Posts filed under 'Organizational Management'
The Fragile Economics of Vital Association Resources
The principles of economics can be applied to so many facets of life. I must confess that I’m a graduate of the hard-knocks school of economics as the mere word conjures painful memories of my college days at the University of Kentucky where I began and ended my formal institutional economics studies. Economics is a language in and of itself; however, when you add a professor full of admirable enthusiasm and intellect yet challenged by his own mastery of the English language, economics can be a bewildering road for a young college student.
Despite that rough start, I have grown to love my education in economics from an experiential standpoint over the past fifteen years since that first formal encounter. Aside from my wife’s Uncle being an economist and professor, I’ve discovered that economics is as much behavioral as it is financial… perhaps more so as the world economic crisis is proving these days. Behavioral economics is a field that I believe we all, as association executives, should explore in the context of our associations. All of which brings me to the point of this posting.
There may still be an antiquated misconception out there in some circles of management thought that if an association pays its hierarchy of staff, however towering or flat, a package of salary and fringe benefits that they somehow undergo a transmorgifying elevation to superhuman status in which their productivity and mastery of workload and work culture remains constant and of high quality regardless of how we expand, stretch, twist, push, pull, pinch, stretch, sigmafy or pivot our delegatory expectations of them.
The simple fact is human beings succumb to both the supply/demand principles of economics as well as the emotional volatility of behavioral economics in navigating work roles and responsibilities. The greater the demands we place upon our staff, the more limited the supply of quality and positive emotion, both of which impact workload and culture. Conversely, the more we focus and manage the demands placed upon our human capital, the better the odds that we will create an even balance of positivity and productivity.
Put another way, you simply cannot overload and drown your people in their workload and expect a consistently high quality result no matter how much they are paid. People are human and they have their limits. The key is to either find the right balance of workload and mix of talent or to open the floodgates, dial back those expectations and prepare for crisis communication.
Finally, just as the threat of the dreaded influenza begins to creep back into our association workplace as the frozen days of winter approach, so too does the contagious risk of poor morale, output and negative work culture via the equally infectous epidemic of stress in the workplace.
So, as we move forward into the lean days of economic downturn and recessionary thought, let’s try not to think in terms of doubling up responsbilities as budget line items tighten and expenses hit the chopping block. Rather, forge a downturn strategy, adjust and prioritize the level of workload, expend some of that hard-earned capital with your board and keep your precious human resources functioning in a high quality, productive and emotionally healthy manner. Continue advancing that mission at a marathon pace.
If none of the above made any sense whatosever, here’s a final thought/scenario which may be more relatable. Imagine you had to travel to a weeklong board meeting in Borneo and due to airline restrictions could only bring one carry-on suitcase. No matter how you slice it or dice it, you are still contrained to that one tiny wardrobe-on-wheels wonder. Can you create some additional capacity by being creative and ingenious? of course…. can you pack the exact same amount of clothes and chattels that you would have given your much larger wardrobe-on-wheels wonder? well, you might try but you are sure to reach capacity and in the process you may pack the suitcase so tight that it either won’t close or that worn-out zipper will finally crumble under the pressure and permanently head off it’s zippery track rendering your loyal travel companion useless and destined for the place de-zippered suitcases go when the tragically zig when they were supposed to zag (of course, it doesn’t typically happen when you are had home packing to leave… somehow the suitcase gods reserve this special catastrophic event for when you are frantically re-packing that suitcase in your hotel room to either get to the meeting or airport on time).
Whether you stretch or shrink staff, even the most ingenious team will not be able to maintain the previously expected capacity. Be mindful of the fragile economics of association staff and management and keep moving forward in a positive direction. SM
2 comments October 22, 2008
Contemplating the Future Impact of Cause and Effect in Associations
Parting with a proud legacy of literary tradition, I will begin this posting with the conclusion… so, in conclusion:
We cannot let the effect of our past become the cause of our future.
