AES Newsletter

Thursday June 04, 2020

Association Executive Services recently distributed a survey to Australian associations seeking information on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Download your copy of the AES Survey Report: The Impact of COVID-19 on Australian Associations. We understand that many Australian associations rely on revenue from membership, events and education; most of which have been cancelled or postponed over the last couple of months. The survey focused on these kinds of issues, and called for feedback on the support needed by Australian associations. We received ...
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Tuesday June 02, 2020

It was early 2008, and I had just taken over as CEO of Materials Australia, an association with a membership base comprised of materials engineers and scientists. Around three months into the job, I discovered that the accountant has been stealing from the association for about 10 years. The balance sheet was not as it seemed and this was the beginning of three years of recovery.  The accountant was fired and charged with stealing, and I was left to manage an ...
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Tuesday June 02, 2020

If your association’s revenue is reliant on income streams from membership subscriptions, an annual conference and events, now is the time to rethink your membership offering. In the post-COVID-19 environment, many associations will be facing a severe impact on their financial position, particularly when the JobKeeper payments cease at the end of September.  According to the Gratton Institute’s report Shutdown: Estimating the COVID-19 Employment Shock, Australia is heading into one of the most severe economic challenges that the country has ever ...
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Tuesday June 02, 2020

Association Executive Services recently hosted a webinar that discussed the future of association events and conferences in Australia in a COVID-19 world, featuring a panel of legal, insurance, health and association events experts.  This webinar covered a wide range of topics and discussed many of the complex layers and aspects that come into play when planning an association event or conference in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Impact of COVID-19 on Association Events and Conferences This webinar was particularly pertinent as ...
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Tuesday April 07, 2020

The coronavirus (COVID-19) is having a significant health and economic impact globally. The economic impact is affecting many organisations, both in terms of direct ability to earn income (for example cancellation of training courses, conferences, etc) and indirect impacts (for example lower members where companies and individuals are reducing discretionary expenditure when they have been impacted directly. There are a few areas in an entities financial statements that are likely to require further considerations or adjustments. Subsequent Events Entities may need to evaluate whether ...
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Tuesday April 07, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many associations’ teams to work remotely from home. This new way of working can have a huge impact on individuals’ mental health. In certain instances, it might make your team members feel disconnected from others, and it can certainly disorient their daily routines. For leaders of associations whose teams are currently working remotely, it’s important that you implement practices which will help to boost the morale and wellbeing of your team members. Gavin Sharp, AES Advisor and ...
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Tuesday April 07, 2020

Has your association’s AGM meeting been affected by coronavirus (COVID-19)? If your association’s balance date is December 31, then you may be wondering how you will meet the May 31 deadline to hold your AGM—particularly against the backdrop of COVID-19. COVID-19 may impact your association’s ability to hold an AGM due to restrictions on large gatherings, as well as travel bans and self-isolation measures that will restrict key stakeholders from being able to gather. ASIC’s Two-month Extension by ‘No-action’ Position The Australian Securities ...
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Tuesday April 07, 2020

As many of you may know, Association Executive Services provides secretariat services to a number of associations representing a range of members. As such, the AES team members responsible for supporting these associations are at the frontline of the Australian association sector. They are witnessing, first-hand, the impact that COVID-19 is having on associations. Clearly, the impact of COVID-19 on all businesses will be significant. While some businesses may actually benefit in the long-term, what I am witnessing is a potential ...
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Tuesday March 24, 2020

In the wake of COVID-19, many events across the world have been cancelled or postponed in an attempt to mitigate the spread of the virus. If your association or not-for-profit had its annual conference, member events, or training courses coming up, you have likely cancelled these events by now. With many associations relying on the profits from their annual conference to deliver their services for next 12 months, the impact on both cashflow and an association’s bottom-line can be serious. We spoke ...
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Tuesday March 24, 2020

Amid mounting concerns over the economic fall-out that will be caused by COVID-19, the Federal Government has announced several measures to help Australian businesses. On Sunday 22 March, Prime Minister Morrison released a second $66.1 billion stimulus package designed to help boost income support payments, introduce changes to superannuation, and provide cash flow support payments of up to $100,000 for small business employers. Some of these measures are available to not-for-profit entities.    If your association is experiencing financial hardship, we encourage ...
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Tuesday March 24, 2020

On 23 March, the Government introduced the Coronavirus Economic Response Package Omnibus Bill 2020, which was fast-tracked through parliament in response to growing concerns around COVID-19. The legislation is designed to help lessen the economic threats that otherwise healthy companies and entities are currently experiencing in a bid to reduce the closure of businesses, associations and charities alike. The Bill outlines measures such as temporary relief from insolvent trading liability, increased thresholds for winding up and bankruptcy procedures, and protections from ...
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Wednesday March 11, 2020

The spread of a novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) is already proving to have huge global implications. As the COVID-19 situation continues to evolve and develop, it is imperative that associations—as employers—take into careful consideration the legal obligations they have for their employees regarding work, health and safety, and risk mitigation. In particular, employers must provide their staff with advice and management actions that are clear, relevant, timely and accurate in order to reduce panic and distress, minimise absenteeism and facilitate ...
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Wednesday March 11, 2020

As the novel coronavirus – COVID-19 – situation continues to develop and emerge, it is becoming increasingly apparent that it would be wise for businesses and associations to implement risk management plans in order to reduce business losses, minimise recovery time and generally improve business continuity. Furthermore, according to Work Health and Safety (WHS) laws, workplaces are obliged to provide their employees with, within what is reasonably practicable, a risk-free work environment or take precautions to mitigate or eradicate risks. When planning ...
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Wednesday March 11, 2020

In the wake of COVID-19, many events across the world are being cancelled or postponed in an attempt to mitigate the spread of the virus. If your association has an event coming up, you might be thinking about cancelling it or postponing it. However, whether you decide to go ahead with the event or not, it is prudent to understand the implications of either decision. In particular, the legal implications associated with both proceeding with the event and cancelling it should ...
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Monday February 17, 2020

Association Executive Services (AES) is pleased to announce the launch of its 10 Areas of Best Practice for Associations Model. This Model will help associations attain the level of excellence they need to thrive. 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 ...
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Monday February 17, 2020

The rise of social media has ushered in a change in what members expect of their organisations. There have been undeniable benefits, including increased communication between members. However, a heavy reliance on social media has also resulted in some negatives, particularly around creating a real sense of belonging and making members feel special and engaged (and therefore more likely to remain association members long-term). Are You Relying On Social Media To Increase Your Membership Numbers? If you are relying on social media ...
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Tuesday January 21, 2020

Over the nine last years, Association Executive Services (AES) has captured information about the performance of associations in Australia. Using the AES Association Best Practice Self-Assessment tool, we have gathered data from over 450 association leaders. All these association leaders have self-assessed their organisation against 10 key areas: Governance Strategic Planning Leadership People Systems and Procedures Risk Management Financial Membership Information Technology Association leaders complete 66 questions covering all 10 of these criteria; the results enable them to benchmark their association’s performance against similar associations (that have also completed the ...
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