The center for association growth provides expertise, dedication.

• Author: Roach, Betsi
• Position: Reprint

Happy New Year! As I write this, it is 85 degrees outside and hard to believe we have such warm weather in October. When you read this it may be 5 degrees--or even -5 degrees! So as the seasons change, I am reminded of how organizations change as well. I am thrilled to be a part of LMA's most recent organizational change--that of hiring its first full-time executive director. It signals an exciting and important step for the organization.

As a busy legal marketing professional, you may not give a second (or first, for that matter!) thought as to how the organization is structured and operates. In last month's issue of Strategies, LMA President Lisa Simon talked about volunteerism and how organizations such as LMA couldn't survive without volunteers. I would like to take this opportunity to share with you some of the other moving parts of the LMA organizational structure that work with the dedicated member volunteers--the highly trained association professionals.

LMA's day-to-day operations are managed by The Center for Association Growth (TCAG), an association management company. TCAG was established in 1992 by Carl A. Wangman, CAE, a well-respected association professional. Today TCAG employs 20 individuals with the expertise and dedication to successfully carry out the initiatives of every client we have the privilege to serve.

What Is an AMC?

While some associations hire staff to run the organization, others hire an association management company (AMC) to handle operations. AMCs are for-profit businesses that provide professional management and administrative services to associations. The AMC provides a centralized office that serves as the client association's headquarters. As some associations may not need a full-time staff person to handle various aspects of the business; this allows for economies of scale, so to speak. Any overhead costs are shared between the AMC's various clients, increasing each association's resources, buying power and capabilities without major capital investment. Due to the shared resources, specialists are drawn from the personnel pool and are assigned on an as-needed basis.

As an association member, you may not know the depth of activity that is required to keep LMA running. You have probably taken advantage of some typical association services: attending annual conferences and educational programming, accessing information on our Web site or reading our monthly journal. TCAG employs association professionals...