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AES Newsletter
Thursday July 29, 2021
I recently spoke to AES Legal Advisor John Crosby about how Copyright can apply to associations and some things to watch out for.
As John noted in our discussion, Copyright is controversial. It is often asserted by different organisations, but not always with merit. Many documents will feature the Copyright symbol; however, this symbol is irrelevant when asserting or proving Copyright. Copyright exists whenever a work in original and every work of literature created by anyone has Copyright is original creations ...
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Wednesday July 07, 2021
Many associations rely on events as a major source of revenue. With business events cancelled and postponed over the last 18 months due to COVID-19, this has significantly impacted association revenue.
While we are slowly returning to some form of normality, the future of events is still unpredictable to say the least. Snap lockdowns and border closures can put event planning into a tailspin with little more than a moment’s notice.
Until such time that the majority of the population is fully ...
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Wednesday June 30, 2021
One of the biggest challenges facing many associations today is the rapidly changing pace of technology. Today, new and improved technology is enabling associations to provide services, manage the organisation's day-to-day functions, and communicate with members in a way not previously possible.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a significant change in how associations interact with members, including an accelerated uptake of online technology. Virtual platforms that enable us to host webinars and even whole conference platforms are changing not ...
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Thursday June 24, 2021
Associations can be very dynamic organisations. They can bring together like minded members to share information, ideas, and best practice processes within their industry or area of interest.
Modern society prospers as a result of this type of collaboration; it has instigated breakthroughs in science, changed society's values, and influenced government policies. An effective member association can serve the community in any number of ways.
So then, what do dynamic, effective member associations have in common? Generally, they can demonstrate best practice ...
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Wednesday June 16, 2021
Each year, association and not-for-profit Boards need to ensure that their organisation is compliant with all requirements imposed by the relevant regulators and government departments, particularly the Australian Tax Office.
This is not always an easy task, particularly if your organisation has limited resources and volunteer Board members. To help make the process ever so slightly simpler, I’ve put together four important areas you may need to check or include on the agenda for your next Board meeting.
Keep in mind that not all ...
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Wednesday May 26, 2021
Association Executive Services (AES) hosted its first face-to-face event since COVID-19 yesterday: a breakfast attended by over 20 association leaders in Melbourne. The theme for the event was Refreshed Recharged and Ready for 2021.
Ironically, at the same time, the Victorian Government had identified 25 new cases of COVID-19 and, today, Melbourne is set to go into lockdown—again.
During the event, we discussed some of the issues that association leaders faced during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and are now facing as ...
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Tuesday May 11, 2021
Most associations send out a membership invoice subscription to their members either once a year or on the anniversary of their joining. Membership subscriptions can present a range of issues for associations. In particular, pricing can be a dilemma each year. Is your pricing structure right? Are your members going to be pleased with the subscription price? Do you need to increase the price? These are all questions your Board of Directors should review (and answer) each year.
Recently, I was involved in the membership ...
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Wednesday March 24, 2021
It’s now over 12 months since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, and yet, its influence on associations throughout Australia is still being felt. Many association leaders have had to revisit their membership engagement and marketing strategies to ensure that their existing members renew and new members are attracted.
Here are some of the changes to association member engagement that we noticed emerging in 2020, and developing in the first quarter of year.
The Changing Face of Membership Value
With the closure of ...
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Wednesday March 24, 2021
Associations (and their members) come together to represent a specific purpose and to forward the interests of a specific group of people. More and more, members’ expectations of the services, support, advice and benefits delivered by their association are on the rise. As such, association leaders must be able to demonstrate to their members that they are meeting industry best practice, and that the needs of members are being met.
That's where benchmarking can help.
Benchmarking is the perfect way for an ...
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Wednesday February 24, 2021
In September 2020, the Federal Government announced that they would commit $50 million in grants to support business events.
The funding was meant to reinvigorate the business event sector in Australia, with grants to encourage organisations to attend events, trade shows and conferences. The grants were advertised as a means to help Australian organisations cover the costs of exhibition space, design and manufacture of displays, as well as associated travel and accommodation.
Since the announcement of the funding, the Federal Government has ...
