May 18-19, 2014 

    

During American Associations day in March, ASAE presented Congressman Mark Pocan (D-WI) with its Sentinel Award for advocating for the association community in the ongoing discussion of comprehensive tax reform and for defending the need for government attendance at association meetings, respectively.

As a former association executive and ASAE member, Congressman Pocan is a champion for federal employee attendance at association meetings. Before entering Congress in January 2013, Congressman Pocan served seven terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly. Also receiving the award was Congressman Pat Tiveri
(R-OH). 

"ASAE and the association community are honored to present Congressman Tiberi and Congressman Pocan with Sentinel Awards for their proven commitment to associations in America," said ASAE President and CEO John H. Graham IV, FASAE, CAE. "Through their leadership, these congressmen have served as exceptional advocates for the association community by ensuring the continuation of public-private sector discussions at association meetings and defending associations from potentially revenue-sapping changes to the tax code."

Thank you to our generous hosts - the Greater Green Bay CVB, the Hyatt on Main and the Green Bay Packers - for making our attendees feel so welcome!  

Join us for the second annual WSAE Spring Outing benefiting the ASAE Foundation and the WSAE Innovation Fund! We are excited to bring you incredible networking opportunities and plenty of fun at the beautiful Grand Geneva Resort and Golf Club! Golf, tennis, or spa. It's your choice! See the full event line-up here.

There's still time to join our growing list of sponsors. See the sponsor prospectus or contact Michelle Czosek to learn more. 

You are invited to participate in a benchmarking study, organized by a group of Philadelphia-based association executives that has been designed to strengthen our collective knowledge of how organizations gather, and utilize performance metrics. The study hopes to generate insight on the data we actually collect, how we gather it, ways we utilize it, and more.

Please complete the survey no later than April 30.

Results of the study, including individual case studies, will be shared in a white paper that will be distributed freely throughout the association management community. Results specific to WSAE will also be made available.

To learn more about this research effort, contact Todd Von Deak or Joe Sapp.

United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE) is offering all WSAE members complimentary registration for its Public Forum on Entrepreneurship Excellence, May 5 in Whitewater, Wis. Highlights of the event include a presentation from Billionaire, Best Selling, Business Book of the Year author, Steve Kaplan. Governor Walker will also be on hand to read a special proclamation. Find out more. 

Do you have an issue for which you want peer input? Do you have an announcement or event you'd like to make known to association executives and industry partners? An article of interest to others in the community? Take advantage of your WSAE membership by posting in one of the communities on wsae.org. Not sure how to get started? It's easy! View our simple instructions.

Following are some recent discussions. Go online to see how members are responding.

• We have changed our registration company and the type of badge stock that we use for our annual Expo. I have thousands of badge holders left over from previous years that we have no use for. We're happy to donate them to whoever could use them.

• What makes a great CEO? A great CEO operates with a constant view of what the future looks like. The CEO is proactive and not just reactive. The great CEO is a leader and not just an implementer. Implementation is expected. The CEO as a leader identifies issues, proposes solutions and organizes the association members to pursue goals.

Four $500 partial tuition scholarships have been provided to WSAE members for Institute for Organization Management, the U.S. Chamber's professional development program for non-profit executives. We have one scholarship left that's available to aWSAE member attending Institute for the first time to assist with enrollment fees.  The scholarship cannot be combined with any other Institute scholarships. Early registration deadline for Midwest and Southeast Institute is April 25. Early registration deadline for West and Northeast Institute is May 30. 

Contact Michelle Czosek, at mczosek@wsae.org by April 23 for more information on scholarships for upcoming Institutes. 

Jennifer Armson-Dyer, Badger Region Volleyball Association
Scott Biggar, Fox Cities CVB
George A. Klaetsch, Klaetsch Public Affairs Strategies
Donald L. Menefee, Silent Partners
Bonnie Nolan, USASBE
Shannon T. O'Connor, Miami University
Joya Zamora, Crowne Plaza Milwaukee Airport