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As the end of the year approaches, board members often start to plan for the upcoming year.  These plans focus on improvements that benefit the membership and strengthening the financial health of the association.  Prioritizing these plans can be a struggle due to demands on time and money.

 

Often the association's membership is unaware of many of the challenges and plans of the board.  This is not necessarily due to lack of communication. These plans could be in the early stages of discussion and the specific details are too unknown to share with the members. However, it can still be a good idea to post plans under consideration on the association's website. This enables members to help develop the plan by volunteering their time and providing insight.

 

 

While the board will have their own ideas for areas of improvement, it is a good idea to ask the members for additional ideas. This keeps the members involved in the process and may highlight some areas the board did not realize need improving.  

 

Asking for feedback from the membership also instills a feeling that the members are part of the association. This involvement is likely to result in more projects being accomplished and in a variety of areas.  Each membership association is made up of people with diverse backgrounds and talents. The more an association can focus this energy to help improve the association the more successful the association will be for its members.

 

 

A majority of members are likely to want to help accomplish the planned improvements. But, limited time is a factor that keeps projects from moving forward. Assigning more members to a project will spread out the workload and create peer pressure. Therefore, members are more likely to follow through on their assigned tasks. 

 

It is also the board's responsibility to communicate these projects and the progress to the other members of the association.  Creating a projects page on the association's website will help organize this information and give the members a single place to go for the latest updates.  The website can also be used to send mass emails to the members reminding them the information is available online.  Effective tools and a clear plan will help any association accomplish their improvements.
 

The board members of an association have a responsibility to do what is in the best interest of the association's members. This is an important responsibility regardless if the association is based on social activities or professional affiliation.  It is also important to keep in mind that the board members' choices also have a direct impact on all members of the association.

 

 

It is the primary responsibility of board members to do what best benefits the association.  This includes putting the association ahead of their own interests.  However, questions may arise when a board member uses their personal knowledge, expertise and business contacts.

 

Therefore, it is important to ensure that all decisions avoid any claim for a conflict of interest.  These claims and situations can lead to other members becoming dissatisfied with that board member and the association as a whole. Conflicts of interest are viewed more negatively when they impact the financial well being of the association.

 

 

Often these conflicts can be due to a misunderstanding or due to lack of communication. The more board members are able to communicate their decisions and the reasons for those decisions, the less likely these decisions will cause confusion. When communicating these decisions, it is important to show that other vendors were reviewed and neutral options were explored.  All board members should also be in agreement with these types of decisions.  

 

To make sure all members are aware of the decisions being made and the reasoning for these decisions, it is best to post the details on the association's website. This keeps all members equally informed so that there is not a concern that important information is being withheld.  

Board meetings are intended to serve the membership of the association.  These meetings normally occur monthly or on some other recurring basis. During these meetings, association members may attempt to redirect the discussion to items that are not on the meeting's agenda.

 

Prior to each meeting, an agenda needs to be developed which will serve as a guide for the topics the meeting will cover.  So that all members have an understanding of the topics that will be covered at the meeting, it is important to share the agenda with all members prior to the meeting.  Membership Space's Association Management Software provides an efficient means to post the agenda on the association's website.  Members can also be sent a mass email or text message through the website to let them know the agenda has been posted. 

 

 

There are many reasons why a meeting will stray off the agenda and onto different topics.  Most often, something said will result in somebody else remembering a point they wanted to share.  When this happens, it is the responsibility of the person running the meeting to stop the conversation and let the person know their topic will be added as a new topic for discussion later in the meeting. 

 

When a meeting remains on topic, the meeting will be more productive and move along quicker. It is also easier for the secretary to document the decisions in the minutes when the discussion remains on the topics listed on the agenda. Sometimes it is the secretary who can best get everybody back on topic by asking the group what they should write into the minutes regarding the agenda's topic.  

 

 

By referring to the agenda, the matters important to the association can be covered and documented in the minutes. The secretary can then post the minutes to the association's website using association management software. The software makes it easy and non-technical for administrators to add information for association members to read.

Ideally, meetings are designed to coordinate progress in a membership organization. Therefore, the more often meetings are held, the more progress that should be achieved. However, meetings can also feel like the same topics keep being covered with little progress being made. 

 

Communication is also a key benefit of regular board meetings. By posting information on your membership website, members are encouraged to be involved, help with projects and spread the word about upcoming events. So, what is your organization doing to focus on progress and communication?

 

 

The agenda is the most important tool to keep meetings organized and on topic.  An organized meeting will be more productive. However, it is easy for a meeting to get off track people voice their ideas. It is important for the meeting organizer to pause the conversation and make a note to discuss the new topic at a later time during the meeting. 

 

When preparing the agenda for a meeting, be sure to include all topics that emerged since the previous meeting. This will ensure all topics were covered so that members do not feel their item was ignored.  This also helps the organization focus on making progress both during and after each meeting.