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Tuesday February 23, 2021
Registering as a charity under the Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission (ACNC) might seem like a good idea. It certainly affords charitable not-for-profit organisations the opportunity to gain exemptions from income tax, and enables them to apply for certain categories of deductible gift recipient (DGR) status.
Charities registered with the ACNC may even be exempt from certain requirements under Commonwealth laws. Some of these exemptions include the ability to make unsolicited phone calls to those on the ‘Do Not Call Register’ ...
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Tuesday February 23, 2021
With the Federal Government's $50 million business grants program largely excluding associations from the initiative, some of the State Government funding initiatives may be more beneficial for Australian associations.
As such, we've compiled a round-up of some of the grant funding currently available for business events across the nation.
New South Wales
The New South Wales Government recently released funding for a Regional Business Event Development Fund, designed to assist businesses and other stakeholders to create, attract and support business events for regional NSW.
There ...
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Sunday November 15, 2020
In the course of their careers, all association leaders would have experienced a situation in which a member has acted inappropriately, requiring disciplinary action by the association. This disciplinary action may have required expulsion of the member from the association, society, or club.
There are some essential tips that association managers should follow to ensure their organisation's values are maintained in the event that disciplinary action must be taken against a member. This way, if one of your members breaches these ...
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Sunday November 15, 2020
Professional Advantage and AES have come together to facilitate a series of webinars that will be rolled out over the next six months or so. The purpose of the series is to bring association leaders and professionals together, and have them share their strategies and experience to help one another recover from the impacts that COVID-19 has had on Australian associations.
The first of these webinars was hosted in October, focused on the topic of Recovery and Beyond: What Does Association ...
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Sunday November 15, 2020
The AES team has recently facilitated several virtual Annual General Meetings (AGMs) for its clients and members. During each of these AGMs, we noticed some similar behaviours that we feel need to be addressed.
With virtual AGMs possibly becoming ‘the norm’ (even post COVID-19), we thought it pertinent to revisit the do’s and don’ts of AGMs for all association boards and committees.
AES governance expert, John Crosby, took the time to answer some important questions for us.
Many associations are in the middle ...
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Wednesday September 09, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged our daily operations, and impacted our abilities to plan face-to-face events. But it has also allowed us to think of creative ways to meet virtually.
As an alternative to these face-to-face meetings, many association leaders have moved to online Zoom meetings to engage with their members. This technique has proven to be very effective for members to engage and communicate with each other for a suite of different purposes.
Over the last three months, Association Executive Services ...
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Wednesday September 09, 2020
It is highly likely that your association’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) has been, or will be, affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. With restrictions on large gatherings, as well as travel bans and self-isolation measures, holding an AGM in-person in 2020 is highly unlikely, particularly if you are located in Victoria.
All these restrictions have fast tracked the evolution of the virtual AGM, using software platforms such as Zoom. However, it is important to keep in mind the various rules and regulations ...
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Wednesday August 05, 2020
As everyone is aware, Melbourne is now subject to Stage 4 COVID-19 restrictions, which impose significant responsibilities on businesses and, therefore, associations.
As of 11.59pm on Wednesday 5 August, workplaces in Melbourne MUST be closed unless:
The workplace is part of a permitted industry, as per the Victorian Government’s guidelines
All employees are working from home.
All Victorians are required to work from home, except where this is not practicable. Sole operators can continue to operate, if they do not have contact with the ...
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Tuesday August 04, 2020
Of the many ramifications that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on associations, its impact on events and conferences has been one of the most significant.
Recently, AES hosted an online meeting which gathered together several association leaders to discuss the challenges being faced by associations in a COVID-19 environment, as well as the strategies in use to navigate and manage these challenges. The meeting provided an opportunity for association leaders to share ideas and resources, providing one another with inspiration and ...
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Tuesday August 04, 2020
In a COVID-19 environment, many associations are struggling to engage with their members, resulting in a decline of membership renewals and an inability to attract new members.
As such, Association Executive Services hosted an online meeting, inviting leaders of its member associations to come together and discuss how they are managing the challenges associated with membership throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Attendees were encouraged to share ideas and resources so that the Australian association industry can work together, as a ...
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