Center for Association Resources

The Center for Association Resources supports mission-oriented organizations, assisting them in increasing relevance and accomplishing goals.

Center for Association Resources

5 Reasons Why Every Nonprofit CEO/ED Should Blog

Another in a series of articles related to association management selected from our reading list by:
Robert O. Patterson, JD
CEO/ Principal
The Center for Association Resources, Inc.

From Business 2 Community­­:

There’s no arguing that a nonprofit CEO or Executive Director is the most influential member of your organization. After all, why else would the cover letter for the annual report or your gift acknowledgements be penned by them?
Just like those donor communications pieces, a blog can be a great place to let the leader of your nonprofit shine. Unfortunately though – according to our own research – only about 37% of nonprofits are blogging regularly.
Here are five reasons why the leader of your nonprofit should blog regularly:
1) Nonprofit Leaders Are Subject Matter Experts
If you are the leader of a nonprofit organization, it’s likely that you possess a lot of institutional knowledge about your cause – especially if you are also the org founder. Read More

Six Tips to Boost Your Board’s Fundraising Culture

Another in a series of articles related to association management selected from our reading list by:
Robert O. Patterson, JD
CEO/ Principal
The Center for Association Resources, Inc.

From Wealth Engine:

Fundraising is a challenge for nearly every board. According to Leading with Intent (link is external), 60% of CEOs and 58% of board chairs identify it as one of the most important areas for board improvement. You can’t sustain board engagement in fundraising without a culture that prioritizes the fundraising role for every board member. Use the following tips to cultivate a better board fundraising culture., not keep them a secret to protect our own success. Read More

What to do About Under Performing Chapters?

Another in a series of articles related to association management selected from our reading list by:
Robert O. Patterson, JD
CEO/ Principal
The Center for Association Resources, Inc.

From Smooth the Path:

The carrot or the stick. A supporting response or a punitive response. What do we do with the non-performing chapters?
Perhaps we ignore non-performing chapters because while affiliated with us they are separate entities run by separate leadership. We’ve made the decision that they are self-supporting and self-regulated therefore we largely ignore them.
Except… Read More

Four Questions to Answer before Setting a Membership Growth Goal

Another in a series of articles related to association management selected from our reading list by:
Robert O. Patterson, JD
CEO/ Principal
The Center for Association Resources, Inc.

From Membership Marketing Blog:

The late, great Yogi Berra once said, “If you don’t know where you are going, you might end up someplace else.”His thoughts certainly hold true in membership marketing. Everyone likes a catchy phrase. A leader may have stated a goal like, “20,000 members by the year 2020.” However, the frustration and challenge for many membership marketers is the goal may have been set without understanding the context of what it will ta ke to achieve the goal. Setting a membership development goal is a great idea, but to make it realistic, it requires the answer to four foundational questions. Read More

Meetings: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Another in a series of articles related to association management selected from our reading list by:
Robert O. Patterson, JD
CEO/ Principal
The Center for Association Resources, Inc.

From Knowledge @ Wharton:

They interrupt flow, and pop up unbidden on your iCal. They tend to convey all of the information you already knew and none of the things you really wanted to know. Meetings have emerged as one of the most universally despised conventions of American work life, and they show no sign of letting up. But if workers and managers alike feel put upon by meetings, experts say it’s not meetings per se that are the culprit. The problem is bad meetings.
Wharton management professor Nancy Rothbard says that if we are meeting more often than ever, it may be because we are now so busy we have to schedule time to simply think. “There are so many demands on us that leaders are scheduling meetings to get people engaged in the problem at hand,” she says. “I think people call meetings so they can have people’s mindshare, when it might have been more efficient to work through a problem independently.” Read More

From Small to Scale: Three Trade-offs for Smaller Nonprofits Trying to Get Big

Another in a series of articles related to association management selected from our reading list by:
Robert O. Patterson, JD
CEO/ Principal
The Center for Association Resources, Inc.

From NonProfit Quarterly:

“Money often costs too much,” wrote the philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson. Many leaders of smaller nonprofits, struggling to find the funds to grow or sustain programs, surely feel the same way. It is easy to rack up costs chasing after foundation grants, public donations, and government funds, and the wrong chase can be financially fatal. Read More