Association Leadership - September/October 2007 - (Page 25)

Association Assessment Process Root of Things One association hoping to attract new members is voluntarily setting up its own outside assessment – and rewriting the rules for self-improvement ome people hate criticism and hardly anyone seeks it out, but for Eddy Edmondson, president of the Texas Nursery and Landscape Association (TNLA), making plans for the first outside assessment of the association made perfect sense. “We’re just trying to confirm that we’re still relevant to our industry and our potential members,” said Edmondson, who with the support of TNLA’s Board of Directors coordinated the assessment process that started in February and will continue until June of next year. StandPoint Inc., the marketing and research team assessing TNLA, was the right pick for the job and an easy choice for the association. Since its beginning, StandPoint has specialized in the home and garden industry. StandPoint also works with the American Nursery and Landscape Association. But preparing for self-assessment was not as easy. To assist in its initial fact-finding, TNLA organized a task force of 25 people – comprised both of association members and nonmembers, none of them members of TNLA’s board – and presented them with information about TNLA, such as its size, history and budget. Individuals in the task force have been conducting phone and email surveys, contacting association members to find out what they like about the association, and also contacting non-members to learn their reasons for not joining. Other methods of research include one-on-one, in-depth interviews; live Internet-based discussions; ad-hoc discussion groups and advisory panels; and thought-leader identification and secondary research using the Internet, commercial databases and conferences. Though Edmondson expects the duties of the task force to change in future months, he has no plans to become heavily involved in StandPoint’s work. “Our executive staff is available as resources for the assessment,” he said, “but we’re not driving anything.” Besides occasional e-mail and phone correspondence, the two parties have held four face-to-face meetings Standpoint informed the association of its latest progress and asked staff to share their perspectives on the status of the nursery and landscape industry. “In the first meeting, our staff didn’t hear anything that we hadn’t heard before,” Edmondson said, “but more TNLA Gets to the By Marianne Kunkel and more, we’re gaining new insight into the process and what our members and non- members want and need.” It is no coincidence that TNLA’s 18-month self-assessment process ends next June, right as its three-year strategic planning phase is scheduled to begin. When the research is complete, its staff will present the collected data to TNLA’s board and make recommendations. “It is then up to the board to decide what changes will be made to the association,” Edmondson said. Though Edmondson is not planning to repeat the process anytime soon, he does foresee the association seeking out self-assessment again. “Our experience with StandPoint thus far definitely has been positive,” Edmondson said. “Hopefully, at the end of our time together, we’ll have a clearer and more purposeful direction for the future of our association.” ◆ September/October 2007 | Association LEADERSHIP 25

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Association Leadership - September/October 2007

Contents Chairman's Column Homepage 60-Second Solutions An Interview with TSAE’s New Chairman TSAE’s Newest Board Members 7 Measures of Success Association Case Study: Diversity on the Board Assessing Your Association: Texas Nursery and Landscape Association TSAE's Annual Golf Tournament Between the Covers Now Online at TSAE.org – Association Leadership Magazine Getting Found Through Web Searches “I Survived a Year on a Committee!” New Members Community Spotlight San Antonio Mississippi Gulf Coast Index to Advertisers Board of Directors

Association Leadership - September/October 2007

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