Daily Buzz: Why Your Association Needs a Learning Strategy

Every association deals with the “new”—new projects, initiatives, policies, and people are constantly filtering in and out of every workday. But with so much change, it can be easy for employees to miss out on the information and current happenings that affect the overall organization and its members.

That’s why every association needs a learning strategy, according to a post on the WBT Systems blog  (opens in a new tab). It gives the collective team a framework for understanding how and why decisions are made, as well as the informational tools needed to prioritize limited resources.

With an overarching learning strategy to guide your association, you’ll be able to create an educational plan that will accurately and efficiently drive the development of the group’s goals and strategies.

“For example, let’s say your strategy prioritizes training in a particular skill in response to market demands. However, you only have one webinar and two conference sessions scheduled on that topic. You may need to add an online program and a microcredential that demonstrates mastery of that skill,” says the WBT Systems team. “Your association’s learning strategy helps departments work together to more efficiently and effectively deliver value to members and others in your professional community.”

Know Before You Grow

Your idea of starting and building an online community may be wildly different than what your senior leaders expect. Gain some clarity by asking these 5 questions. #cmgr  (opens in a new tab) #onlinecommunities  (opens in a new tab) #strategy  (opens in a new tab) #askquestions  (opens in a new tab) #assnchat  (opens in a new tab) https://t.co/5lKIXok67i  (opens in a new tab) pic.twitter.com/2iRYeVeFEI  (opens in a new tab)

— Community by Association (@CommunitybyAssn) October 23, 2018  (opens in a new tab)

Sure, you know the benefit an online community can have on an organization—but developing one from nothing is another story. “There are new community managers being asked to do that very thing all the time because their senior leadership doesn’t fully understand how building and growing online communities from the ground up work,” says Marjorie Anderson in a post on Community by Association  (opens in a new tab). “This creates an impossible situation for the community manager and if the community fails, it makes it appear as though the community manager wasn’t cut out for the job when, in fact, the expectations of those in charge were unrealistic.”

Before diving into the task, Anderson suggests finding out more information, such as why your organization needs an online community, what purpose it will fulfill, and who it will serve.

Other Links of Note

Which platforms should you focus your social media efforts on? Colleen Dilenschneider from Know Your Own Bone breaks down the data behind which social platforms are most important to your organization  (opens in a new tab).

Innovation doesn’t happen overnight. Jeffrey Cufaude from Idea Architects shares four lessons that push innovation forward  (opens in a new tab).

Exhibiting any of these four signs shows it might be time to reassess your leadership style  (opens in a new tab), from Inc.

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