Network Celebrates 15 Years of Championing Membership & Shaking Things Up

It was within this role that I was given increased management responsibility I became aware of the need to network and benchmark to optimise success. I had already created a small professional network that met socially every now and again.

The only real two shining lights were the Professional Associations Research  Network (PARN); at that time were doing some fantastic research on membership development/regulation and CPD; and the Trade Association Forum (TAF); that really was (and still is to this day) doing some great policy/leadership work for those leading trade bodies/associations.

In the meantime I was still hungry for more progression and so I jumped at the chance to project manage the membership of a new Institute for examiners which went on to gain a Royal Charter. A team of four with three of us (all sharing the first name Richard!) was an interesting experience, however joking aside I “cut my teeth” in this role as a Project Manager and learnt how to set-up, manage and deliver effective membership strategy/operations. At this point in my career (2006) was recognised by The Guardian as a ‘Mover and Shaker’ or as Julie Ferry put it ‘A Job Tart’.

It was in this role that I said to myself ‘I can either keep complaining about the lack of opportunities to network/benchmark (meet people like me) or I can do something about it. The MemberWise Network was born.

So, I set the network up in my spare time and we began to “rip up a few rather stuffy rule books” and make some solid progress in championing not what ‘good looks like’ but what ‘great looks like’ within membership and lead by example. We started off with 100 keen membership/association professionals and 10 suppliers who ‘got membership’ and who all wanted to see the sector develop at a faster pace. I was really proud to be invited to be a TAF Best Practice Awards Judge (another 15 year anniversary this year!) and asked to sit on the PARN Steering Group (for 3 years).

In 2009 I started to write advice sheets and began speaking at a number of national conferences and events. We quadrupled our membership to 300 members and I made a firm commitment to always enable free network access to anyone working within a membership body. AKA – If we’re here you will never be alone in your role.

In 2010 we held our first conference which was all about getting more membership bodies on to Direct Debit.

In 2011 I became the Head of Membership at the Royal College of General Practitioners and in this role started to manage multiple staff/teams/functions. The insight I was gaining from MemberWise massively helped me in my role. That may perhaps sound a bit selfish! We worked hard but delivered some transformational results. I was also asked by The Guardian to speak at their headquarters and we delivered our first ever Harnessing the Web Conference (now known as Digital Excellence) in Central London.

By 2013 I wrote the first Digital Excellence Report (formerly known as the Harnessing the Web Report. The report is now in its 9^th edition this year and is viewed as the leading digital benchmarking guide for our sector. Later that year I was asked to become the Chair of the Independent Advisory Board for the CPD Standards Office. I also supported the Royal Institute of British Architects to deliver the CPD Forum’s largest ever CPD conference @ RIBA HQ.

By 2014 the network had gained 3,000 members and was covering its costs so I reduced my hours down to 4 days per week and went on to become Interim Director of Member Relations at the Royal College of Psychiatrists and then Interim Director of Relationship Management at The Law Society.

In 2016 we launched the sector’s first ever online member community (MemberWise Connect) having spent two weeks with the ASAE and key partners in Washington. My mission was to see what Membership looked like in the US as it felt like they were (and still are) ahead of the UK sector. This felt like a real adventure!

By 2017 it was time to dedicate all my time to the network and this was quite scary but extremely rewarding and this is when the network really did power up. The conferences (Membership Excellence and Digital Excellence) grew, supplier support became stronger  and we started delivering events that attracted circa 600 delegates and 54 exhibitors. In 2019 we optimised our best practice content and also launched our own dedicated MemberWise Network mobile app with Partner, Cantarus.

Then COVID-19 hit. Sector support from pretty much every provider/network simply stopped in the early days. We on the other hand ramped things up by creating a free COVID-19 Hub and rallied our partners to help us spend time generating great content. Our suite of Best Practice Guides was born, we launched our learning management system (MemberWise Learn) and our first webinar was attended by circa 600 people and we provided advice that was badly needed. E.g. how to work from home effectively. We also interviewed senior leaders querying their responses to the situation. Our message was ‘We step up whilst others stepped back’. You will remember this I am sure.

The network is now achieving higher levels of member engagement than ever before. Our events regularly sell out and we are working more closely than ever with our partners than ever before – look out for some new functionality on the MemberWise Conferences App in October!) – and circa 180 MemberWise Recognised Suppliers to deliver practical help and advice the sector both needs and deserves.

So, here’s to the next 15 years and I hope that you will continue to be a part of our growing professional network. What comes next? Membership Excellence (2023) on 19^th October and our second Membership Solutions Day on 16^th November, as a starter for ten.

To celebrate our anniversary we asked for some messages of support from our Ambassadors and key stakeholders:

‘MemberWise has been invaluable to me in supporting me making the case to value and proactively engage with members. Conferences, seminars, online resources and benchmarking data are amazing resources for the whole community. There is nothing better than content and ideas generated by the community for the community of membership professionals.’
Simon Edwards, MemberWise Ambassador & Chief Executive of the London Mathematical Society

“Membership professionals are dedicated to serving their communities but it’s also vitally important for them to find their own tribe. We all understand and espouse the benefits of community – and we need our own. This is where MemberWise comes in. The MemberWise CEO community is a really useful and safe space for senior leaders in the membership sphere to air ideas, seek support and share good practice. It was particularly useful during the pandemic, and the network has remained strong since.”

