Self-reliance—Virtue or Vanity?

Emerson’s essay on this topic is inspiring isn’t it? But as articulate, logical and inspiring as Emerson’s essays are, I think that the sage of Concord was articulating, rather than inventing, the values of a national culture that prides itself on the perceived self-sufficiency of those who settled our country.

But is the source of our country’s historic strength really to be found in this idealized notion of self-reliance, or is it to be found rather in the qualities that made another concept possible: e pluribus unum—out of many, one? It seems to me that being able to create a unified vision out of many cultures and languages is a far more noteworthy achievement than boasting of pride in owing nothing to anyone.

Isn’t this—creating a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts--what the “third sector” is all about?

If our nation leaves a legacy to the human race, it will be perhaps because we could show that mankind could rise above its tribal past to create something greater. I recall an anthropologist describing an ancient hominoid skeleton that had lost its arm in an accident. It would have been impossible for that hominoid to have survived such a wound, but the wound had healed—showing that there had been someone else who cared enough and who knew enough to save his life. It was with this realization that the anthropologist knew he was looking at the remains of a human being and that mankind had emerged from his animal origins.

Why isn't this next generation scared witless?

They should be. Just take a look at the facts:

•The largest generation the world has ever seen is aging and throwing social programs out of kilter—more will be taken out than will be put in. How will budgets ever balance?
•The US is less and less a dominant player in the world. It is not enough to be born here to feel you have been given every advantage to succeed. This next generation is just part of the pack and will have to work as hard or harder than anyone else of the mass of six billion human beings to prove themselves.
•White, Anglo-Saxon, Protestants will not longer be in the majority. Our “melting pot” culture will truly become one as different ethnicities, languages, and cultures affirm themselves economically, culturally, and politically.
•The world is running out of petroleum…which is kind of a problem for our petroleum-fueled economy. Those countries that have invested in sustainable energy will have a leg up on the future. Who is going to match the $500 billion China has invested this past year?
•Speaking of which…the world will be divided increasingly between those who are Chinese and those who are not Chinese. The Chinese not only impose themselves because of their numbers…they will impose themselves culturally as well because of their incredible work ethic and desire to improve themselves—as individuals, as families, and as a nation. How is your Mandarin?

So why isn’t this generation trembling in their boots? Because they know the world is their oyster.

•“Friends” from preceding generations were made from neighborhood acquaintances and people we met at school or work. This generation has turned “friend” into a verb and their friends can be on any inhabited continent on the planet.
•We used to live, work, shop, and seek entertainment in the neighborhoods where we lived. Now we live where we want, work where we want, shop where we want, and seek entertainment where we want. All those places could be and often are in vastly different locations--in fact they could be half a world away from each other. You choose what you do because you want to, not because you have to.
•Satellite pictures of the world at night show how connected we are when we see all the electric lights that are on—only the earth’s desert regions…and North Korea…are in the dark. With nearly every human able to share thoughts and experiences with another anywhere, anytime…what marvelous possibilities this represents!

When one is young, healthy, well-educated, and with no threat of war or famine hanging over your head how could you not be bursting with energy and self-confidence? Older generations see the problems we are leaving our children all too well. The next generation sees these of course, but they also see the opportunities—and why shouldn’t they?

Scary thought--elasticity in demand

Remember “elasticity” from your college economics classes? Elasticity in pricing means that demand is constant regardless of price changes. Water and air fall into this category—we all need the same minimum amount regardless of how cheaply or expensively they are priced.

Demand elasticity, on the other hand, means the consumer has an infinite supply of alternatives. With accessibility of almost anything through the Internet, an increasing amount of goods and services are or will be affected by demand elasticity—putting tremendous pressure on producers to provide always better, faster, cheaper, friendlier, etc. than the myriad other competitors that are out there. As an alert manager, the concept of demand elasticity in your market has to be your worst nightmare!

Although you may not have thought of it as such, as an association manager, your goal always has been to identify and work toward delivering those products and services that highly elastic in pricing—things your market finds critical to its well being. For example, most professionals and trades need licenses or certifications or accreditations in order to do their work--so it stands to reason that the credentialing and the education and training programs needed to achieve those credentials are highly elastic in pricing. The associations and professional societies that have carved out such niches for themselves are in a good place. Those that have not, risk being consumed by the elastic demand demon that is growing in strength, even as you read this!

Maybe Donald Trump in his book “Only the Paranoid Survive,” had a point? Good managers do well to keep this scary thought in the back of their minds, as they plan their organizations’ futures…

Beware: Dropping membership levels may not be due to the recession!

One of the many by-products of our Internet-facilitated world is the vast array of choices that has been opened to all of us in so many aspects of our lives. The world has become our shopping ground for whatever we want whenever we want it. We are no longer slaves to buying only from outlets or participating only in organizations that are closest to us when they are open. We can now take classes, work for organizations, and participate in associations that may be half way around the globe when and as we want. This is the scenario that Thomas Friedman describes in his book The World is Flat.

With our consciousness raised to a global level and with 24/7 in-going as well as out-going accessibility, how do we decide where to invest our valuable time and resources? This new “flat earth” environment opens the way to both challenges and opportunities for associations.

The challenges are easy to see. According to “Association Trends’ 2009 Mid Year Association Pulse Survey,” 33.3 percent of professional societies and 32.2 percent of trade associations experienced membership drops last year. But while these figures may be a sign of the times, they may not be entirely due to the Great Recession; perhaps there are other factors at work here as well.