I would encourage you to apply this thought as much to your personal life as your association life; however, since this blog is entitled “Assocation 2020″ and not “Life 2020″, I will focus on the association implications.
As our associations ramp up for the future building upon the tradition of the past, the effect of our past can yield both good news and bad news. After all, if you are indeed ramping up for the future, it means a series of positive outcomes have likely transpired in the past which contributed to the current existence of your association. At the same time, our associations often carry allot of baggage from all that may have gone wrong in the past, which creeps into the present to influence future consideration.
Simply put, in our rapidly changing world nobody can reach the future by living a disproportionate existence in the past. Further, the conditions which existed in the past have likely changed since that time setting the stage for your association to refocus itself on the future. Ask the question, ”are we truly building a future or only working to preserve the past?”.
Well-intentioned stakeholders, staff and leaders alike, can often become comfortable within their association lives leading to an intensification of status quo. The good news is institutional history, knowledge and continuity can be a positive side effect; however, other side effects may include: regressive behavior, vision fatigue, suppresion of new ideas, blockage of fresh leaders, technology avoidance, low risk tolerance and, of course for you, bouts with sleeplessness. In rare cases, declining membership and loss of professional appetite has been reported.
Put another way, we cannot let the successes and failures of the past become the dominant focus of our association’s future. We must evolve, experiment and engage new generations of members, leaders and staff. In doing so, we can maintain our focus on the world of new possibilities which surround us these days as association executives.
Here’s a question to ask yourself: “If my association did not exist and the original founders knocked on my door today asking if I would help them build this association from scratch, what would it look like?”
Are your allowing the effect of your past to be the cause of your future? SM
Add comment October 2, 2008
Using social capital measurement as a predictor of future success or failure within your association
I’ve been truly blessed in my career to be able to combine a wide breadth of professional experiences with an even larger variety of teachers who I’ve had the good fortune to cross paths with. As you move along in your career journey, the combination of these elements begin to reveal patterns which illuminate potential truths that may often be overlooked by the general population. Time-tested universal logic and wisdom becomes tools for us all to apply to our associations. In this posting, I will share with you what I believe to be one such truth as it relates to the state of our association world.
If you ask the typical association executive how he or she might predict whether or not their association would succeed or fail in the future, chances are you might hear a seemingly canned response full of management, operations and strategic diagnostic assessment covering everything from strategic planning to long-term investment portfolios to new product/resource development to technology to membership recruitment to research to competitive educational programs to advocacy to etc to etc to etc. I think you get the picture.
While in many ways the above elements are certainly crucial to a healthy and functioning association, I believe the true answer, above all else, is social capital… and not just social capital, but the highest degree of social capital possible.
Social capital has been defined by writers, such as Robert Putnam (in Bowling Alone) and Peter Block (in Community – The Structure of Belonging), as the overall quality of relationships and cohesion within a community.
Putnam suggests that social capital is about acting on and valuing our interdependence and sense of belonging… the extent to which we extend hospitality and affection to one another. Building on Putnam’s assessment, Peter Block suggests that “we need to create a community where each citizen has the experience of being connected to those around them and knows that their safety and success are dependent on the success of all others.”
Personally, I’ve seen the factor of social capital drive success and failure in a variety of “community” settings throughout my career, ranging from my sixth grade rock band and high school football team to the world of state/national politics and, yes, our beloved associations.
In essence, on paper an association might give the healthy appearance of being poised for a strong and secure future only to be disintegrating from the core. Could your association be disintegrating at the core over declining social capital?
By now, you are likely focusing your thoughts and analysis on your various membership segments and the degree to which they may or may not feel a sense of cohesion and belonging within your association. You may even be contemplating how well your association’s bundle of resources, opportunities and networking structure is advancing social capital at the individual and group level. Finally, I’m almost certain that as a seasoned association executive you are wondering how you can measure, benchmark and track social capital and it’s impact on the growth, activity and success of your association.
