7 Measures Of (GAWDA's) Success

What characteristics differentiate “great” associations from merely “good” associations? Is GAWDA a “great” association or just a “good” association? How can we uncover the answer to these questions so that we can work toward making GAWDA a better (great) organization for its members?

The American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), of which I am an active member, recently worked with Jim Collins, the author of Good to Great, to analyze what characteristics make certain associations remarkable. The result is a book titled 7 Measures of Success: What Remarkable Associations Do That Others Don't. The basic premise of the study is that most associations adopt very similar policies, procedures and practices. Although the educational programs, networking opportunities, member benefits and publications are similar, some associations become truly great, while others do not. To determine why this happens, the researchers conducted a “matched pair” study. They found pairs of associations that were of similar age, size, governance structure, leadership and ability to retain members and market share, but where one association had become “great,” the other association only became “good.”

Out of this study came the seven measures that differentiate “great” from “good” associations:

1. A Customer Service Culture
2. Alignment of Products and Services with Mission
3. Data-Driven Strategies
4. Dialogue and Engagement
5. The CEO as a Broker of Ideas
6. Organizational Adaptability
7. Alliance Building.

Customer Service Culture
Remarkable associations build their structures, processes and interactions around assessing and fulfilling members' needs and expectations. They exist to serve the members, period. This culture exists not only in the staff, but also throughout every level of volunteer, from the president down through each board and committee member. A remarkable association does everything it can to understand the members' needs, then designs programs to meet those needs within the parameters of the organization's mission and strategic plan.

Alignment of Products and Services with Mission
Simply put, is everything we provide to members supporting the currently defined mission of the organization? Are our meetings, webinars, publications, consultant contracts and other “member benefits” providing direct value to the membership, or are these products and services being driven by potential revenues or short-term member requests that have since changed?

Remarkable associations are willing to take risks and to experiment with new products and services to find the right mix that is aligned with their missions. They are also willing to readily admit failures, learn from them and move on.

Data-Driven Strategies
Remarkable associations are constantly gathering quantitative, qualitative, formal and anecdotal information about their members and their industry that is then analyzed to evaluate association performance. These findings are then used in strategic and operational planning.

Dialogue and Engagement
Is there an ongoing discussion among staff, leadership and members about the mission of the association? Does everyone share the same understanding of the alignments of products and services with member needs? Remarkable associations operate as a unified whole rather than as separate divisions, committees, staff and departments.

The CEO as a Broker of Ideas
CEOs of great associations create consensus around the members' strategic vision rather than trying to force their own vision on the organization. The CEO's role is to provide the leadership necessary to help guide the rest of the association in developing and then implementing the shared vision/mission. Great CEOs of great associations coach and direct staff and volunteer leaders, rather than dictate what they want done.

Organizational Adaptability
The economic environment, structure of the industry, membership base, finances and member needs are constantly changing for all associations. Remarkable associations demonstrate a willingness to react to these changes quickly and to sometimes make dramatic modifications to governance and staffing structures, programs and products. However, they also know what not to change if they are to remain true to their core purpose and mission.

Alliance Building
Associations do not operate in a vacuum, nor are they usually the only organization representing an industry and membership. While the creation of alliances with associations can contribute to the success in achieving certain short-term goals, remarkable associations look more at the long-term impact of alliances/coalitions on its own mission and core purpose.

Measuring GAWDA
How does GAWDA measure up when evaluated using these seven measures of success? Over the next year we are planning several activities that are designed to start answering that question.

Strategic Planning Task Force — President Bob Ames has asked Past President Whip Seaman to form a Task Force to re-examine GAWDA's mission and create a new strategic plan that supports our core purpose and membership needs.

Consultant Evaluation — GAWDA's consultant program has grown during the past seven years from a revenue generator to now representing 20 percent of our total expenses. We are in the process of gathering data to determine the utilization of these services by our membership to ensure that the benefits justify the costs. A Task Force will be formed in the spring to analyze the data and propose a new consultant model.

Membership Dues — Mergers and consolidation in the gases and welding industry continue to decrease the total number of GAWDA members and, hence, dues revenue. The current dues structure caps dues for the largest companies even as they continue to grow through acquisitions of other GAWDA members. The Executive Director and Treasurer have been given the task of formulating a new dues structure for review by the Board during the Spring Management Conference.

Governance Structure — Are GAWDA's committees, Board of Directors and Executive Committee thinking and acting strategically in alignment with the mission of the organization? To begin answering that question, President-Elect Gary Stoneback and Executive Director Kent Van Amburg attended a two-day workshop, “Exceptional Boards: Strengthening the Leadership Team,” which was sponsored by the American Society of Association Executives.

Regional Structure — GAWDA's underlying strength exists at the grassroots level in the regional zones. In 2006, GAWDA had 14 regional meetings with almost 1,200 attendees—more active and associate members than attended the Spring Management Conference and Annual Convention combined. However, certain zones have no meetings, and many of the existing meetings need assistance with speakers and programming. Staff Membership Director Kate Cole will be working with the Zone Vice Presidents to develop a plan for expanding and strengthening the regional meetings in 2007.

Yogi Berra said, “If you ask me a question I don't know, I'm not going to answer.” At this time, I do not know if GAWDA is “great” or merely “good.” What I do know is now that we have a ruler, we are going to start determining if we meet the “7 Measures of (GAWDA's) Success.”