Content
14
July 2016
Speak as you find
It is not all about numbers, take the broader view, says CMI CEO
Building an event with
captivating content and
relevant speakers is a fine art for
association event managers.
Anne Francke is CEO at the
Chartered Management Institute.
She argues that it is a mistake
to talk only about membership
when tailoring a presentation to
association audiences.
She says: “Too often people
assume that associations are
only concerned about growing
their membership numbers.
Remember, associations are about
more than just their members,
they carry out a number of
valuable activities from creating
content to setting policies
and best practices, accrediting
practitioners and building
communities. It’s important to
take a broader view. If they do a
good job of these other activities
then the chances are they will
do a good job of engaging their
members. Growing members is
an outcome, not an objective.
“Associations are stronger
when they work across multiple
stakeholders and partner together
with like-minded organisations to
help them achieve their aims. This
allows their impact to be greater
by collaborating than it would be
by going it alone - so encourage
collaboration by including
examples of partnerships when
speaking to association audiences.
“Adopt the spirit of a social
enterprise, not a charity.
Associations may be not-forprofit but they have a social
mission and this needs to be
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Not just a numbers game: associations carry out valuable activities, says Francke
supported by a strong commercial
operation. If you encourage staff
and stakeholders to take the view
you’re running a social enterprise
then it will remind them to frame
their own challenges and activities
in terms of their association’s core
social mission and purpose.”
Nick Gold, managing director
at Speakers’ Corner, agency says
the choice of appropriate speaker
can make or break an event.
He says: “A keynote speaker’s
role is to kick an event off (or
wrap it up), to keep the audience
engaged, and to leave delegates
with key messages. Meanwhile,
it is up to the moderator, the
unsung hero of the occasion, to
ensure that the delivery of this
content is slick and professional.
“When sourcing such
individuals, it can help to seek
insider information, either from
your own trusted network of
peers, or from experts in the
speaker marketplace. After all,
having an impressive CV or a
great website does not mean a
speaker or moderator is right for
the event in question.
“The impartial advice provided
by an independent speaker bureau
can be invaluable in your decisionmaking, but make sure that they
are asking you the right questions.
The most important thing to
consider is not who you want to
appear at your event, but what you
hope to achieve from it.
“From here on, by engaging
your speaker or moderator as
early as possible, you will be able
to evaluate the most effective way
to utilise their expertise in order
to generate maximum impact.
This open dialogue will help
ensure success, in terms of both
the individual session and the
event as a whole.”
Motivational and keynote
speaker Nigel Risner delivers
messages about relationships in
the workplace and embracing
opportunities. His ‘animal
theory’ places delegates into four
communication s