At this point, if you’re thoughts are precisely at the same place as my thoughts above then I would heartily congratulate us all for overlooking the a significant foundation and factor for the successful cultivation of social capital within our associations… our staff.
Yes, it is true that we are all “paid” staff and in keeping with the traditional fallacy of economic enrichment let’s celebrate for a moment the desperately flawed assumption that a clear definition of job responsibilities, adequate compensation, leave time and fringe benefits automatically assures a high degree of social capital and personal investment within our staff structure.
Simply put, unless the heart is beating the rest of the body isn’t going very far.
It is quite possible to have the most talented and experienced group of people comprising your staff structure yet fail miserably for a lack of cohesion and sense of belonging (aka social capital) which, if unaddressed, may only worsen over time leading to decline in social capital cultivation with members/volunteer leaders and the ultimate “extinction” of staff. Your workplace will become overly stressful, the best and brightest won’t likely stick around and those who do remain are likely the ones whose only goal within your association is to collect that paycheck.
Think of your staff as a mirror image reflection of the social capital within your association.
Okay, so here we are. We’ve pinpointed the source of social capital, right? I’m afraid we’re likely wrong once again. After all, our staff is in place to answer the marching orders of our governing boards and councils and if these volunteer member leaders fail to espouse the creation of social capital with membership and staff alike then the leadership is to blame, right? Well, let’s not jump to hasty conclusions just yet.
Ultimately, I believe the most powerful source of social capital creation with your association is none other than you… regardless of your role or scope of responsibility. Our volunteer leaders certainly have a great deal of authority within our associations, but remember that leaders come and go while staff remains the constant, leaving you with considerable influence.
When we commit ourselves to living and measuring our own success by the impact we have on the success of others, the ideal environment is created all around us for the cultivation of social capital. More broadly, I also believe you can apply this principle to any aspect of your life.
Let’s face it, if we aren’t helping others succeed aren’t we in a way allowing them to fail? Granted, sometimes we take great satisfaction in seeing others fail, such as anyone major league baseball team playing the Chicago Cubs (sorry, couldn’t resist); however, we are talking about the construction and maintenance of an environment of intended cohesion and belonging, not a competitive environment. Think Chicago Cubs fans unified around the ultimate success of that elusive world series pennant, not the more general community of major league baseball fans, with the one caveat being if the day were to arrive when the future of major league baseball as a whole is threatened. Though alliances is not intended to be part of this posting, there clearly is significance in terms of social capital well beyond our own associations that I might address at a later date.
Nonetheless, if you characterize the conditions within your association as intensely competitive, then it may already be too late. Think of it this way, social capital is the essence of the phrase “good-of-the-order”.
For some reason, the primary motivation in the traditional management world is more often than not negative motivation. In essence, we are often conditioned to believe that if we do a good job then our economic security is assured and that if we fail it may ultimately cost us our jobs. The topic of “risk” always factors prominently in the minds and weighs heavily on the shoulders of association executives, especially at the CEO level. But regardless of your role, ask yourself which of the following most closely resembles your association:
Association A: If we take a calculated risk, our primary concern is the impact of failure.
Association B: If we take a calculated risk, our primary concern is the impact of success.
In other words, some associations camp on the question of “what if it doesn’t work”, while others work from the perspective of “what if it does”. Which of these two environments do you think has the greatest abundance of social capital and potential for future success?
As association executives at any level of management or responsibility, our role is not only to ensure the execution of marching orders issued by our governing leadership, but also to serve as dynamic leaders and facilitators of social capital within our associations at all levels. Let’s face it, if social capital disappears from your association, the next vanishing act may be that of your association.
Think of social capital as a measurable predictor of success, stagnation or failure within your association. Why? Because the degree to which members, leaders and staff feel a sense of cohesion, belonging, purpose and investment within the association will directly impact future output and action at all levels.
