service providers, airline loyalty programs, social networks, and commerce platforms are using the term members to describe their customer base. Among the largest in the private sector are the warehouse-style stores, including B.J's, Sam's Club, and Costco. For Costco, the high level, executive member, generates 60 percent of its overall revenues. Costco's mission statement puts its members at the top:

Costco's mission is to continually provide our members with quality goods and services at the lowest possible prices. In order to achieve our mission we will conduct our business with the following Code of Ethics in mind:

Obey the law

Take care of our members

Take care of our employees

Respect our vendors

If we do these four things throughout our organization, then we will realize our ultimate goal, which is to reward our shareholders.

A critical responsibility and obligation of the association's chief staff executive is to ensure that all stakeholders have a consensus and understanding with clarity about the mission of the organization.

What's different is that unlike privately held companies or publicly traded corporations that ultimately have one bottom line—returning value to the owners and shareholders—trade, professional, or cause-related organizations more often come with multiple bottom lines. The absence of shareholders' demand for dividends and a return on investment likely comes with myriad different and more demanding expectations.

The Board and the Mission

While it may be unlikely you see yourself as the steward of the mission of your organization, it is a critical role you need to embrace as a leader in the tax-exempt sector and for your organization. If your first thought is seriously? you are forgiven. It's not like you don't have enough responsibilities and demands on your intellectual and physical horsepower. Time is a limited commodity, and it's likely your calendar is jammed full of important and pressing appointments and activities.

So pause for a moment to consider just where your board sits in regard to mission. In today's demanding environment, it's unlikely—though not impossible—your board members ever give mission a second thought. Asking board members to write down the mission of the organization often results in looks of confusion, repeated scratch-outs on the paper in front of them, and finally a sigh of resignation when they realize they don't actually know. I'm not being critical of volunteers or governing boards; rather I am pointing out the real importance of your role as a leader and steward.

By the very nature of their roles, board members are not focused on the mission and purpose of your organization on a regular basis. In instances when the board meets only a few times a year, the gap is greater still. As one volunteer director pointed out to me, Since we only meet face-to-face twice a year, every time I come to a meeting I see the enormous changes in our industry.

Board members are focused on their own professional practices, companies, personal lives, and communities long before they bring their expertise and ideas to the board meeting for their associations. The notion that where we stand depends on where we sit can routinely be applied to those who gather in boardrooms. Each person brings his or her own experiences, frustrations, accomplishments, biases, and, in the language of the day, agendas. How those things affect the organization and influence the meeting outcomes are mostly uncertain.

What is certain is that as a leader, you have the ability to influence their thinking, introduce innovative approaches, and present new ways of thinking about how the group can best contribute to and drive forward the organization and its mission. In my own experience, boards regularly struggle with the inherent conflict between the for-profit environment many inhabit (the selling world) and the not-for-profit tax-exempt environment (the serving world), especially when the mission is less than clear or out of step with the direction in which the organization is actually moving.

As leader, you are the chief interpreter of the mission for the board. Board members look to you for the leadership and direction essential to the proper functioning of the organization. Lose sight of the primary mission or fail to engage the board in adapting the mission to new circumstances and you run the serious risks of derailing both your own professional growth and the organization's future.

A critical part of your personal mission has to be to fully comprehend the contexts your members, donors, and stakeholders are bringing into the room whenever you gather together. Your communication on mission and direction must reflect their reality at least in part to garner their attention. In one organization where the board membership was entirely composed of direct marketers who measured the value and response of every promotional mailing or communiqué, failing to demonstrate attention to a corresponding metric for the association's mission resulted in a complete disconnect between the chief staff executive and the board.

Remember, where you stand has a direct correlation to where you sit.

According to the research conducted by ASAE in support of the best-selling classic 7 Measures of Success: What Remarkable Organizations Do That Others Don't, leading organizations look at membership as constituencies to serve versus markets to sell to. The research data strongly suggest that aligning mission and purpose drives membership, membership retention, and financial results. In Chapter Three of 7 Measures, the writers note the extraordinary focus leaders in the study group bring to member service, describing it as an association of the members, by the members, for the members.³

Remarkable associations and their leaders work diligently to build their structures, processes, and interactions—their entire culture around—assessing and fulfilling members' needs and expectations.