According to www.volunteerigninamerica.gov , even during this economic crisis we are seeing levels of volunteering that are greater than ever before. Over 441,000 more young adults (ages 16-24) volunteered in 2008 than 2007, up 5.7 percent from 7.8 million to over 8.2 million. Furthermore 78.2 percent of all these volunteers made a charitable contribution or non-monetary donation of $25 or more in value compared with 38.5 percent of non-volunteers.

So here is a truly sobering thought: Those associations, that have hunkered down and cut back on their spending while they wait for members to come back, may be in for an unpleasant surprise--these missing members may not be coming back.

Who said Globalization was Easy?

The most successful global organizations are those that operate profitably and effectively at the local level but which also continually identify, package and deliver the kinds of products and services that are needed by the global economy in a timely, cost-effective manner. Global organizations thrive when people and companies at the local level identify with them and welcome them into their lives and businesses. The old Vaudeville comedians had a well-known line that always brought laughs because people knew what was meant: “That’s no lady, that’s my wife!” The loyal customers/members/stakeholders of global organizations might offer a similar line—“That’s no global organization, that’s my (substitute here what you want--such as favorite place of business, professional organization, place that I most relate to….).” People relate to organizations on a micro or local basis but for these operations to enjoy long term sustainability they must be relevant to the trends and market needs that manifest themselves at the macro or global level; because although people like the near and the familiar, they also recognize that in the long term they need to follow the paths that ensure survival and growth.

For a global organization to have a great idea but be unable to apply it locally is not very useful—in fact, it may as well have no idea at all. But focusing uniquely at the local level without connecting the dots, without trying to derive solutions to universal problems and needs at a global level is also an organizational dead-end. Scales need weights on both ends in order to be in balance.

The organizational challenge here then is to be able to function fluently and effectively at both levels—to be able to make global solutions relevant at the local level where people live as well as to be able to derive lessons from what is learned locally in order to apply these concepts globally. Moreover getting it right once doesn’t mean you can rest on your laurels. Global tides and local currents are constantly changing—leading to the never-ending need for global organizations to be in a constant mode of seeking out areas where they can improve their effectiveness, efficiency and relevancy on both the global and local levels. How is that for a challenge? Who said globalization was easy?

From The Association Guide to Going Global, (published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., July 2010)

The Nature of Globalization

It would be nice if globalization were a finish line so that we could say to ourselves, “Here finally I have run the race, with considerable effort and sacrifice along the way, but now I can sit back and enjoy the laurels of victory….” No such luck, unfortunately! Globalization defines an organizational structure and mindset that can and does enhance or ensure the continued success of already successful organizations. Globalization also can offer new success in new markets for organizations that once were successful in markets that might now be in decline. But in all cases, a successful globalization effort is a continuous challenge. It needs to be built on an existing, solid base as defined by an organization with a vibrant mission and that is supported by products and services that respond to or that have the potential to respond to actual and evolving global market needs and wants.

The one constant in globalization is that it is a constantly shifting battlefield. Success attracts attention and that attention leads to other organizations moving into your territory to share in your success! The one sure thing in all of this is that there will always be copycats popping up or organizations appearing that profess to have a better solution or better programs and products than what your organization is offering…. As much as this may be hard to admit, all of this competition is good for consumers around the world—but that doesn’t make your life as the provider any easier, does it?

Nevertheless the really scary thing about globalization is that you can’t decide to opt out of it any more than you can decide not to breath! The African story about the antelope and the lion comes to mind. The antelope knows that if it is to survive it must be able to run and run fast. The lion knows that if it is to eat it must be able to run and run fast to catch its meal. So at the dawn of every day, whether you are the antelope or the lion, you know you must be up and running to survive. Of course globalization is like that—whether you decide to play an active or reactive role, you can’t opt out of the game.

(Taken from The Association Guide to Going Global, by Steven M. Worth, John Wiley & Sons, 2010)

Resisting the Temptation to Become Clubs

If associations are recognized and accorded tax exempt status in virtually every nation of the world it is because the role of associations is recognized for the value it brings to society at large. This fact imposes a considerable challenge to association leaders--that they constantly push the boundaries of what might feel comfortable for them. All associations have constituencies and in this regard all feel most comfortable working with those names and faces that are nearest and that they see most often. The pull to close ranks and to create an ever narrower circle of friends and acquaintances is formidable. In effect every organization is drawn to the familiar, and as they are they consciously or not erect barriers against the unfamiliar. In so doing, they turn themselves into clubs—a group of members who define themselves as much by who they are as who they are not. Exclusivity is an important part of this picture. But those organizations that give in to this temptation are more than likely betraying the broader, more altruistic visions and missions that called them into existence in the first place. Society does not accord legal and financial advantages to organizations that serve no purpose than themselves.

If the temptation to define oneself within a national context is great, then how much more so in an international/global context! Each and every one of the US-based associations in the case studies referenced in this book was given the same choice when faced with their various challenges—to circle the wagons and concentrate on their core national constituencies, or to follow their more broadly defined visions and missions into unchartered, global territory. In each case the volunteer and professional leadership of each association chose the latter option and in each case this decision propelled their organizations into broader, more dynamic roles on the global stage.

This is not an easy decision to make—some might even consider it foolhardy. In retrospect we can see that they made the right decision, but at the time it was not so clear. What caused them to take this leap into the unknown? Perhaps there were two reasons—one negative and one positive.

(Taken from The Association Guide to Going Global, by Steven M. Worth, John Wiley & Sons, 2010)