Building Your Association Career

For associations to survive and thrive during challenges such as the ones we have experienced in the last year, they need strong leaders with a clear focus on the future.

NYSAE is no exception.  For those of you who have been watching, NYSAE has reinvented itself over the last year and upped its game in terms of relevance to our members and the organizations that you serve.  As we begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel with the distribution of Covid vaccines, NYSAE needs to be the leader in refocusing the lens for our members to best help them lead their own organizations into the future.

To do that we need new board members who are future driven, creative members from a cross section of our community, demographics, and areas of expertise.  Could that be you?  Several board slots are opening for next year. Consider the possibilities.

Having served on the NYSAE Board for many years before being elected Chair, the skills set added to my portfolio has been immeasurable. Being on the Board has not only given me an opportunity to move the organization forward, but there are also self-serving benefits as well to help me better lead my own organization. 

My fellow board members are seasoned professionals who represent a gamut of industries, all of whom face the same challenges in pivoting their organizations, increasing the pipeline of younger professionals, addressing diversity, equity and inclusion.  The discussions around our board table focus on NYSAE, but after every meeting, I walk away with a new idea, a new contact, or a nugget of perspective in running my own organization. 

What else?  Sitting on the volunteer side of the Board table, has enabled me to walk a mile in a volunteer’s shoes.  It has given me a better understanding of my own board members and their constraints, the demands on their time, the occasional shortness of attention spans, why deadlines are often missed, or emails go unanswered.  I judge less now about varying levels of dedication and commitment.  I focus more on the value that each of them brings to the table while juggling so much. I can now better relate to their challenge of having a full-time job while still dedicated to giving back to their profession.

Serving on the NYSAE Board has also helped me to watch out for those behind me and to nurture the next generation.  Working with an exemplary group of committee members this year, we have our eyes on so many who have stepped up to the plate, volunteered to lead, taken on a project.  So many have recognized that volunteering in  NYSAE can develop leadership skills in a non-threatening environment, build connections that can last throughout a professional career, provide a macro view of the profession in New York, and maybe even help find that rising star to fill a position in their own organization.

If you think you might not yet have the acumen to serve on our Board, don’t worry.  On the contrary, your perspective might be just what we need. Our Board includes professionals of all backgrounds (not just CEOs). We are looking for members who are interested in playing a strategic role in advancing the association profession, while honing their leadership skills.

Convinced?  Click here for the requirements for serving on the board and reach out to the Nominations Committee Chair.  Not quite ready?  Consider joining a committee instead to build your credentials.  Click here for information about the opportunities.

And remember you can always nominate someone else and/or encourage your colleagues to either apply or nominate someone else to serve.

Add NYSAE Board experience to your 2021 career plan and take the next step on your professional journey.

When we emerge from the other side of this pandemic, there will be much for us to do.

Joanne S. Barry, CAE

CEO/Executive Director, New York State Society of CPAs