Tips for Risk Readiness

Disruptions, large and small, have defined 2025. For American associations, they have often circled around actions taken by the Trump administration—from frozen federal science funding, tariff and DEI policy shifts, agency cutbacks and beyond, few member and trade groups have been unaffected.

That puts association staff and volunteer leaders in a bind: They’re duty-bound to think strategically about their organization’s futures, but must also find ways to react to sudden headwinds. Earlier this year, the American Society of Association Executives' (ASAE) Association Governance Institute launched its Governance + Strategy Forum; though it wasn't explicitly designed to respond to White House moves, it is intended to equip CEOs and boards for the kind of turbulence for which 2025 will be remembered.

Jon Hockman, FASAE, chief practice officer at McKinley Advisors and one of the content leaders for the forum, said one of its goals is to speak to the strategic needs of associations beyond the basics.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Associations Now.