Last week, ASAE and the Center for Association Leadership announced that its four boards had approved the proposed merger of the four organizations (ASAE and its Foundation, GWSAE and the Center) into two entities, i.e., ASAE as the membership entity and the ASAE Foundation and The Center integrated as a the research and education arm under The Center's name. The next step in this process is a vote of GWSAE's association professional members on the matter of dissolving GWSAE as a legal entity that will take place on June 30. The full merger proposal is available online at www.gwsae.org/bettertogether. I really want to encourage everyone to read it, question it and think about it VERY carefully. This proposal is so important to our community that it really deserves and demands a critical reading on the part of every association community stakeholder.
To assist you in the questioning process, let me offer you a few sample inquiries you might ask yourself:
1. What are the 2-3 key themes or ideas that the define the merger proposal? If these themes or ideas are brought fully to fruition by the merged organization, what impact (positive and negative) do you forecast they will/may have on the association community in both the short term and the long term?
2. What are the fundamental strategic assumptions on which this proposal is based? Do you agree with those assumptions? Does the proposal provide you with sufficient information in order to make an informed assessment of its strategic appropriateness?
3. Are there specific ideas in the proposal that appeal to you? Are there specific ideas that concern you? In what ways are the ideas that appeal to you different from and the same as the ideas that concern you?
4. As you read the merger proposal, what most surprises you about it? Also what if anything is missing from the proposal, i.e., are there issues the proposal doesn't discuss either fully or at all that are conspicuously absent in your view?
5. How do you assess the candor of the merger proposal with regard to the likely challenges of merger, including developing a successful strategy, building a sustainable business model, bringing about enduring cultural change, integrating disparate technology platforms and so forth? Are there merger challenges the proposal doesn't address at all?
6. As someone who will/may be asked to "invest" in this merged organization in some way (either financially or perhaps through your commitment of time, attention and energy), does the merger proposal describe an organization in which you would willing make those or any investments?
7. If you ARE NOT a GWSAE association professional member and do not have a vote on June 30, would you still vote in favor of this proposal if you could? Why or why not?
I think Question 6 is particularly important. It reflects what I have repeatedly referred to as "the investor standard," a level of scrutiny that I believe we must all invoke in considering this proposal. Each in our own way, we are asked to invest ourselves in these organizations to help make them go. It is appropriate in my mind for us to ask whether we feel comfortable with or excited by the idea of making those investments in the new organization contemplated by this proposal.
At this point, I'm going to hold off on providing my perspectives on this proposal, because I'd really like to know what you think first. Instead, I will offer some of my thoughts on the proposal during my June 8 radio show, which I will be recording this weekend because we are unable to do the promised live broadcast from South Bend, Indiana next Tuesday. So please send me your thoughts and comments at jeff@insideassociations.com or post them as comments to this blog. THIS IS IMPORTANT! I REALLY WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! I hope you'll take a few minutes to share your perspectives with me and with your association community colleagues.
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