Associations are rarely short of ideas
If you spend enough time around any association, membership body or volunteer-led organisation, you’ll soon realise that there is never a shortage of ideas.
Ideas often emerge from committee meetings, member feedback, conferences, networking conversations and everyday discussions. They often come from the volunteers that deeply care about the organisation and want to see it thrive.
In many cases, these ideas can genuinely add value to the organisation, though the challenge is deciding what to do with them.
Saying Yes
Saying ‘Yes’ and turning an idea into a project creates a sense of momentum and demonstrate that the organisation is responsive. Though, over time this approach can lead to a growing list of initiatives that all compete for the same time, attention and resources.
While each project may seem worthwhile, collectively they can begin to pull the association is too many directions.
Every Project Comes with a Cost
When a project kicks off, the focus is usually on the potential benefits. Less attention tends to go into the resources required to make the project successful.
Every project will need planning, oversight, communication and follow-through. It requires people to attend meetings, make decisions, monitor progress and actions. Even relatively small initiatives create demands on time and capacity.
The demands are not always obvious at the beginning. They tend to emerge gradually as the project develops and expectations grow around it.
Before long, an idea that seems fairly straightforward can become a commitment competing for attention between your volunteers.
Holding onto an Idea
Ideas don’t lose value if they’re not acted upon immediately. Allowing an idea to sit for a while often provides an opportunity to test whether it’s something that remains important and that it properly aligns with organisation priorities. It also gives committees time to plan and check if there is sufficient capacity to support it properly.
Sometimes an idea becomes stronger through reflection, or sometimes it’s made clear that it would better placed into a different phase of your organisation’s development. Occasionally, it even becomes apparent that the problem that idea solved no longer exists.
What Matters Most
Associations are at their strongest when they have a clear sense of direction, and clear goals they are trying to achieve.
Rather than assessing whether an idea is ‘good’ or not, ask if the idea is right for the organisation at that moment in time. Even a worthwhile idea may be postponed if it distracts from the priorities at hand. Quite often an organisation may decide to focus its energy on completing existing projects, before starting anything new.
A thought-out decision-making process will protect focus and precent attention becoming fragmented.
Thoughtful Decisions
As associations look ahead and consider future opportunities, there is value in creating space for ideas without feeling obliged to act on every one of them. Having the confidence to make a distinction between what needs to be actioned is an important part of good organisational leadership.
Not every idea needs to become a project. Sometimes the most responsible decision is to recognise a good idea, appreciate its potential and wait until the time is right to give it the attention it deserves.
How we can Help
At Cygnul we work in partnership with our clients and are seen as trusted advisors to the Board. We can undertake the full range of membership, secretarial and bookkeeping services as well as offering advice and support to associations around the UK. We free up time from leadership teams, to give them the opportunity to develop their organisations.
If you want to explore how these services could help your organisation, please get in touch with us.