05/17/2024

Purpose and Products

Make sure your product offers align with your mission and goals

In 2022, Jason Ernest, president and CEO of Insurance Agents & Brokers, led a planning session with his board in order to get the organization out of a rut. The association, which represents professionals in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware, was not in a crisis, but Ernest was concerned that its product portfolio was poorly aligned with IA&B’s overall strategy—and as a result, that the organization was poorly prepared to handle future challenges.

“We were throwing a lot of stuff against the wall in terms of ideas, but it wasn’t in a formal strategic plan format,” he said. “I’d seen some erosion of traditional revenue sources, and mergers and acquisitions within our industry just meant fewer membership opportunities. My point to the board was that we needed to explore nontraditional revenue sources so that we can be sustainable long-term.”

Many associations have boards that regularly generate strategic plans and develop plenty of ideas for products and services. But those ideas aren’t always in sync with the association’s strategy, which means the board risks getting blindsided by industry trends, or they end up sinking resources into irrelevant initiatives.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Associations Now.