 

 

After each meeting, encourage members to visit the membership's website for the minutes from the meeting along with any special announcements. This is especially important if a decision was made at a meeting that all members need to be made aware. The website is also a great tool for members to submit questions to the board members which may need to be added to the agenda for the next meeting.

There is more to a budget than estimating the revenue and expenses of the membership organization.  The intent of a budget is to establish a financial plan based on both expected and unexpected matters that may arise.  It is also important for the membership's management to plan for an increase in savings in case revenue is too low or expenses are too high.

 

Because a budget is based on the unknown, a best practice is to overestimate expenses while underestimating revenue.  This would minimize any risk associated with a shortfall in cash and reduce the need to ask members for a special dues payment to replenish the bank account.

 

 

The more that can be known about the operations of your organization the easier it is to eliminate inconsistencies for your membership's budget. The easiest items to enter on the budget are the items with a fixed cost. Some of your contractors may provide their services for a fixed fee or for a contractual amount determined on an annual basis. Therefore, it is important to receive a fee confirmation from these vendors  prior to completing the budget. 

 

The next most important items on the membership budget are items that are a high dollar amount expense. These items might be an annual event, a product that has to be replenished or a capital improvement. More time should be spent on these items so that the amount can be more certain.  It is also important to determine the likelihood that your membership management organization will be able to stick to the budgeted amount for these items.

 

 

When members review the budget, they will have a better understanding of the organization and where their money is being spent. Therefore, it is important to post your annual budget on a website that uses membership management software. With our membership software, members will be able to log into the website, access documents and submit messages when they need help. This makes the budgeting and communication process easier for everybody.
 

Most membership associations have periodic expenses that can be a substantial portion of the operating budget. If property is owned, there could be a parking lot needing resurfaced. There could be a key piece of software that needs to be replaced every 10 years. It is important to plan for these significant expenses by setting up a reserve fund for each project. 

 

When the board creates a savings plan for a reserve fund it is normally based on how far into the future the special project is expected to happen and the total costs that would be required. The necessary dollar amount to be added to the reserve fund each year can then be calculated by taking the expected expense divided by the number of years remaining. The membership association's treasurer can then add a line item for each special project in the annual budget.  

 

 

Because reserve funds are based on something that is expected to happen several years in the future, many variables can change during that timeframe. The cost of building materials could increase. New companies could enter the market and drive down prices. The needs of the special project could also increase or decrease.  Because of this uncertainty, it is important to have the mindset that a reserve fund is intended to help the association have a majority of the money it may need to survive the large, future expenditure. 

 

Some associations get into financial trouble because they focus only on the short term when spending money and creating the annual budget. As a result, reserve funds and large future expenses are not taken into consideration. While some membership associations may think they are keeping annual dues low, they are actually putting the association's viability at risk. So, what should be done?

 

 

It is up to the board to focus on long term and maintain the financial viability of the membership association. While all members would like to keep expenses and annual dues low, any short term gain would be short lived. Once it comes time to accomplish the special project, a lack of funds will certainly upset the association's members. In these situations, a special assessment would need to be passed to the members to raise the necessary funds. This can likely lead to members leaving and refusing to pay which will lead to the inability for the membership association to continue to operate. 

 

It is important for the board to realize that members want to be part of the association and want the association to succeed. By communicating the financial plan to the membership, an increase in dues to cover operating expenses and setting aside funds for special projects will be well received. To increase transparency and provide better documentation for these plans, it is a good idea to create a special page on the membership association's website that provides all of the details. 

As a member of a membership organization it is important to know the bylaws and how they benefit the members. Bylaws are the rules and guidelines for how the organization is to operate and the structure of the leadership roles. Bylaws also provide specifics for making changes to the bylaws.

 

It is important that the bylaws and all other established rules are accessible by the members. Members most often reference the bylaws when there are questions regarding leadership responsibilities, voting rights and representation at meetings. The membership organization's website is the perfect place to provide this information.  

 

 

Members may or may not agree with the wording in the membership's bylaws. Even when there are negative reactions to the bylaws, it is important that the board continues to follow the wording. Otherwise, accountability and trust within the organization will break down.

 

Bylaws should not be considered to be set in stone. Organizational needs and industry trends will result in the bylaws needing updated to effectively address the needs of the members. The board should periodically review the bylaws and seek input from the other members regarding when and if the wording is needing changed.

 

 

Requests to change the bylaws can also be initiated from the members. The most vocal member wanting the wording changed should be strongly encouraged to become the project champion. This will place the person in charge of determining the new wording, following the process outlined in the bylaws and getting the required number of members to agree with the new wording. This will also prevent the person from complaining about how the board is handling the change request.

 

The board will also need to work with the project champion to determine if the project is worthy of the legal expense to change the bylaws. When the changes are proposed to the members, it is important to explain both the pros and the cons for the change so that members cannot later claim they did not have all of the facts when they voted. Membership management software is a good tool to help the board communicate the project to the members and conduct online voting.