From the very beginning, the driving principle of associations has been rooted in the recognition that our success ultimately depends on the success of others. Put another way, if our success is driven by the desire for personal gain and not the ultimate success of others, then there is little chance for survival on both an individual and collective level. However, if we focus our energy and service on helping others succeed for the good of the whole, then we all succeed. After all, I don’t know too many people who if given the option would prefer to fail than to succeed.
Now for the million-dollar question, how do you cultivate, measure and track social capital? Well, if you’ve read or heard me talk about my concept of Association EQ, then you likely know what I’m about to say. I would argue that social capital is not driven by logic, rather it is rooted in emotion. Remember, we are talking about a “sense” of belonging, cohesion, healthy relationships, connecting, and experiences as contributors to social capital. I might suggest a slightly simplified definition of social capital as “a cohesively unifying state of emotional well-being”.
Regardless, my point is the measure of social capital may very well be the measure of emotion as behavioral economics suggests that the majority of people base economic decisions based upon emotion rather than logic. So, if the desire of your association is to strenghten and expand your base of people (including members, volunteers, staff and other stakeholders) then you must measure the degree of emotional attachment to your association as a whole and in its parts. Here’s where it’s time to get real in bringing psychology into play.
At this point, I have reminded myself that my goal was to write a blog posting rather than a book. Given the many dimensions of this issue materializing in my mind I am going to create a related series of postings in near future to further explore ideas for putting social capital cultivation into practice within your association. Stay tuned!
Add comment September 19, 2008
Survival Tips for Managing Innovation … It’s Evolutionary!
One of my favorite expressions is that often times “ignorance is bliss”. For the innovators out there who love envisioning the future and the changes which must be made today, survival is rooted in either an exceptionally thick outer layer of skin or, perhaps, divine naivity.
If you fall somewhere between these two extremes, here are some tips for the day to keep you moving forward:
- Maintain a strong focus on the outcome of your vision when weathering the present and future challenges you face.
- Revolutionary ideas are referred to as “revolutionary” for a reason… they often first cause “revolt”. However, always remember that it’s easier for others to dismiss an idea or believe to be crazy rather than to admit they might not be able to see that which may seem so clear to you.
- Involve stakeholders in the process as early as possible to uncover potential pitfalls and invest them in the process.
- Cultivate a strong yet open-mind to house your conviction and a loving heart rooted in a deep appreciative understanding of people.
- Always remember that when leading your organization or providing leadership from where you stand, the best path to successful change is through inclusive participation and evolutionary stages.
Keep moving forward!
Add comment August 27, 2008
Exploring the Stigma of Sigma and What it Means to you as an Association Executive
First there was TQM, then there was Six Sigma, only to be followed by generations of confused people trying to understand what it all means and how it relates to what we do within associations.
The language of the business world has done much over the years to often de-simplify those things which should be the common sense focus of our organizations on both an internal and external level. Authors, speakers, philosophers, gurus, academics, consultants… they all have a vested interest in creating and cultivating the next pseudo-mystical business strategy spin-find which converts basic human principles into a high brow, seemingly out-of-reach, technical science.
When one boils down the basic principles that are addressed by most new age business theories, one might wonder if there is actually anything new or if that latest buzzworthy business trend is yet another overly complex re-mixed cover of the same old tune.
Take behavioral economics for example. Scholars, economists and nobel prize winners devoted years to drawing the conclusion that people, regardless of intellectual capacity, more often than not make decisions based upon impulsive emotion rather than available facts.
Think about it… smoking, drinking, gambling, speeding, political scandal, illicit affairs, American Idol, Louis Vitton handbags, the institution of celebrity, white collar crime, vacation homes, time-shares, imported luxury cars, the sub-prime mortgage market, the sub-prime mortgage market collapse… people are not drawn or deterred by the practical implications of their behavior because, more often than not, they are too busy smoldering in that heated moment, however fleeting, or temporary the emotional fulfillment. We either know or should know the practical consequences, yet that sticky human imperfection of emotion drives us there anyway.
