The AMR Association Management Blog

Here you will find blog posts from our team of association management experts featuring tips and tricks on a wide range of association management services:

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Oct 14

Robert’s Rules of Order: A Plain-English Guide for Association Boards

By DeLaine Bender CAE

I’ve conducted or sat in on more board meetings than I can count, and sometimes see boards struggle with using parliamentary procedure to help the meetings run efficiently. They know Robert’s Rules is important but find it clunky and uncomfortable when they don’t fully understand it. Volunteer board members are excited to serve their association,…

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Oct 08

Why AI Policy Looks Different for an AMC 

By Rachel Hight

Part 2 of an ongoing series on AI strategy and leadership at AMR Management Services  If you work at a traditional company, AI policy is mostly about what tools your team can use and what kind of information they can put into those tools. That is important, but it is relatively straightforward.  At an association…

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Sep 28

AMR Meet The Expert: Essentials of Association Finance

By AMR Management Services

In our Finance Meet the Experts video, AMR Controller Bill Ray shares some of the essentials of Association finance and how dedicated expertise can take your Board from understanding the numbers, to making dynamic financial decisions. 

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Sep 24

Stand-Alone or AMC? How to Choose the Right Model for Your Association

By DeLaine Bender CAE

If your association has lost executive staff or is at the point where volunteers are burning out, someone on your board has probably asked this question: do we build our own staff, or do we partner with an association management company (AMC)? Here’s the short answer. Building your own staff, whether just an executive director…

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Sep 21

AMR Meet The Expert Video: Helping clients prepare for an uncertain future

By AMR Management Services

In our Meet the Experts video on applying the ASAE Foundation’s ForesightWorks program, resident experts Lisa Thompson and Emily Lane highlight how this important program is helping one of AMR’s clients prepare for an uncertain future.

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Sep 16

6 Strategies to Boost Association Financial Transparency

By AMR Management Services

Showing members and sponsors that your association is worthy of their trust takes more than just good intentions. It takes real, visible financial stewardship. When budgets tighten or times get uncertain, open communication and clear financial records are what truly give people confidence in your mission. Being proactive and transparent about your finances is one…

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Sep 09

How AMR Is Approaching AI: A Framework Built for People, Not Just Technology

By Rachel Hight

This is Part 1 of an ongoing series on AI strategy and leadership at AMR Management Services Artificial intelligence is not going away. Most of us already know that. What is less clear for a lot of organizations, including association management companies like ours, is how to approach it in a way that is responsible,…

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Sep 08

AMR Meet The Expert Video: The Importance of Strategic Planning for associations.

By AMR Management Services

In this brief video, one of AMR’s board leadership and facilitation experts, Jeremy Johannesen, discusses the importance of strategic planning and offers some important reminders about the consistent partnership required to implement strategic plans effectively.

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Sep 02

Assessing the Quality of Your Member Experience: A Quiz

By AMR Management Services

Assessing the Quality of Your Member Experience: A Quiz Your association invests time, energy, and resources into delivering a great experience to your members. But when was the last time you paused to ask if your efforts are actually working? Sometimes, the best way to answer that question is to look inward. Reflecting on your…

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Graphic showing volunteers collecting donations

4 Tips to Improve Association Event Volunteer Management

By Jordan Berger | July 15, 2026 | Best Practices,  Events,  Meetings
In a 2025 study, 62% of associations reported and increase in in-person event attendance, and members listed in-person events as one of the top five most important benefits of their membership. This highlights the sustained success and growing importance of in-person events, creating more volunteering opportunities for associationyour members.  Volunteers can beare crucial to an…
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Graphic showing traffic on roads and the words Scenario Planning

Scenario Planning: Preparing for Multiple Futures

By Molly Marsh | July 8, 2026 | Best Practices,  Strategy
Scenario Planning: Preparing for Multiple Futures (Not Predicting the One)  If we learned anything from Back to the Future, it’s that predicting the future is tricky business. Marty McFly tried, and things got weird fast. The good news? Your association doesn’t have to predict the future. It just needs to prepare for multiple futures—and that’s exactly what scenario planning does. …
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People sitting around a table planning

5 Ways to Increase the Value of Your Association Memberships

By AMR Management Services | July 1, 2026 | Community,  Membership
Associations and their members should have a symbiotic relationship that benefits both groups equally. Your organization must keep members engaged by providing them with unique benefits and opportunities. In return, your members help keep your association operating by paying dues, participating in activities, and recommending your membership program to others.  When your association provides valuable…
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Graphic chart showing what VUCA Stands For - Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity

VUCA Strategy: The Antidote to Volatility and Uncertainty

By Molly Marsh | June 22, 2026 | Association Management,  Strategic Planning
Wait, so how do we look at and think about strategic planning differently in a world that is in constant motion?   The VUCA framework is a great place to start! VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity) is a structure meant to capture an environment where nothing is predictable and things can change from day to day – sound familiar? While each of the VUCA letters represents part of this complex environment, there’s…
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Hammer Hitting a Glass Wall

Why Traditional Strategic Planning Fails in Uncertain Times

By Molly Marsh | June 8, 2026 | AMR Services,  Strategic Planning
Your association spent months crafting a five-year strategic plan. Then the world changed overnight. Sound familiar?  Traditional strategic planning is great in a world where you can reasonably predict what will be happening in your industry in 5-10 years and where members are looking for reliable, consistent experiences from year to year – basically a world that no longer exists. Models that ask association…
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