Members of an industry association get excited only when their Board proposes initiatives that will likely benefit them and their businesses financially or materially. The most often asked question during annual meetings is: ” What’s in it for me and my business?”
POTENTIAL DAMAGE
When people focus predominantly on their own financial or material results, it is difficult for the Board to take initiatives that provide no such immediate tangible benefits, even when they are the right things to do for the long-term future of the industry. It is a challenge to persuade members to pay higher dues to fund such initiatives. It is even tougher to get their support for initiatives that will provide no tangible benefits in their lifetime but will greatly benefit future generations.
REAL BOARD SOLUTIONS
Educate members to expand their outlook from personal gains to community gains, from numeric or tangible results to qualitative or intangible results, and from short-term outcomes to long-term outcomes. Keep in mind that efforts to modify entrenched attitudes and behaviours may require patience, determination, and repetition of key messages. Such efforts may also require a thick skin so that you can withstand the cynicism or even verbal abuse you are likely to receive from critics.