Emotion drives value and price.
I don’t blame anyone in particular because all that I’ve mentioned above has been made necessary by the human need for emotional ownership and mastery over one’s destiny.
In my mind, the reality is effective business strategy is about one thing, and one thing only… PEOPLE. Not only the people who consume, but also the people who govern… the people who lead… and the people who create.
In an overly simplistic way, business and organizational success just may be a result of people doing a great job working together toward a well-defined mutual purpose.
Likewise, business and organizational breakdown may equally be the result of a breakdown or series of breakdowns between people, even in light of economic job security and the need to produce results, brought about by the complex and unpredictable nature of human beings. This might explain why corporate mergers or acquisitions seldom live up to their hype.
Consider this, what if the universal mission of all associations and business organizations, social responsibility aside, was PEOPLE.
It doesn’t matter if it was my idea, their idea or your idea… we would make our decisions based upon that which will help our member/customer. Incentives would be built around helping our members/customers. Complex business processes would be built around that which creates the most useful experience for our members. Budgets would be developed to maximize our relationship with our people.
In subscribing to the theory of behavioral economics, I would argue that people are the product because products, alone, don’t generate revenue… it’s the people who join, purchase or subscribe to them that does, regardless of whether you are dealing in tangibles or intangibles. Rather than conform a product to target segments of people… why not start with the people and build the products or services around them.
Programs, services, benefits, products, experiences… all would be created only because our members/customers asked directly for it or we were able to infer such from a close examination of our members/customers in their natural setting.
It seems so simple, but why doesn’t it work more often in practice? The answer is the same as the solution… PEOPLE.
The Ultimate Association Strategy? Keep your membership as the driving force for everything you do… serve the masses and provide opportunities for the nurturing of narrower previously disenfranchised niche interests, always keeping in mind that if members and customers disappear… so do we… and it won’t matter how snazzy that big fancy scientific business strategy was. Create opportunities, at all levels, for members to invest themselves in your association not just on a financial level, but most importantly on a personal and emotional level.
The Ultimate Association Executive Strategy? If you want to succeed as a leader or executive in the association realm or any other field… master the art of people on all sides of the equation…and the rest will feel more like a downhill battle. Understand the truth that people lead and act from where they stand, basing their behavior on the collection of skills, good/bad experiences, insecurities, fears, successes/failures, responsibilities and relationships they have accumulated to present day.
Add comment August 21, 2008
The Reverse Flow of Future Organizational Development within Associations
As associations, I belive the time is fast approaching, if not already here, to begin turning our organizations upside down. To the CFOs and Board members out there, take a deep breath as this isn’t what it might sound like.
Traditionally, the development of formal organizational structure often began as a Board mandate to create a particular layer or level of organizational bureaucracy. Leaders were identified, appointed and charged with the responsibility of creating a critical mass. Staff typically join in this process as well. By its very nature, traditional association structure carries the air of exclusivity for its strong reliance on established networks of insiders to manage the work. Newcomers have always faced a daunting journey into the inner core.
Moving toward the future, we stand on the brink of a greatly improved method not only to build organizational structure but to do so with expanded participation, self-identification and inclusivity which translates into ownership, engagement and loyalty. Thanks to the rise of social networking and media, new groups will emerge on the strength of their own shoulders organically. Communities of Practice become an incubator for expanded organizational structure. Even more, smaller and more narrow niches can reach a critical mass largely without the need for staff resources. On the other end of the spectrum, emerging specialities and focus areas can hone mass participation into formal organizational structure without.
In essence, our associations stand the chance to become true member-driven democracies, making participation, volunteerism and cohesion between like-minded members easier than ever. To get there, the governing mentality of associations must reverse its conception of the way their organizations are grown. We must plant the seeds, step out of the way and see what grows. We cannot be afraid of loosening control. SM
Add comment August 19, 2008
