© Copyright 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 Association Xpertise Inc. To reprint or reproduce any item, contact AXI for permission.

Now over 275 free resources for association boards and staff provided as a service to the sector by Association Xpertise Inc. (AXI).

Articles

• Members or Mission - Which Comes First?

• Thanks For a Good Year!

• Eyes Front...and Back

• Stakeholder Consultations

• Use Your Meeting to Build "Media IQ"

• The Essential Ethical Exam

• Eight Basic Expectations a Chief Executive Has of His or Her Board

• The Buying Cycle - Part I

• Chicken or Egg: Why Are Our Professional Associations Weak?

• Dysfunctional Board or Council?

• Is Your Association Digitally Fit?

• Balancing Democracy and Effectiveness in Association Governance

• Motivating Your Board

• Dues Restructuring

• Deliver the Right Message the Right Way

• Helping the Decision-Impaired Board

• Who's on First?

• Planning under the Influence of Change

• Customer Relationship Management Part V

• Competitive Analysis for Associations

• Budgeting for Membership Retention and Recruitment

• Dealing With Apathy

• Do Your Survey Questions Spoil Your Survey Results

• Inflicting Type III Change

• Customer Relationship Management Part IV

• Effective CEO Evaluation

• Is It Time For Whistleblower Protection in Associations?

• Look Out! Environmental Scanning for Associations

• Building Trust Between Boards and Staff

• Customer Service in Member Based Associations

• The Changing eStrategy Context for Associations

• How to Make New Members Feel Welcome

• Executive Coaches Offer Associations a New Game Plan

• A Virtual Success

• Managing Type II Change

• Customer Relationship Management Part III

• Enhancing The Board's Monitoring Role

• The Association Sandwich

• Mission, Vision, Values

• The Not-So-Mysterious Benefits of Mystery Shopping Your Association

• Members By The Dozen

• Working with Knowledge

• Ethical Guidelines for Board Members of Not-for-Profit Organizations

• Setting Up Your Reserves

• Coping With Type I Change

• Customer Relationship Management Part II

• Addressing Board Knowledge Gaps

• Getting Together

• Planning to Plan

• Using Technology to Improve Board Performance

• Changing Demographics and Globalization Demand New Strategies

• Virtual Chapters in Associations

• Association Toy or Tool?

• Impact of PIPEDA on Charitable and Non-Profit Organizations

• The Three Shades of Change

• Building A Solid Association Advocacy Strategy

• Customer Relationship Management Part I

• 'Tis the Season: Finding Joy at Work

• Spam Wars

• New Year Resolutions

• Online Banking

• Making the Most of Your Online Forums

• Why We Fail at Change

• Building Association Government Relations

• Changing Change Management

• A Primer on D&O Insurance

• Boost Your Marketing Budget With Better Tracking

• Good Governance and Crisis

• Thanks for the Accolades

• Better Accountability: A Different Approach for Reporting to the Membership

• Business Intelligence: The Value of BI for Association Executives

• Study Circles: An Adventure in Community Development

• The Service-Expectation Gap: The Gap Between What You Deliver and What Your Members Expect, and What You Can Do About It

• Good Governance in Meeting the Duties of Directors of Charities and Not-for-Profits

• Beyond the Myths: Building a Context for Association Innovation

• Pots and Kettles

• Good Governance

• A Brand New "War of the Words" Has Just Started

• What's Happened to Travel?

• Boosting Revenues From Existing Products and Services

• Balanced Scorecards for Members

• Interim Management and Leadership: Making the Best of a Difficult Time

• Moving to Good Governance: Digging Into Organizational Change

• Readers' Views

• The CEO Role in Associations

• Governing With Competitors!

• Meetings: About Members' Needs or Their Money?

• Policy-based Governance: If It's So Great, Why Isn't Everyone Using It?

• Delight Members and Build a Smarter Staff

• Hidden Opportunities at Trade and Consumer Shows

• Effective Marketing Begins With Your AMS

• The State of Association Governance

• The Addicted Association

• The Top Reasons to Use Policy Governance

• Tips to Improve Your Purchasing Performance

• The Three R's of Web-Based Accounting

• The Case for Forced Change!

• Closing the Sale

• Ten Tips to Improve Member Service

• The Wise Use of Resources

• Searching for a Key Employee: The 7 No-No's of Hiring

• What Do You Really Get With an Audit?

