A new strategic framework, supported by three operational pillars intended to deliver greater value to members and help the association community navigate a rapidly changing environment, was approved by the ASAE board of directors. More than 500 volunteer leaders, members, and partners helped shape the framework.
Three interconnected strategic pillars will the guide work, according to an announcement from ASAE:
* Grow Influence & Impact: Convene leaders and ideas, elevate the voice of associations, and help shape the future of the profession;
* Enrich Talent & Organizational Readiness: Develop leaders, strengthen organizations, modernize learning and credentials, and elevate association management as a profession; and,
* Optimize the Member Experience: Co-create solutions with members, foster meaningful connections, and deliver experiences that help organizations succeed today and prepare for tomorrow.
In support of the Optimize the Member Experience pillar, ASAE is launching ASAE Labs, powered by ASAE Business Solutions, to co-create solutions for the future of associations. ASAE Labs will include Mini-Labs, bringing members together to test ideas, tackle emerging challenges, and co-create solutions that help associations navigate a rapidly changing environment with confidence, explained Chris Vest, CAE, vice president, corporate communications & public relations..
“This framework is a reflection of what is possible when an organization listens deeply and brings its community together around a shared vision,” ASAE President and CEO Michelle Mason, FASAE, CAE, AAiP, said via a statement.
The plan was developed during a months-long, community-driven process that began at ASAE’s 2025 Leaders’ Retreat during
The new framework was developed during the 2025 leaders retreat in Louisville this past November, which included approximately 150 committee and council volunteers as well as the board. Unlike the previous “Destination 2026” strategic plan, this initiative is structured as an “agile framework” to better allow the organization to pivot according to changing circumstances and member needs, explained Vest.
ASAE has approximately 51,000 members, up 6% from 2025, which Vest attributed to a hybrid membership model implemented around 2020, which allows organizations to purchase memberships that cover the entire staff, moving away from a model that had remained at roughly 25,000 members for decades.
ASAE plan to transition the framework into action with new projects approved by the board. These include Certified Association Executive (CAE) aligned micro-credentials, which will be managed by the learning team, and a “Trust Associations” campaign, which will be handled by the public policy team. The ideas will be tested with members, he said, beginning at the leaders retreat in New Orleans this November.
The board approved approximately $250,000 for each of the two primary strategic investments. Implementation of these initiatives is considered an enterprise-wide responsibility, with specific staff leads assigned based on the project rather than a singular person overseeing every pillar. There are no formal benchmarks established for the framework’s pillars, as the organization intends to prioritize adaptability based on member feedback, Vest said.
The board approved a strategic investment to make the “Trust Associations” campaign a cornerstone initiative of ASAE. The Trust Associations campaign was launched during 2025 as part of ASAE’s advocacy efforts to protect the association community’s tax treatment on Capitol Hill. Vest said that working with the Community Impact Coalition, ASAE successfully helped keep onerous proposals targeting associations out of the eventual tax legislation.
