Executive Management
October 2008

Budgeting Philosophy

A question that is surely on everyone's mind right now, as no one, except perhaps those who are nearing 80 years old and who lived during the Great Depression, has experienced such a time of financial uncertainty as we are in now. So, with that caveat, it may be useful to focus on six things we do know.

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Executive Management
July 2008

What are Strategic or Organizational Values?

Strategic values are sometimes defined as the "glue" that holds an organization together.  In effect, values act as a sort of constitution that clearly defines what an organization stands for both for those inside as well as outside any given organization.

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ASAE
July 2008

Moving from Corporate Sponsorship to Corporate Partnership

Nonprofit and for-profit organizations have been long considered uncomfortable bed-mates. Associations may actively seek corporate sponsorship dollars or otherwise offer corporations a means by which to participate financially in their activities even while being protective of the level of influence these companies may want to exercise over their program content. To corporations this sensitivity might look like associations are saying: “Your money is welcome; now please go away!”—and in many cases this is not far from the truth.

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PlesusConsulting
July 2008

The Power of Partnership Book Review

All too often, the big dreams of visionary leaders are rendered smaller – or worse, nonstarters – by the resource limitations of a single organization. But pool the power of two or more complementary organizations that share a goal, and those dreams can become realities. Indeed, smart organizations view the pursuit of carefully chosen alliances as integral to strategy. They achieve more in partnership with other organizations than would otherwise be possible.

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Executive Management
June 2008

Long-Term Implications of Current Trends

It seems to me that this discussion touches on a number of interesting trends that have very long term implications for us all--individually, organizationally and nationally. Some are: rising energy costs; increased concern about our carbon footprints; personal quality of life concerns; and generational differences in technology comfort levels.

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Executive Management
April 2008

Common Sense Boundaries to Political Expression

All Americans know they have a Constitutional right to express their political opinions, but not everyone realizes there are common sense limits to these rights--that sometimes this right can cause problems for other employees or (especially!) paying stakeholders or customers who may not share their opinions.

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Global Link
January 2008

Following the Flag

Alphabetical listings of associations in the United States always have their largest number of names in the “A” column—partly because many start with the word “association” but also because many names start with the descriptive word “American.” Is this a help or a handicap when operating in markets outside the United States?

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