• National vs. Provincial: Is there a difference?

• Negotiating Reciprocal Agreements With Your American Counterpart

• A Risk Management Reality

• Rewarding Results

• Fraud - How to Prevent It In Your Association!

• Some Simple Guidelines for Merger Discussions

• Policy Governance in 2002

• Re-branding: One Canadian Association Shares Its Experience

• Plain Language

• The Cost of Governance

• Operational Groove or Rut?

• Information Retention Guidelines for Associations

• What Exactly IS the Board's Job?

• Directors' Expectations

• It may be painful...but is it deserved?

• Association Reserves are Too Low

• 8 Ideas to Keep Meeting Participants Awake

• Preparing for Change

• Where's the Value?

• New Service Provides Answers to Association and Non-Profit Questions!

Reports and Publications

• Governance Issues, 2002

• Operations Issues, 2002

• The PIPEDA Privacy Principles: A Guide for Associations and Non-Profit Organizations, 2001

• Primer for Directors of Not-for-Profit Corporations1

¹ Published by Industry Canada, Canadian Centre for Philanthropy, Canadian Bar Association, and Canadian Society of Association Executives.  AXI president Wayne Amundson is one of the co-authors.

Tips, Tools & Resources

• Facilitation Role

  • The Right Questions For Top Participation

  • Brainstorming

  • Appreciative Inquiry

  • SWOT Analysis

  • Force Field Analysis

  • The Parking Lot

  • Why Have an External Facilitator?

  • Dealing With the "Dominator"

  • Chairing a Meeting

  • Needs and Offers

  • The Effort-Impact Grid

  • The 'Orming Model for Developing Effective Groups

• Clarity...by AXI

  • Paying for Music

  • The Auditor's Management Letter

  • Insurance: Rental and Personal Vehicles

  • Who Owns the Minutes?

  • Accuracy in Describing Your Organization

  • Consent Agenda

  • Knowing What to Do!

  • Membership, Products & Registrations: GST or HST?

  • The Web Trap

• The Tool Shed

  • Member Recruitment or Retention

  • Questions for the Audit Committee to Ask the Auditor

  • A Checklist for Determining the Extent Policy Governance® is Being Used by a Board

  • Checklist for Outsourcing On-Line Meeting Registration

  • The Exit Survey

  • Board Member Fundraising Checklist

  • What Does it Cost to Service a Member, and What is the Value of a Member?

  • How Strong Is Your Association's Community?

  • Copyright Assignment Form

  • Leadership Tool

  • Sharing Documents With Colleagues, Suppliers and Members

  • Web Site Evaluation

• Better Practices

  • New Year Resolutions for 2005

  • Signatories of Letters to Members

  • The Governance Committee

  • Member Service Centres

  • What Hat Am I Wearing Now?

  • Employee Recruitment and Retention

  • Improving Employee, Volunteer and Chapter Access to Information and Documents

  • Prospective Board Members Who Are Not Ready!

  • Association Telephone Auto Attendants

  • Money Back Guarantees

  • Setting the Price of Ads, Sponsorships, etc.

  • New Member Orientations That Work

  • Retention Performance

  • Consultant and Vendor Agreements

  • Desirable Board Member Attributes Under Policy Governance®

  • Selecting a Domain Name For Your Association

  • Producing and Marketing Better Member Programs and Services

  • Member Satisfaction and Value Paradigms

  • Association Technology: Leveraging Your Investment for Improved Performance

  • Board Structure

  • Room Blocks

  • Staff at Board Meetings

  • Member Service Centres

  • Getting to the Right Organizational Structure

  • Surveys: Getting Meaningful Results

  • Standardizing Data Entry in Your Membership Database

  • Amending or Changing the Bylaws

  • Improving the Print Experience

  • A Digital Library

  • Providing Contact Information

  • Maintaining Board and Organizational Confidentiality

  • Recruiting Board Members, Volunteers and Participation

  • Should Movers and Seconders Be Recorded in Minutes?

  • Unique Value Proposition

  • Outsourcing Payroll

  • Bylaws

  • Committee Essentials

  • Conflict of Interest

  • Finding Your Site on the Web

  • Governance Evaluation

  • On-Line Document Formats

  • Strategic Restructuring

  • The Board Manual

  • The Free Event

• Technology Tips

  • Unique Member Log-In Options

  • Site Search Tool

  • Cheap and Effective Spam Protection

  • Dealing With Long URL Links in E-mail Messages!

