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WSAE members are welcome to post blog articles, pending approval of staff admin. Articles posted here will also be considered for inclusion in WSAE's bi-weekly series of e-blasts. Alternatively, please feel free to submit an article for posting through this form. We will review and, if approved, will post here for you. 

Guidelines:

  • The article content should cover an issue relevant to the association industry and of interest to association professionals.
  • Avoid overt, self-serving commercialism.
  • WSAE reserves the right to edit for styles and formatting.
  • In general, WSAE style conforms to the Merriam Webster Collegiate Dictionary and The Associated Press Stylebook.
  • We can be flexible with regards to article length, but roughly 500-1,000 words is appropriate.
  • Artwork/photos are recommended as they enhance readership. Note that appropriate photo releases may be required if the photo(s) include individuals, copyrighted material or trademarked products.
  • We encourage the inclusion of a professional headshot with your article.
  • Please identify each author, position and place of employment. Further, feel free to include a short bio and contact information (email or website only) at the end of the article.
  • Authors should feel free, even encouraged, to share an article after it's been posted with their online networks and connections, linking to the article here.

This opportunity is exclusive for WSAE members. CAE credit is available toward certification renewal.


Women’s Forum: Women Empowered, Building a Community

By Kristin McGuine posted 7 days ago
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Save the Date - September 19, 2023 Women’s Forum: Women Empowered, Building a Community By  Marissa Lopez, CAE Association Executive, Executive Director Incorporated (EDI) Women’s Forum Chair   On behalf of the Women’s Forum Planning Committee, I invite you to save the date for this year's Women's Forum on September 19 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Milwaukee. The goal for this second annual Women’s Forum conference is to expand on the success of the inaugural event held last September. In surveying our members, we learned about some of the key topics of importance to them which helped shape the program for this year’s event. The ...
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Recruiting, retaining top talent requires proactive approach

By Kristin McGuine posted 7 days ago
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Recruiting, retaining top talent requires proactive approach By Kyle Geissler, CAE Vice President, Wisconsin Broadcasters Association WSAE 2023 Board Member There’s no single solution to the recruitment and retention challenges leaders are currently facing, but a proactive approach to talent management can set the stage for success. Dawn Tryba is a professional business coach who spoke at the WSAE Live @ The Osthoff event on May 23. She shared her expertise with a room full of association professionals seeking advice on talent management. All sizes of association organizations are affected by the current talent shortage. About ...
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Unleashing Productivity and Focus: Insights from CJ McClanahan's WSAE LIVE! @ The Osthoff Session

By Kristin McGuine posted 7 days ago
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Unleashing Productivity and Focus Insights from CJ McClanahan's WSAE LIVE! @ The Osthoff Session By Caroline Bowers, Executive Director, Impact AMC Chair, WSAE Communications Committee In a world driven by technology and endless tasks, the pursuit of productivity and focus has become a paramount challenge. Recently, I had the privilege of attending an enlightening session by renowned speaker CJ McClanahan. With a focus on optimizing performance and achieving real results, McClanahan shared invaluable strategies to enhance productivity, manage distractions, and reduce stress. These are my key takeaways from the session.  Shifting your ...
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Celebrating the Successes of the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives in 2023

By Kristin McGuine posted 21 days ago
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Celebrating the Successes of the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives in 2023 Quarterly message from WSAE CEO/President Christina McCoy, CAE Dear WSAE Members, As we move through 2023, we are thrilled to share with you the many successes of the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives (WSAE) to date. Over the past year, our organization has accomplished a great deal, and we are proud to have continued to provide valuable resources and support to our members. Here are just a few highlights of our achievements in 2023: Strong Membership Numbers : We have exceeded our membership budget goal for 2023, and are ...
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WSAE Member Profile - Caroline Bowers, Executive Director, Impact Association Management Company

By Kristin McGuine posted 04-28-2023
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Get to Know WSAE Member  Caroline Bowers Executive Director, Impact Association Management Company Chair, WSAE 2023 Communications Committee How did you end up working in Associations? My career started in nonprofit communications and fundraising. I have worked at several non-profits in other states including Habitat for Humanity chapters in Tennessee and Texas. My passion has always been giving back, providing opportunities to underserved communities, and making volunteer board members’ lives easier. I moved to Madison in 2017 from Austin, Texas. I stayed home with my first child for a year as I acquainted myself with our new city and ...
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From Diversity Audits to Employee Resource Groups: Steps for Creating an Inclusive Workplace Culture

