Managing multiple associations takes a lot of hard work. Every association has different needs and a varying membership, leaving managers with different specific projects and tasks for different groups. Fortunately, there are many useful resources for association management professionals available to help you succeed.
Read on to learn what tools we use at Elevanta every day to stay organized between each of our seven client associations.
Salesforce and Fonteva
Salesforce is a customer relationship management platform that stores information in an easily accessible database. Fonteva is a software built specifically for member-based organizations. At Elevanta, we use both platforms to compile contact information, facilitate dues payment and even registration for meetings and events.
Asana
Asana is a project management platform that helps teams organize and delegate ongoing projects. At Elevanta, we use Asana for client conferences and events, keeping all team members on track and aware of tasks that are complete, in progress or not yet started.
Constant Contact
An email communications platform is a must-have for associations. With Constant Contact, the Elevanta An email communications platform is a must-have for associations. With Constant Contact, the Elevanta communications team writes and sends professional email messages to our client associations, vendor partners and prospective members.
Microsoft Teams
Collaboration tools like Microsoft Teams facilitate communication between association staff and association members. We use Teams both internally to communicate, and externally, with one of our clients: the Supercuts Franchisee Association (SFA). Members can post and share items in the SFA Teams platform. It also serves as a way for members to share best practices within their Supercuts salons.
Collaborate by ASAE
As a member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), our association managers receive access to collaboration with other members through the ASAE’s Collaborate platform. This site has multiple resources for association management professionals, and serves as a forum for members of the industry to share ideas and feedback.
Cvent
Events are beginning to reemerge in 2021, and the meetings and events team at Elevanta uses Cvent to both venue source and register attendees for events.
“Cvent is useful for both the meeting planner and supplier because all the event details and information live in one place,” says Claudia Gundlach, certified meeting planner and senior meetings and events coordinator at Elevanta.
Submitting a request for proposal (RFP) through Cvent streamlines the sourcing process. The Cvent Supplier Network lets users keep track of who has been sent a proposal and who has returned an event bid. This allows for easy comparison of bids and suppliers in one list.
Association Link – AMC Institute
Because Elevanta is certified by the Association Management Company Institute (AMCI), staff members can access materials posted on the Association Link portal, which is similar to ASAE’s Collaborate platform. Association Link allows AMCs to review RFPs for management services, share feedback and ideas with other AMCI members.
Debra Finkler, CAE and vice president of association operations for Elevanta, advises that association executives should take advantage of the resources provided by various groups and professional societies. “From networking and camaraderie to education and professional development, I find these groups to be invaluable,” says Finkler.
Elevanta is an AMCI-certified association management group with a goal to move organizations forward. Because we’re committed to your goals, membership and industry, our team is driven to bring long-term benefits that solve operational and management challenges and increase membership satisfaction and growth, as well as bring best-in-class resources that are scalable, affordable and efficient.
To learn more about association management and how your organization can benefit from it, check out our blog post here. Contact Elevanta today to learn more about our services.
