How a Past President Could Guide an Association’s Future

Few challenges in association management have easy answers, but at least they usually have a small number of reasonable options from which to choose. Who has the right skill set to be CEO? It's likely either a leader in the association's industry or an association professional. What to do for non-dues revenue? Some mix of meetings, sponsorship and training—and a whiz-bang product or two if you're lucky. What's the optimal board size? Opinions vary, but probably smaller than what you have got.

I have never heard a clear, confident answer about what a past board president is good for.

Past presidents are often required by an association’s bylaws, but consensus about their role is elusive. A few years ago Association Management Center surveyed professionals on the matter, asking them to rate how helpful a past president has been in realizing an association’s goals on a scale of 1 to 10; glumly, responses clustered around 5. Often, leaders are concerned that past presidents will undo the current board’s efforts: A third of survey respondents said past presidents have organized against a board initiative.

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