By Kristin McGuine posted 04-28-2023
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By Shawn Elmore, Client Success Manager,  Impact Association Management Company Associations play a critical role in representing the interests of their members and promoting their industries.  However, to achieve their objectives, associations need to create a culture of inclusivity that values diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) principles.  An inclusive culture promotes a positive and welcoming environment for everyone to succeed regardless of their background, race, gender, abilities, or sexual orientation.  In this article, we'll explore how associations can use DEI principles to create a more inclusive workplace culture, along with eight actionable ...
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WSAE Chair's Message: WSAE Continues to Enhance Value Through Member Engagement

By Kristin McGuine posted 03-29-2023
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by Denise Husenica, MBA, CAE , WSAE Chair of the Board of Directors I saw my first robin a couple of weeks ago.   I have two daffodils bravely poking their beautiful yellow heads out of the ground this week. It’s official in my book – Spring is in the air!   I know, I know, Wisconsin has had snow in May, so maybe I am being a bit optimistic. However, I’m confident that warmer weather, budding tress, and green grass is right around the corner. In my last message, I had shared that the WSAE Board’s focus is on improving educational programs, networking opportunities, and maybe even introducing a new program in 2023. Just as Spring has ...
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Foster Inclusion and Belonging with an Event Code of Conduct

By Kristin McGuine posted 03-29-2023
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by John Krapek , Education and Outreach Director at American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) of MN; and Kelly Veit, IOM , Chief Operating Officer at American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) of Wisconsin and WSAE member. 2022 represented an in-person events renaissance for association professionals as members excitedly return to conferences, seminars and tournaments. As schedules continue to heat up, one of the best tools to make sure your organization is living up to its Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging policies is having a Code of Conduct for your events. It gives participants (and staff) assurances that they will be respected ...
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When Your Opportunity Comes, You Have to Be Prepared to Jump

By Kristin McGuine posted 02-16-2023
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When Your Opportunity Comes, You Have to Be Prepared to Jump This article is written by  Adam Albrecht, Founder and CEO of the advertising and idea agency, The Weaponry. He believes the most powerful weapon on Earth is the human mind. He is the author of the book, What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say? Don't miss Adam's presentation, Become the Greatest Influence on Your Own Life, at  WSAE's FOCUS on March 2! This article is published in final print issue of VantagePoint magazine . (You must be logged in to wsae.org to access  VantagePoint  magazine online.)           Every opportunity has a time constraint. If you don’t jump, you ...
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Associations and Cybersecurity Risk

By Kristin McGuine posted 01-24-2023
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Associations and Cybersecurity Risk By Joe Ruskey President, Dependable Solutions Yes, membership and trade associations are at risk. Here’s how you can protect your data and fulfill your fiduciary duty to safeguard your organization. Just like other types of businesses, associations know a serious cybersecurity problem exists “out there”, but many organizations’ staff and leadership feel unequipped to do much about it. A recent survey from Foundry found that 90 percent of respondents believe that not enough is being done to prevent security breaches within their organizations. Here are a few other relevant highlights from the report: ...
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GDPR – Compliance Shouldn’t Be a Headache

By Kristin McGuine posted 05-16-2022
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This article is written by Harriet Jones, a partner at IBB Law in England, specializing in commercial matters including data protection. For more information, visit IBB Law on the web at www.ibblaw.co.uk . This article is published in the  Volume 1, 2022, issue of VantagePoint magazine . (You must be logged in to wsae.org to access VantagePoint magazine online.) The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) caused concern in some parts of the world when it was introduced in 2018. Some businesses thought the only way to be compliant with GDPR was to delete all personal data from their systems. However, although you might need to make a few changes ...
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Accounting for Leases in Financial Statements

By Kristin McGuine posted 04-04-2022
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This article is written by WSAE member Wegner LLP 's Drew Barman, CPA . You can reach Drew via email at drew.barman@wegnercpas.com.  This article is published in the Volume 1, 2022 issue of  VantagePoint magazine . (you must be logged in to wsae.org to access VantagePoint magazine online). 2022 Association Accounting and Tax Updates Part 1: Accounting update The biggest accounting change for associations in 2022 will be lease accounting, as 2022 is the year of required implementation of accounting standard ASC 842. In February 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued new standards on leases – Accounting Standards Update ...
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Counteracting Unconscious Bias

By Kristin McGuine posted 03-06-2022
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This article is written by WSAE member Lisa Koenecke . She offers diversity, equity and inclusion tools, trainings and consultations. Contact her, watch her TEDx Talk or buy her best-selling book: Be An Inclusion Ally at www.lisakoenecke.com . This article is published in the  Winter 2021 issue of  VantagePoint magazine (you must be logged in to wsae.org to access VantagePoint magazine online. Lisa presented at the 2021 WSAE Summit, and will also be presenting part of the session, " Embedding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Your Organization " at  WSAE's  2022 Road Show   on March 10. Counteracting Unconscious Bias Do you remember your ...
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New and Innovative Trends in Association Non-dues Revenue

