Some context, please

Some context, please

A pet peeve of mine: A report about associations (e.g., marketing benchmarks report) where the report defines associations by the number of members, but fails to discriminate between trade associations and individual associations. In other words, the report will talk about "associations with fewer than 500 members" as if a trade association with 450 members is somehow the same as an individual membership organization with 450 members.

I have worked with trade associations with fewer than three dozen members that had a budget and staff three times the size of a professional society with 2,500 members. I think you see my point; the number of members without context makes for pretty useless comparisons or benchmarks.

Just something to keep in mind if you're ever creating or reading benchmarking reports.

Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives

Be concise!

July 10, 2024

Be concise! I started a monthly newsletter almost 25 years ago (which I recently discontinued). […]

A great example of a data integrity report!

June 26, 2024

A great example of a data integrity report! A couple months back I discussed the […]

“If you keep doin’ what you’re doin’, you’ll keep gettin’ what you’re gettin’.”

June 5, 2024

“If you keep doin’ what you’re doin’, you’ll keep gettin’ what you’re gettin’.” I saw […]

Rather than adding something new, try subtracting

May 29, 2024

Rather than adding something new, try subtracting I read recently that sociological research suggests, when presented […]

It’s always people, process, and technology

May 22, 2024

It’s always people, process, and technology I speak and write a lot about people, process, […]

Once it’s lost, trust can be difficult to regain

May 15, 2024

Once it’s lost, trust can be difficult to regain I recall hearing once long ago […]

Share your successes!

May 8, 2024

Share your successes! I was speaking at an association meeting recently and one of the points […]

What are YOUR data integrity reports?

May 1, 2024

What are YOUR data integrity reports? Sitting in an AMS demo with a client recently, […]

You might have to do SOME of the work yourself!

April 24, 2024

You might have to do SOME of the work yourself! Many, many years ago I […]

Don’t manage to the exception!

April 17, 2024

Don’t manage to the exception! One of the universal truths about data management is, wherever possible, […]

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top