Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute (PMMI)

Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute (PMMI)
4350 N. Fairfax Drive
Suite 600
Arlington, VA 22203
703-243-8555
[www.packexpo.com]
Contact: Joshua Caulfield, Director of New Media

CEO: Charles Yuska
Budget: $10 - 25 Million
Staff Size: 21 - 50

Plexus Consulting Group, LLC
1620 Eye Street, NW
Suite 210
Washington, DC 20006
Phone:  202-785-8940
Fax:      202-785-8949
Email:   info@plexusconsulting.com

Vital Stats:

The Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute (PMMI) is a trade association whose 477 members manufacture packaging and packaging-related converting machinery in the United States and Canada.

The Challenge | The Solution | The Process | Recommendations for Success

The Challenge

Provide meaningful communications between PMMI staff and its members – by disseminating only information that is relevant, when it’s wanted and in a format that is preferred. It was clear the organization was working hard to reach its members, but it may not have been working smart. Members complained of receiving too much information while multiple staff departments were frustrated by the lack of response/interest shown by members to their individual events and activities. Each staff department knew little about the activities of other staff departments.

The Solution

PMMI worked with an outside consulting firm to establish an audit of its current communications. The objective of this Communications Audit was to provide a review of PMMI’s current communications activities between staff and members – specifically identify pain points in current communications and recommendations to improve communication in the future.

The Process

The scope of the project included the following:
Review all existing relevant membership surveys to understand the current needs and wants of the target audience.
Review all relevant communications measurement tools, including open and click through rates on current e-communications.
Assess the current time investment staff expended in the production and dissemination of information
Identify satisfaction and frustration with the current process.
Assess the ideal future state of communications with each stakeholder

Plexus Consulting Group recommended that the NAA-NSA poll its membership to develop statistically significant data about various name choices and explanatory "tag-lines." Following the internal survey, a telephone survey of select "external" audiences would be conducted to provide further insight into whether or not the selected name conveyed the "right" message to selected target audiences.

Member Survey
The consultant interviewed a cross section of members. All questions were designed to capture qualitative information about how members interact with PMMI and the value they place in the information they receive.

Findings from Member Survey
The primary member contact was possibly in receipt of 300+ association emails in a year’s time. They liked being involved but wanted other members of their company to receive information directly. Members placed a priority on certain types of communication and almost ignored other categories

Staff Survey
The consultant interviewed department heads and executive committee members. All interviews were conducted in face to face meetings. The survey tool was created to draw out of each responsdent their understanding of the organizations overall priorities vs. their own departmental priorities.

Findings from Staff Survey
The ability to communicate was hindered by a lack of access to multiple employees in a member organization, creating a chokepoint in the dissemination of information of a operational, technical, human resource nature.

Each staff department has its own initiatives and priorities that require member feedback and response and each department had autonomy to communicate with the membership. There was little branding of each departments communication, lessening its impact upon receipt.

There were multiple databases within the organization, with each department collecting their own list of “key contacts,” increasing the difficulty of monitoring the level of information a member may have received.

Recommendations for Success

- Organize communications around PMMI’s overarching strategies.
- Link databases, website and communications for greater synergy
- Ensure the success of a member-administered communications selection system called: My PMMI
- Elevate and expand design standards to ensure all communication is branded