12/18/2023

A Last Look at Leadership in 2023

This year, association executives had a lot to analyze

Inflation stress. Unsettled hybrid and remote workplaces. DEI under attack. AI disrupting just about everything. If 2023 was a year of “getting back to normal,” it was also a year where association leaders still understandably felt out of sorts.

And because so many things have been unsettled, it'd be too easy to reduce the year to a simple summary. But writing about leadership and talking with executives throughout 2023, it's clear that association leaders are committed to finding clarity in the confusion: They're speaking out more, asking for more from their boards, and clarifying their vision for staff and members alike. Below are a few of the themes I explored in the past year; please share your own insights about 2023 (and plans for 2024) in the comments, or drop me a line at mathitakis@asacenter.org.

Leaders increasingly need to set the tone–and make the case. Associations are increasingly in justify-your-existence mode. What are you providing that can’t be bought off the shelf elsewhere? What value is your annual meeting really providing? Many leaders are taking this to mean that they’re now the chief spokesperson for their organization. That’s sometimes a job better left to the PR department, but there’s no question that leaders need to be effective storytellers about their association’s mission and vision and an ability to spell out what they do better than everybody else. 

Please select this link to read the complete article from Associations Now.