Any association would love a member-retention rate of 75 percent. Unfortunately, according to a 2017 report cited in the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) publication, Associations Now, retention rates for all associations are falling. While in 2016, 73 percent of associations surveyed in the report had member-retention rates above 75 percent, in 2017 only 65 percent reached that rate. The numbers for new members are even lower, given the consequences of the pandemic.

Certainly, these numbers are concerning. Yet statistics make it hard to grasp the lived experience of new members. So let me share the story of someone who recently joined, and then left, an association.

A new-member story

Sharon recently graduated from college, secured a quality position, and joined a national association of more than 30,000 members. Her main reasons for joining:
• Becoming part of a community of peers
• Networking with others
• Accessing vetted learning opportunities

She got a useful welcome email with resources from the association. She appreciated the discounts on webinars, her preferred method of learning as an introvert.

They’re with me, I just know it, at least I think they’re with me... OK, maybe not. Oh no! They’re gone. Well, thank goodness that’s over!

Has that happened to you? How about the following:

• I addressed this issue 30 minutes ago. How did they forget so soon? They have minds like sieves—easy in and easy out. Frustrating!

• He seemed surprised when I called on him. It’s his area of expertise. He kind of recovered, but imagine what would have happened if he hadn’t known the topic. Frankly, it wasn’t a great moment for either of us.

Too often, trainers, facilitators, and speakers think people are with them and retaining information, but in truth, they’ve misheard, drawn incorrect conclusions, taken mental vacations to the Bahamas, or worse.

Fortunately, fixing those problems isn’t as tough as it may initially seem. When used consistently, anchors, signposts, echoes, and loops can help improve the clarity and stickiness of a message. These four devices help people find their way to understanding the message, hear instructions or key messages more than once, and recall earlier messages.

(Nordlocker: Panama) -- The human element remains the weakest link in cybersecurity, as an annual report reveals that 85 percent of all data breaches are in one way or another caused by an employee. As digital technologies become essential in modern organizations, no industry is safe from cybercriminals exploiting their weak spots.

“Identifying where the risks lie is a good start,” says Oliver Noble, an expert in cybersecurity risk management at NordLocker, an encrypted cloud service provider. “But organizations also need to invest in cybersecurity awareness campaigns that address specific risks.” Below, he lays out how security-oriented work culture is put into practice at NordLocker and encourages other companies to implement a similar approach.  

(Marposs: Auburn Hills, MI) -- Marposs, a leader in measurement, inspection, and test technologies, has announced its NVH Gear Tester for identifying potential gear defects at the component level prior to gear box assembly. The NVH gear tester, which works on the single-flank testing principle of one master gear meshing with the component under inspection, is able to detect macro-geometry (e.g., nicks, runout) and micro-geometry (gear-mesh excitation, ghost orders) defects that cause gear whine and noise phenomena.

With electrification of the automotive industry, many hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) and full electric vehicle (EV) drivetrains are facing challenges such as increased NVH requirements in high-speed e-Drives. And, although the number of gear wheels is significantly reduced in electric vehicles due to the use of one- or two-speed reducers instead of the classic manual, automatic, or twin-clutch gearboxes, these gear wheels are loaded with torque and rpm not previously found in high-volume production.

With hybrids and EVs, the noise from an internal combustion engine (ICE) is intermittent or nonexistent, so that transmission makes the most dominant vehicle noise. Noise, therefore, becomes not only a mechanical issue for the performance of the transmission, but also a comfort issue for the driver.