“Going Global: Partners, Challenges, Opportunities & Solutions”
ASAE GAHP Open Space education session 2019

Join Global Association Hubs Partnership(GAHP), Kellen and Association Laboratory, Inc. at the ASAE Annual Meeting in Columbus, OHto learn whether your challenges are similar to those facing other associations attempting to grow internationally, and more importantly to identify solutions for your most pressing global growth objectives.

The discussions will take place at the ASAE Annual Meeting on Monday, August 12 from 3.30 pm – 4.30 pm in the ASAE OpenSpace Pods discussion area in the North Atrium of the Greater Columbus Convention Center (look for signs or view on the ASAE Annual Meeting App).

Developing Successful Global Partnerships in a Dynamic World

In Association Laboratory’s ground-breaking environmental scan Looking Forward 2019™, 72% of international and global association CEOs and senior staff indicated they were concerned about creating successful global partnerships or coalitions, up from 27% only four years earlier!  This is one of the top concerns keeping CEO’s up at night, alongside working out how to set up multinational local delivery mechanisms, how to create global products and services that are profitable (or sometimes, simply affordable!), assimilating non-US stakeholders into governance and decision-making, and working out how the best opportunities for global expansion can be efficiently identified and embraced.

Added value: Every attendee will receive a copy of the Executive Summary of Looking Forward 2019™.

Session format

Interactive discussions will be led by three globally-experienced experts: Martin Sirk, International Advisor to GAHP, who has 16 years of global association leadership experience; Dean West FASAE, President and Founder of Association Laboratory Inc., and Alfons Westgeest FASAE, Managing Partner of Kellen, for decades one of the world’s most global AMC’s.

After setting the scene with some of the latest trend data on global issues, Martin, Dean and Alfons will introduce three association leaders who are currently working through some of the key challenges in going global, focusing on partnerships, service/product design and delivery, content and communication strategies, and the pitfalls that need to be guarded against – cultural, financial, and operational.  Their brief stories will be used to stimulate discussion about the most important component of this session – the concerns and challenges faced by the session participants!

So be prepared to share your own stories – constraints, solutions, failures, surprises, successes!

And don’t be afraid to raise ANY question related to going global – almost certainly either the experts or your fellow participants will be able to provide intelligent answers and practical recommendations!

Global Association Hubs Partnership(GAHP) is a unique city initiative by the official promotion organisations of four cities –  Brussels (visit.brussels), Dubai (Dubai Association Centre), Singapore  (Singapore Exhibition & Convention Bureau ™), and Washington, DC  (Destination DC). This innovative collaboration cements the position of the four partner cities as the leading global hubs for international associations and creates synergistic relationships which provides decisive advantages for international associations.