Linking your reason for being to the hard work of examining your products and services against the light of fulfilling your mission will create some of the most difficult conversations leaders and their boards will have. Straying too far from mission even when the organization needs the funds has the potential to create a disconnect with the membership and serious declines in member retention. As the authors point out in 7 Measures of Success, such actions serve only to delay the inevitable rather than bolster true financial strength.

The staff and leaders of the Girl Scouts of the USA consistently ask two questions in examining their new initiatives:

How do we need to change to stay true to our mission?

What do girls need today for us to achieve the mission we have always had?

While the questions do not preclude change, they bring a laser-like focus to the values of the organization and hold the idea of reconsidering mission at bay until they can be answered fully and completely.

Mission, especially in membership organizations, will likely take on greater importance and significance in the decades ahead than it perhaps has before. The demographics of our organizations are shifting. Where the baby boom generation had a strong commitment to belonging, the generations to follow are more wary of political and religious institutions.

The Pew Research Center, examining social and demographic trends of young adults in the eighteen to thirty-three age range, discovered they are relatively unattached to organized politics and religion, linked by social media, burdened by debt, distrustful of people, in no rush to marry—yet remain optimistic about the future.⁴ In the future, it's quite likely membership will no longer be about belonging; it will be about believing.

Mission of the Future

So where does the evolving landscape leave the leaders of today's tax-exempt organizations? In part, it leaves you thinking hard about the vitality and relevance of the mission of your organization to its current members, prospective members, donors, and stakeholders. Mission will increasingly be the motivating tool both for membership and for growing commitment to the organization. Success will not come from adapting more business-like models for operations or management; rather it will come from providing a platform that serves to inspire and encourage commitment from the generations to come.

In schools across America, the value of community service is integrated into curricula and class activities beginning in elementary school. Helping others in less fortunate circumstances, those affected by natural disasters, and others in need is a common value shared throughout society. Illuminating this shared value and igniting action to bring real meaning to the efforts of members and volunteer leaders is the challenge at hand.

Every association, professional society, and charitable organization has a greater purpose beyond ensuring the continuity of its enterprise. Thinking about horizons is a good metaphor for what is essential for leaders. It has been said, Good leaders hit targets no one else can hit and great leaders hit targets no one else can see. The notion of things beyond the horizon is a powerful incentive and tool for leaders to use in imagining their organization's mission and future.

So much success in today's tax-exempt environment relies on innovating by shifting the basic rules of that marketplace. While incremental change may garner some progress and offer added rewards, those dreamers, thinkers, and innovators who imagine a totally different marketplace are the ones reaping an increasingly larger share of both community capital and progress. It does not require too much reflection to remember diseases no one believed could be cured, technologies that would never work, or the collapse of long-standing regulatory frameworks. For example, if you are the leader of the Taxi Driver's Association, the technology that allows Uber, the transportation service, to enable passengers to summon a ride using a smartphone app creates a significant and serious competitive threat to your membership and perhaps your mission. The question on the horizon for your association is, What changes or adaptations could you make to give your members more ready means to compete by gathering access to the information they need and want from your organization?

Making your association member-centric is essential to your success. How many times have you found yourself stewing about the four-hour window that utilities, repair services, and other vendors require to schedule your service or delivery? Looking closer to home, what systems or processes do you have in place when a new membership application arrives at headquarters?

Responsiveness + Resolution = Return Member

Successful associations find the right metrics and measure, measure, measure. One of the challenges in looking over the horizon is imagining what issues or problems may arise for your members or donors. Some are easy to anticipate and some considerably more difficult because they reflect the unique manner in which your member uses the resources of the association and its products or services.

Associations willing to rethink their member process, consider new approaches, and measure their accomplishments from the member's perspective will gain new insight about potential opportunities and risks on the horizon and ways to solidify and strengthen their mission.

None of this is a guarantee of success. It is more akin to operating a compass. You have to learn how to use it proficiently before it yields any meaningful results. Failure is inevitable at some point along the way. Know it. Work like crazy to avoid it. Prepare for it in any case. Finally, do not get caught in the trap of separating mission from strategy and most certainly not execution. It is a myth these processes could or should somehow be separated. If you haven't taken all of the variables of your culture, organization dynamics, demographics, and attitudes into consideration right alongside mission, you're missing a huge opportunity and a huge point of leverage.

The old axiom, There is no such thing as a lost opportunity, because someone always finds it? Believe it. Opportunity, innovation, and success are linked as tools to help organizations grow by standing on the bedrock