  • Typical End-user Virus FAQs

  • You May Be Helping Spammers

  • Personal Information Attached to Documents

  • The New Google Toolbar

  • Hyperlinks

  • Changing E-mail and Website Addresses

  • Duplex Printers 

  • Avoiding Viruses and Hoaxes 

  • Distinctive Ring

  • One-Click Printing of Multiple Web Pages 

  • Quick and Easy Backup

  • HTML E-mail

  • PowerPoint Slideshows

  • Quick and Cheap Data Analysis

  • The Effective PDA

  • The Software Upgrading Challenge

  • The Out-of-Office Automated Response

• Reality Check

  • Providing Letterhead to Directors and Officers

  • Perception is Important!

  • Paying for Web Links!

  • Mileage Reimbursement Rates

  • Dealing With Dumb Members

  • Do Members Receive Your E-mail?

  • Tracking What You Do On-Line

  • Chat, Discussion and Other On-Line Community Tools

  • Member Value

  • The Glossy Printed Brochures and Flyers

  • Credit Where Credit Is Due!

  • Voluntary Starvation!

  • Mileage Reimbursement Rates

  • Board Members Seeking Staff Position

  • Charity=Good

  • Databases and Membership Systems

  • Ethical Conduct and Professional Standards

  • The Danger of Free Money

  • The Networking Myth

• Templates Plus

  • What Sample Titles For the Indispensable Assistant

  • Sample Membership Directory Disclaimer

  • What Makes a Good Affinity Program

  • Responding to New Ideas or Challenges

  • Project Proposal Template

  • Emergency Assistance Program

  • Getting Members to Check Out Your Site

  • Sample Non-Disclosure Agreement

  • Sample Confidentiality Agreement

  • New Member Checklist

  • Defining a Good Sponsorship or Partnership Relationship

  • 360° Evaluation Tool

  • Setting Up an Audit Committee

  • Member Retention Rate

  • Managing Board Process and Information

  • Discussion Forum Content

  • Documented Systems

  • Evaluation Forms

  • Member Service Standards

  • Membership Plan Template

• According to the Rules

  • Various Items - Jan 2004

  • Various Items - Nov 2003

  • Various Items - Sept 2003

  • Various Items - July 2003

  • Various Items - May 2003

  • Various Items - March 2003

  • 2003 Automobile Deduction Limits and Expense Benefit Rates

  • Consultations for New Federal Incorporation Process

  • Legislative, regulatory and similar issues

  • Privacy Update

• Ethical Matters

  • The Dreaded E.D. Evaluation!

  • Ethical Considerations in IT Purchases

  • Is the Chair in Conflict?

  • Founder and Spouse

  • Disputed Numbers

• Relevant Reviews

  • High-Impact Governing in a Nutshell

  • Best Practices and Tools for Not-for-Profit Boards

  • Board Recruitment & Retention

  • Field Guide to Nonprofit Program Design, Marketing and Evaluation

  • Mina’s Guide to Minute Taking Principles, Standards & Practical Tools

  • A Guide to Revenue Diversification for Directors of Non-Profit Organizations

  • The Minute Taker's Handbook

  • Field Guide to Nonprofit Strategic Planning and Facilitation

  • Working With the Media

  • The Board Member's Companion

  • Primer for Directors of Not-for-Profit Corporations: Rights, Duties and Practices

• Policies and Practices

  • Sample Professional Development Reimbursement Policy

  • Sample Computer and Technology Acceptable Use Policy

  • Sample Bereavement Policy

  • Sample Smoking Policies

  • Sample Fraudulent or Dishonest Conduct & Whistleblower Policy Statement

  • E-mail and Internet Usage

  • Sample EDO and Flex Scheduling Policies

  • Sample Leave Without Pay Policy

  • Sample Gifts Policy

  • Market and Member Research

  • Expense Reimbursement

  • A SARS Quarantine: Is it Paid or Unpaid?

  • Board Policy for E-mail Motion, Discussion and Voting Procedures

  • Cell Phone Policy

  • Privacy Statement for Use on Registration Forms

  • Membership Fee Reduction

  • Privacy Policy

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