Associations Thrive

What does it take to turn passionate community advocates into effective board members? And how can associations and nonprofits better prepare volunteer leaders to govern instead of manage?In this episode of Associations Thrive, host Joanna Pineda interviews Bridget Lee, Founder and Executive Director of the Academy for Local Leadership (ALL Chicago). Bridget discusses:How Chicago is transitioning from a mayor-appointed school board to a fully elected 21-member board.ALL Chicago’s three pillars: Prepared Leaders, Empowered Communities, and Effective Governance.How ALL Chicago trains aspiring school board members to understand the responsibilities and complexities of governance. The important distinction between governance and management. Board members should focus on ensuring that systems solve problems rather than stepping in to solve individual problems themselves.How ALL Chicago makes its fellowship accessible by offering the program for free and paying participants a stipend. ALL Chicago’s Governance Compass Framework, which focuses on setting direction, protecting community values, holding the system accountable for student learning, being transparent, and governing collectively.Bridget’s larger vision that effective governance can lead to effective government—and that electing leaders is only the beginning. Success comes when leaders make things better for the communities they serve.References:ALL Chicago WebsiteThe Governance Compass FrameworkALL Chicago on LinkedIn

How do learners know that the continuing education they receive is accurate and high quality? As AI and new technologies transform learning, how can associations ensure their education remains valuable and trusted?In this episode of Associations Thrive, host Joanna Pineda interviews Randy Bowman, CEO of International Accreditors for Continuing Education and Training (IACET). Randy discusses:How the organization’s roots go back more than 50 years to the creation of the Continuing Education Unit (CEU).How accreditation creates standards so learners and employers can trust the quality of continuing education.How the organization grew from about 385 accredited providers 10 years ago to approximately 650 today, while increasing retention to 93%.The growth of microlearning, including two- to three-minute lessons that learners can access when they need information immediately.How virtual and augmented reality are creating safer, more realistic training opportunities in dangerous professions.The shift toward competency-based education, where employers care increasingly about demonstrated skills rather than time spent in training.A new distinction for accredited providers designed to demonstrate responsible AI use and appropriate AI governance.Why Randy says their ultimate stakeholder is the learner, and describes the organization as a “noble guardian of the learner’s interest.”References:IACET WebsiteContinuing Education Unit (CEU)

What if the thing holding your team back from innovation isn’t too many constraints, but too few? And how can associations create clear boundaries that give staff the confidence and freedom to experiment, learn, and move faster?In this episode of Associations Thrive, host Joanna Pineda interviews Sheri Jacobs, CEO of Avenue M Group, keynote speaker, and best-selling author. Sheri discusses:How AI is making information and education easier and faster to access, but associations have an important advantage: trust and reliability.The premise behind Sheri’s newest book, The Unexpected Power of Boundaries: “Growth happens at the speed of clarity,” and clarity comes from well-defined boundaries.Why telling teams to “think outside the box” can actually inhibit creativity. Unlimited choices can overwhelm people and cause them to default to familiar ideas.How leaders can define the why and the what—including the constraints—while giving their teams freedom to determine the how.Why leaders should reverse the speaking order in meetings. When senior leaders speak first, others tend to fall in line; inviting junior and frontline staff to speak first can surface ideas from people closest to members and customers.The important distinction between risk tolerance and risk capacity. Risk tolerance is about comfort; risk capacity is about how much an organization can actually afford to experiment, fail, learn, and recover.Why simply telling employees to “take risks” isn’t enough. Innovation happens when organizations combine psychological safety with clear boundaries around where experimentation is safe.How the “Best New Mistake Award” can encourage experimentation by celebrating employees who tried something, failed, learned from it, and used the learning to move the organization forward.Why associations should regularly examine whether their boundaries are outdated—and create a process for experimentation that defines hypotheses, assumptions, learning, and how results will be shared.How associations and conferences can turn inspiration into action by creating constraints such as a 30-day challenge that asks participants to take one smart risk and report back on what happened.References:Avenue M Group WebsiteThe Unexpected Power of Boundaries BookPivot Point BookThe Art of Membership Book

