Changing the Management Model
Sometimes moving an organization from
self-management to AMC management is the best option. Interim executives are well-positioned to spot the opportunity and support the transition.
What an interim CEO focuses on depends on the hiring organization’s situation, its board’s goals, and the interim’s assessment. The interim might zero in on improving finances or operational practices, helping the board create a strategic plan, working on organizational culture, or something else. But in virtually every instance, the interim CEO is laying groundwork for the full-time CEO to be hired.
In some cases, the interim’s focus might include the organization’s management or business model itself. That was the case for interim executives Nancy Green, FASAE, CAE, and Michele Warholic, Esq., CAE. Each has shepherded an association’s move from a self-management model to an association management company model—first, affirming that the shift was the best bet for achieving the board’s strategic goals and then working with the board, management company, and staff to execute the transition.
What Interims See
No matter the board’s goals or plans for post-interim executive leadership, skilled interims habitually approach their assignments with their eyes wide open. Their roles demand that they operate at both the 30,000-foot level and closer to the ground, digging into operations and assessing how infrastructure, operational effectiveness, staff skills, and resources deployment support progress. In their respective interim engagements, Warholic and Green saw quickly that long-term progress would be hastened by a management change that marshaled deep association management
skillsets and top technological and other operational support. In each instance, the board had already considered such a shift, so the interim’s expert assessment served as affirmation.
“I knew enough about AMCs and their value to know that a management company would be the perfect solution for this group,” says Warholic. “It would take an AMC about a year to stabilize staff and operations before doing some new things,” whereas bringing in a new CEO to do change management, which has to be accomplished in stages, would take two to three years. Green’s take is consistent with Warholic’s. She was concerned that the association’s current management model and existing infrastructure would mean a longer runway to the transformation eyed by the board, whereas post-transition, an association management company could tap into a reservoir of resources to advance the association’s mission. It didn’t hurt that the group already worked with multiple outside contractors. In Green’s case, the ability of the AMC to enable the board to interview and select its new leader was also the best option. Not all AMCs offer this, which was part of the reason a larger firm won the business.
“The model has evolved,” adds Wehmeir. “Full-service management is still at the core, but many AMCs now offer different ways of accessing expertise, such as outsourcing and consulting practices. So, for example, if an association needs only meeting management, the group can get that expertise.”
A Flexible Model
Moving to an association management company model, versus self-employing a CEO and staff, is not always the right call. However, for boards that find their organizations at a pivotal point—perhaps challenged by sustaining contemporary IT infrastructure, developing staff skills at a sufficient pace, or engineering a new, growth-oriented business model—an AMC is an attractive consideration.
As Tina Wehmeir, CMP, CAE, president and CEO of the trade group AMC Institute, points out, workforce issues — including staff retention and development, as well as CEO retirements—and the speed of change affect every organization and could prompt consideration of an alternative management model. She ticks off AMC strengths, including these:
They cultivate highly skilled association management staff who are adept and efficient at applying their skillsets across numerous verticals.
Of necessity, because they serve a range of diverse organizations in parallel, AMCs regularly upscale technology and other infrastructure to top-of-class support.
AMC teams cross-collaborate, allowing a client-organization to realize the benefits of experiences gained and expertise developed through service to other managed associations.
As needed, a managed association can draw upon the AMC’s broader array of skills and services.
An AMC’s focus on operational excellence supports the board’s ability to focus on strategic direction.
AMCs’ portfolios are typically diverse, sometimes allowing them to bring teams to the table with not only management expertise but also profession or industry familiarity.
First comes discovery, organizational assessment, understanding of finances, and learning where the growth opportunities that drive to mission might be.
Assessment Precedes Change
Interim executive Green uses the phrase, “First, transition, then transformation,” to characterize the act of shifting to an AMC management model. It’s a mantra observed by AMC leaders. Their firms are skilled at executing management transitions, and their track records show their impact on growth: According to 2020 AMC Institute research, in their first year of AMC management, associations averaged a 9.6% growth in gross revenue and a net operating income increase of 13.7%. However, equipped as they are to effect rapid change, AMCs “do not make changes without an understanding of the full picture,” explains Wehmeir. First comes discovery, organizational assessment, understanding of finances, and learning where the growth opportunities that drive to mission might be. During the transition, they carefully course correct, she says, “but they focus on understanding what is working and the areas where the AMC can add value.” Thereafter, they can—and do—execute rapidly.
