The value of LMA.

• Author: Darling, Nathan
• Position: President's Podium

Information gleaned from our Member Value Task Force and membership benefits survey are driving a comprehensive realignment of LMA's programs, services and benefits around one core principle: value.

Nearly every organization has seen its products and services revalued

during this economic disruption. Not all of these revaluations are negative, and not all are financial. Savvy organizations are finding ways to ensure that they are tuned into their stakeholders' definitions of value--emotional, financial and other. And they are listening to these market signals and making appropriate adjustments.

I am proud to say that LMA fits into the "savvy organization" category. This is not to say that we are perfect, because we definitely are not. However, your LMA International Board and leaders have focused for the past year on several initiatives designed to give voice and definition to our members' perceptions of the value LMA provides them now, and how LMA can provide even greater value in the future. These initiatives confirmed that our members have substantial belief in, loyalty to, and affinity with the LMA brand. Our members describe LMA using words like family, friends and even oxygen. Clearly, we have succeeded in forging strong emotional connections in our community!

Our members also let us know that we have tremendous potential to grow and mature--suggesting ways we should connect with new audiences and expand into new geographies. They reminded us about some significant unmet member needs--each an opportunity to enhance our members' professional stature. And they underscored our perennial challenge of strengthening the...