What happens when membership growth gets harder, even though the members you already have continue to renew? How can associations better communicate their value, attract new members, and create the engagement that fuels growth?In this episode of Associations Thrive, host Joanna Pineda interviews Jana Darling, President of Marketing General (MGI). Jana discusses:The findings from MGI’s 2026 Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report, now in its 18th year and based on responses from nearly 500 associations.How membership growth is getting harder. Only 38% of associations reported membership growth this year, down from 45% the previous year and close to a historic low for the study.Why associations “cannot renew their way to growth.” Retention remains relatively steady at about 82%, but without a steady pipeline of new members, organizations will eventually decline.How strong retention suggests that associations are delivering value once people join. The challenge is often communicating that value effectively to prospective members.Why engagement is “the engine of everything else,” and why associations should begin engaging prospects before they join. With members increasingly strapped for time, associations also need to make participation easy and meaningful.Why associations need to continually reevaluate their member value proposition. With information increasingly available through AI, open access, and other free sources, associations must understand what members value today. Organizations that conduct regular member research are more likely to report membership growth.How 39% of associations say an inability to articulate their value prevents them from offering a more compelling member value proposition. Jana says that if members are the business of an association, the value proposition should be central to everything the organization does.How associations can use the Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report to compare themselves with their peers, identify practices correlated with growth, set realistic expectations with their boards, and find opportunities to innovate and improve.References:MGI WebsiteMGI’s 2026 Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report

What happens when professionals stop viewing their culture as something they need to minimize at work, and start recognizing it as a leadership superpower? And how can associations create the spaces, programs, and opportunities that help underrepresented leaders build confidence, visibility, and pathways to leadership?In this episode of Associations Thrive, host Joanna Pineda interviews Carlos Cardenas, CAE, President of Association Latinos. Carlos discusses:How Association Latinos exists to increase the representation of Latino leaders throughout the association community, from mid-level management and the C-suite to nonprofit boards.Why the founders decided Association Latinos needed to become its own 501(c)(3), rather than remain an affinity group. The organization wanted to control its destiny, understand and serve its community directly, and develop programs specifically for Latino association professionals.How Association Latinos seeks to shine a spotlight on Latino professionals who are already doing great work while also “unlocking their confidence” so they recognize their own power and potential.How the CAE Se Puede program and Avanza Scholarship create pathways for Latino association professionals to earn the Certified Association Executive (CAE) credential, while a partnership with Sidecar creates opportunities to earn the Association AI Professional (AAiP) certification.Why a small organization needs to “think like an entrepreneur.” Association Latinos is building creative partnerships with organizations such as ASAE, Sidecar, and the LPGA Amateur Golf Association to provide greater value even without large, consistent revenue streams.How the inaugural For La Causa golf event introduces members to golf, gives volunteers an opportunity to relax and connect, creates value for partners and sponsors, and could eventually create a new fundraising stream.How Conexiones, Association Latinos’ education summit, uses a cohort model instead of a traditional choose-your-own-session conference format. Participants experience the program together in smaller groups, creating deeper relationships and longer-lasting connections.Why culture is part of the “special sauce, or salsa” of Conexiones. Association Latinos encourages professionals to bring their heritage, languages, ancestry, stories, and authentic selves into their leadership instead of feeling that advancement requires assimilation.How Association Latinos separated its Honores awards from Conexiones so award recipients, volunteers, allies, and community leaders could be celebrated more intentionally, and so the awards event could become a fundraising opportunity of its own.Why Hispanic Heritage Month should be more than a once-a-year spotlight. Carlos wants Latino thought leadership and stories elevated year-round, while also honoring the often “invisible layer” of parents, grandparents, immigrants, workers, and others whose sacrifices created opportunities for the generations that followed.References:Association Latinos WebsiteCAE Se Puede & Avanza ScholarshipConexiones 2026Latinx Treasures - Movies, books and articles to enjoy year round by Latinx creators