By Kristin McGuine posted 02-18-2022
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This article is written by Teri Carden , founder of ReviewMyAMS.com, a trusted site for executives to provide end-user reviews of their association management systems (AMS). It is published in the Volume 1, 2022 issue of VantagePoint magazine . Teri will also be presenting her talk, " Eight New Ideas: Not Your Grandma’s Non-Dues Revenue " at WSAE's 2022 Road Show on March 10. New and Innovative Trends in Association Non-dues Revenue Is your association looking for new and innovative sources of non-dues revenue? Duh! Aren’t all associations looking for new sources of non-dues revenue? While average associations get the biggest chunk of annual ...
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Empower Strategy by Incorporating Trends

By Sherry Budziak posted 07-26-2021
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Getting strategic planning right is challenging in the best of times. This season of disruption adds additional complexity and brings significant shifts in perspective that are important to recognize as associations prepare for the years ahead.    I’ve been advising .orgSource clients to integrate strategy across organizational activities since long before the pandemic. If I ever doubted that approach—last year would have convinced me that technology, resources, and culture are equally important in the planning process. And, when the board are visionaries and staff executes, there is flexibility and the opportunity to make adjustments over time.   An ...
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Customer Experience Lifts Service to the Stratosphere

By Sherry Budziak posted 07-19-2021
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These comments from McDonald’s CEO, Chris Kempczinski to New York Times journalist David Gelles describing how the pandemic would change the company’s business resonated with me on a couple of levels.  “We had to pivot to basically being an entirely drive-through, delivery, and curbside pickup business, and I think that’s going to still be an enduring part of this. The app is going to now be the  center of that relationship  with the customer. So in the past, it would be about having birthday parties in the restaurant. Well, if the app is now the center of the experience, how do you deliver fun and excitement and interest through an app? “We build about ...
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Normal Left the Party—Survey Reveals Associations Want Her Back

By Sherry Budziak posted 07-12-2021
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What should we call it—the  New Normal, the Next Normal, Another Normal? Please let go of normal. When the DJ stopped playing oldies, Normal left the party. Since well before the pandemic, I’ve been urging my colleagues and clients to consider that stability in the digital marketplace is a dangerous illusion.   Guiding our association clients toward successful solutions means that the .orgSource team operates with one foot in the future and the other grounded in the reality of our community. To learn where associations stand on an evolving business continuum, we regularly survey our constituents.   This year we book-ended the pandemic, rolling out one ...
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Digital Transformation—Once an Option, Now a Necessity

By Sherry Budziak posted 07-12-2021
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When do you stop having a choice? In May 2019, when the panel discussion below was first published in the .orgSource newsletter, digital transformation probably wasn’t top of mind for most association leaders. Since 2020 taught us that only the digital survive, new strategies and approaches for IT are on every agenda. The question is no longer whether you will become a digital organization, it’s when.   If the last year felt as though you were patching your IT initiatives together with duct tape, this conversation points the way toward integrated solutions that put a digital mindset at the center of your organization’s culture and operations.        As ...
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Labor Shortages Loom—Learn to Hire and Manage Freelancers

By Sherry Budziak posted 07-12-2021
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Anyone who has spent time here in Chicago knows that the weather can change from sunshine to flurries in the time it takes to stroll a block down the Mag Mile.   This fickle about-face seems to be happening everywhere. We spent the last year urging people to stay home. Now the focus has abruptly changed to getting them back on the job.   Signing bonuses and other tempting perks abound. Politico reports that McDonald’s will raise wages by 10 percent for 36,500 workers. And Amazon plans to increase hourly pay by $3 for its US employees.   Yes, the immediate worker shortage is a pandemic fallout. But a larger storm is gathering. The Boomer generation, ...
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Diversity Rules the Global Economy, Step Up to Success

By Sherry Budziak posted 07-12-2021
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We may have all come on different ships, but we are in the same boat now. Martin Luther King, Jr.   The proof that we are citizens of the world, no matter how fiercely we choose to localize, was one of the pandemic’s profound lessons. Technology has created an interdependent global economy. What happens in a province of China that is 7,150 miles away, disrupts life around the planet.   In response, marketers are beginning to attempt to mirror their universe of customers. Today, ads target a spectrum of racial, ethnic, gender, and physical diversity that was invisible as recently as five years ago. But organizations and institutions have a lot of catching ...
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