Do as we say, not as we do?
Mergers are tough, no doubt about it. And the American Society of Association Executives and The Center for Association Leadership had their work cut out for them after their consolidation. And now, the critics are coming out to comment on their attempts:
Tom Asacker can’t believe they went the focus-group/member-survey route to come up with the new name: ASAE and The Center. I find it particularly ironic given that one of the keynoters at their just-held annual conference was Malcolm Gladwell, who, according to an entry on the XtremeASAE blog, said this was exactly not the route to take. (Post is here):
- Gladwell told the story about a famous tennis coach…who spent thirty years meeting with all the greats of the sport for lengthy conversations, to soak up their knowledge of tennis.
He told Gladwell, “After thirty years of talking with the greatest tennis players in the world, the only thing I’ve learned is that they don’t know anything about tennis.”
And Gladwell said this morning: ‘Think about that the next time you convene a focus group of your members.”
About the new logo: Some comments on the ASAE blog are here. (Mine, such as they are, are here.) Ben over at the Certified Association Executive has this to say about it.
So, what do you all think? (And remember, ASAE, we only criticize because we care.)
Related Topics: Industry association news
August 19th, 2005 at 10:30 am
There’s a great post on focus groups, Gladwell, et al here: http://www.adpulp.com/archives/001147.php
And with regard to hiring Gladwell to speak, but “tuning out” his message . . . well . . . we all know why this happens. Don’t we? Celebrity brand names attract attendees! Meeting planners genrally hire for cachet, not for insights. True?
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