Lizzie Lockett, MemberWise Ambassador & Chief Executive, Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS)

“I first stumbled across MemberWise when it was still embryonic. The network felt like it was genuinely set up for the good of the sector and those working within it, and run by people who had walked in their shoes. Since then the size of the network and the range of activities has grown enormously, but it has never lost that altruistic, supportive feeling.

“I find MemberWise to be an ongoing source of insight, guidance and support and I would encourage anyone working in the Membership sector to engage with it. The easiest entry points are the conferences which bring together a huge volume of focused content in once place, whilst the MemberWise Connect forum provides a useful daily feed of live discussion issues.

When I think about all the networks I’ve been a part of during my working life, I’ve can honestly say that I’ve found MemberWise to be the most active, useful and sincere of them all. Happy birthday MemberWise!”

Daniel Bailey, MemberWise Ambassador and Head of Marketing, Communications and Digital Transformation, Electrical Contractors Association (ECA)

“MemberWise has been a lifeline for many membership professionals who through membership learnt they were not alone, they were professionals in their own right and we are proud to accredit all of the network’s high quality learning opportunities. Congratulations to Rich and the team. Keep up the good work!”
Amanda Rosewarne, CEO, CPD Standards Office

“MemberWise was the place I found my tribe! The best membership for any budding membership professional. Thousands of membership loving souls who help support each other through MemberWise Connect sharing current problems and solutions. Access to great content, training, courses and must go conferences of the year on all matters membership. The Recognised Supplier Directory is my go to place for suppliers who understand membership. The jobs board is the place to find your next membership employee. Having worked in the membership sector for 30 years I wanted to give something back and having become an Ambassador and mentor with MemberWise I feel I am doing that, helping the next great generation of membership professionals find their tribe!”

Emma Day, MemberWise Ambassador & Membership Director, British Horse Society

“I am really proud to be able to call myself a MemberWise Ambassador.  I have had so many interesting and fruitful interactions due to this role and made some great new connections which otherwise may not have happened.  It is great to hear from other membership bodies, hearing their stories , sharing best practice and sometimes just relating to the same pinch points!  The community of members is an incredibly valuable and supportive, a professional network I know I can go to for support and great advice.  I certainly get as much for being part of this network as I hope I am able to bring to those I interact with because of it.”

Katherine Bunting, MemberWise Ambassador and Head of Professional development, Institution of Engineering and Technology (The IET)

“I found MemberWise about a year after I left my role working in a membership body. I was gutted that it hadn’t been around when I was running a team and trying to drag the organisation into more efficient ways of working. But I knew it was really needed so I got in touch to see if I could help. I’ve been a conference speaker and helper and a MemberWise Ambassador for over ten years and it is incredibly rewarding. The great thing is that everyone in the network shares the same challenges, but are not in competition with each other. That’s why it is so supportive, and so successful. Thanks for your vision Rich and for all your hard work.”

Sarah Alder, MemberWise Ambassador (Community)

“I am proud to be an ambassador for MemberWise. The guides, resources, and mentoring programme have been invaluable in my professional development. If you work in membership, joining is a no-brainer!”

Kathryn Jack, MemberWise Ambassador and Head of Employer and Stakeholder Management, Hook Tangaza

“MemberWise has provided a great sounding board and source of information for many years. It’s somewhere you can ask difficult questions and get insightful responses. It provides a steer to the industry and a litmus test to ideas. The enthusiasm and leadership of Rich characterises the organisation and I am sure 15 years is just the start of a continued long and successful journey.”

John Cottrell, MemberWise Ambassador and Head of Membership, Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA)

“Having started so recently in the membership sector, I can confidently say it’s helped me to settle in and feel confident in my role more quickly than if I’d been left unattended! That you can reach out online at any time and get a speedy and helpful response from a peer is invaluable. I think a lot of organisations in the sector have just one person doing one job – which would be really isolating without the network to engage with. Being able to see what others are doing in the space is inspiring and it pushes me to deliver the best for my organisation and its members.”

Katie Hill, MemberWise Ambassador and Operations and Governance Manager, The Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (AGCAS)

“The Memberwise Network has throughout its history been a consistent and invaluable source of support, help, information and inspiration for all things membership. I regularly wonder just what we would do if it wasn’t there to call upon…”

Ian Oxley, MemberWise Ambassador and Head of Supporter Recruitment, National Trust

“Since joining MemberWise I’ve really valued being able to connect with other membership organisations at in person and online events and on the MemberWise Connect forum, learning from what has been achieved across the sector and seeing what is possible for improving support to members in the coming years. I’d therefore encourage other membership organisations, both small and large, to join this friendly, knowledgeable and supportive network.”

Michael Shann, MemberWise Ambassador and Head of Carer Support, Carers UK

“Congratulations on 15 years MemberWise! It’s great to see how MemberWise has grown during this time and provided so much help and support to so many membership organisations and professionals over the years. The network provides an important opportunity to come together to share best practice and discuss challenges facing Membership organisations.  Thank you Rich and the MemberWise team for all your hard work!”

Clare Hodgson, MemberWise Ambassador and Head of Continuous Learning and Members Support, Associatoin of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)

“The Memberwise community is invaluable. The Professional Body world can be quite unique when it comes to our challenges, drive and ambitions – the Network provides access to a community of like minded people who ‘get it!’ We share, celebrate and learn from each other.
Happy Birthday memberwise – keep up the good work!”

Liz Lees, MemberWise Ambassador and Group Director of Membership, Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS)