The FORUM Effect

Connectivity

The February issue of Forum has two other articles on Advocacy: Proactive Advocacy by Brian Bernardoni and Appreciative Advocacy by Sherry Jennings. Their articles and mine touch on different aspects of advocacy and, taken together, provide a number of threads for you to follow.

So does the use of this Weblog system. Since using it over the past few weeks, I've suggested that my President-elect and Communications staff look into using it as part of his monthly message in our journal, and thought about other ways to utilize it. It might be useful in your advocacy program also.

The Forum (both the organization and the magazine) offer us the opportunity to connect otherwise disparate topics, creating new ideas, and making us more effective in all that we do. This connectivity is at the heart of advocacy, which is based on making a connection between your issue and your audience. Be alert for new ways to make your case and stand out from the crowd of competing interests.

More on Member Advocacy

A few additional thoughts to get you started:

• You probably already have members who are active politically, as well as others who are interested, if not active, in politics. Obviously, this is a great place to start in building an association's advocacy program. Identify and receruit these members, as team leaders, instructors, mentors, and evangalists.

• Consider a callout, especially aimed at those who are young members, or those not involved in the organization, to expand the base of advocates.

• Keep in mind that many different skills are useful in  advocacy, and there is room on the team for members with diverse contributions.

• Develop some "light" material to use as training and leave-behinds. Avoid dense, fact-filled papers, in favor of brief brochures that convey general themes about your organization and issues. There is always an opportubity to go deeper when needed, but you ar better to start off in a more inviting manner.

Comments?

Read the Complete February 2009 Digital Edition

   

View the February 2009 digital edition here.

Add a Strong Dose of Ethics to the Marketing Mix

For some individuals marketing may be a questionable enterprise with little concern for ethics. It may be viewed negatively as primarily involving “manipulation” and “spin.” However, in my February article I discuss the importance of ethical marketing and point out that marketing is really about designing, producing and then communicating something (whether a physical product or an idea such as a policy proposal) that meets the needs and expectations of a targeted population segment, consistent with your mission. If an inappropriate tactic results in short term gain, but fails to deliver promised value and ultimately leads to member/customer turnover, then any immediate benefits are overshadowed by long run harm to the organization.

Take a look at my article in the February issue and share your thoughts on how to create a strong marketing culture in your organization, while doing so in ways that develop the trust and confidence of management and the board in the ethical nature of marketing efforts.

Doug Klegon, PhD, FACHE, Strategic Communications

You’ve Identified Leadership as a Strategic Priority – Now What?

Development of future leaders for the Association of Rehabilitation Nurses (ARN) and within the rehabilitation nursing profession were two significant objectives that surfaced during a recent comprehensive strategic planning initiative. Since that time, after speaking with several association peers, I've found that many other association's strategic planning efforts have revealed the same need.  Many final plans have some form of "leadership development" as a goal. In our February FORUM article, Karen Nason and I have shared how ARN approached the challenge and we would love to hear feedback from others in the association community.

 

1. Has your association developed a strategic plan that includes leadership development as a goal?

2. Where and how are you finding your associations next generation leaders? 

3.  Once identified, how are you preparing volunteers to lead your organization?

Thank for your interest and your feedback.

Mary Beth Benner, Senior Manager, Association of Rehabilitation Nurses, Glenview, IL