We remember moments… “We do not remember days, we remember moments.” – Cesare Pavese Another way of looking at this is that it’s the small things people remember, not the big ones. For example: Your members and customers won’t remember the roll out of your new AMS, but they will remember that their contact information …
Acknowledging problems is part of managing expectations Research was done some time ago that suggested that the best way for doctors and hospitals to avoid costly litigation for malpractice was simply to apologize. The vast majority of people who sued their doctor or hospital just wanted someone to admit that mistakes were made! I find …
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Need data? Consider third-party sources I always tell my clients, only collect data that you’re actually going to use. A corollary to that rule might be “If you’re really going to use the data, you don’t have to collect all the data yourself; consider third party sources for data you need.” It’s not unusual for …
Action must follow the decision When I work with my clients on their projects (whether system selection, system implementation, or other data management projects), I emphasize to them how important decision-making is. We can’t move if we don’t make choices, and if we don’t move, we can’t make progress/improve things. But the key to any …
Everything should be focused on improving user adoption Your AMS is a tool, and a tool is only as good as the person using it. And if the tool isn’t being used at all, then the tool is useless, by definition. This is why everything you do related to the AMS has to answer this …
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Needs change over time, and that’s OK I was speaking with a couple of association executives recently about their desire to find a new association management system to replace their current AMS. The incumbent system had been in place for more than a decade. During the course of the conversation, it struck me that the …
The vaguer the question, the vaguer the answer As the old saying goes, the devil is in the details. Which is why I encourage my clients to be as specific as possible when asking questions. This is especially useful during the AMS sales process. For example, if you ask an AMS salesperson, “Can your product …
The best choice given the information you have “Hindsight is 20/20” is a cliché because, like most clichés, it’s true. It’s easy to look back weeks, months, or years later at a given action and see what you should have done differently. When I work with my clients on any project, but especially AMS implementation …
Action isn’t the same as progress I’ve written before that not taking action is an acceptable response to a question. That is, sometime it’s better to leave things alone than to try to “fix” them. A corollary to that rule is “Action isn’t the same as progress.” Working with a client recently, they asked me …
Start with the end in mind Like so many, I probably first heard the phrase “Begin with the end in mind” in Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. It’s incredibly powerful advice, especially when an organization is converting from one AMS to another, or is adding a new process to an existing system. During …