The Future Is Watching: Engaging the Next Generation of Members

In this episode of Associations NOW Presents, guest host Lori Zoss Kraska, founder and CEO of Growth Owl, sits down with Brian Miller, vice president of strategic partnership at Multiview, Kimberly Tuttle, executive director of the American Institute of Architecture Students, and Gilberto Lozada Baez, AIAS board vice president, to explore new research on how students perceive associations. The conversation highlights key opportunities for associations to build stronger connections with young professionals—through targeted social media, mentorship, and small-scale in-person events. They also discuss the importance of digital fluency, university partnerships, and creating meaningful volunteer roles to foster long-term engagement and a true sense of belonging.

Check out the video podcast here:

https://youtu.be/HLTuvHAxkd4

This episode is sponsored by Multiview.

Associations NOW Presents is produced by Association Briefings.

 

Transcript

[00:00:00] Lori Zoss Kraska: Welcome to episode 12 of Associations NOW Presents, an original podcast series from the American Society of Association Executives. I'm Lori Zoss Kraska, founder and CEO of GrowthOwl, LLC, a consultancy that empowers associations with the best practices they need to connect with Fortune 1000 companies and other large organizations for corporate sponsorship, partnership and philanthropic funding.

You also might know me as the author of The Boardroom Playbook, a Not So Ordinary Guide to Corporate Funding for Your Purpose-Driven Organization and host of my own monthly LinkedIn Live that features both association and non-endemic thought leaders who provide insight in new ways of thinking in the area of sponsorship and non-dues revenue.

You can find out more at thegrowthowl.com. But hey, enough about me. Let's take a moment to thank our episode sponsor Multiview today. We're excited to welcome Brian Miller, vice president of strategic partnerships with Multiview. [00:01:00] Also joining us today is Kimberly Tuttle, executive director of the American Institute of Architecture Students, also known as AIAS.

And Gilberto Lozada Baez, AIAS Board Vice President. They're all here to discuss key findings from new research on student perceptions of associations and how we can better engage the next generation of members. Welcome everybody to the podcast. Let's start with you, Brian. 

What influenced your team to look into this topic? 

[00:01:31] Brian Miller: Great question. Well, we always look for ways to help our associations improve their competitive advantage within their organization and any insights that we can provide along the way. It's very interesting for us 'cause we have roughly 850 association partners that span. 30 different industry verticals. Obviously it's a mixture between trade associations and professional societies and professional associations. So when we look at the professional societies, that's really what [00:02:00] we're talking about today with this topic. We conducted some research and we looking at years old problem of how do you. Engage the next generation of members, particularly in professional societies. So that's really why we commissioned this report in the first place. The other thing that was really interesting that when you look at the landscape is this is the first time we've got five generations working in the workforce, right?

You've got the traditionalists, you've got the baby boomers, you've got of course Gen X, and then you have millennials and Gen Z, and. From what we understand is this is the largest graduating class as well in, in foreseeable history that we look back at. So it's really important when you look at the.

Really important message of how do the associations look for that next generational member? How do they find them? How do they keep them throughout their professional career and their journey as members of the association? So that's really the main reason we wanted to, to talk about this topic today and really understand the importance of content and [00:03:00] education when it comes to looking at those different member segments.

And as we continue to talk. In this discussion, we're gonna find that young professionals, students, recent grads, and particularly early in their career, they have different needs, right? From a membership perspective, it's really important to understand this segment and how as an association you engage with those younger members and be able to offer them what they need and what they're looking for in an association.

So that's really the main reason why we did all of this. 

[00:03:29] Lori Zoss Kraska: That's great, and I want to delve in a bit more, Brian, into the research. A sizable amount of this next generation, based on what you found knows about associations, but only about a quarter, really understand the benefits. What do you think causes this gap and how do associations go about closing that?

[00:03:47] Brian Miller: I think the biggest thing is the networking aspect. You look at the younger generation, young professionals, they've grown up in this digital environment and they've really made a lot of their connections and their networking through all of their other [00:04:00] social engagements. They are familiar with associations.

We found that through that research, 85% of them are familiar with associations and what they do in respective industries and professions. But really it's looking at the value of that association for them when you're looking at what their needs are. Specifically, they're looking at career placement. They're looking at jobs. How do you help me create resumes? How do you help me create strategies for looking for jobs and all of that, how to interview, things like that. So they're really looking for those kind of things. And so that was really one of the drivers that we found in terms of that gap between.

Being aware of the association, but understanding the value that associations provide. I think they understand that. Obviously associations represent those key things that they do, right? They're out there to promote their industry or their profession. They're out there to educate that industry or profession, and then they're out there to advocate on behalf of that industry, or that profession. They learn that through job fairs, through what they learn for in their coursework and their [00:05:00] universities. But it's really about the associations taking the understanding that what their young professionals are looking for is career assistance, job placement. Skills training. Those are the key things that we found that they're really the hot buttons for them.

So from an association perspective, to increase that value gap, that's really the areas that we need to make sure that they're focused on, is looking for ways that they can really engage those young professionals through those skills training, through helping them with their. Careers and through helping them with interviews and job placements and things like that.

So that's really where the gap that we saw. But the good news is though, this is a great opportunity for the associations to really become the driver of this. This gap is very fixable and it's very. Easily done by the associations to look at their member segments and understand that they each have different values along the way and what the value is for them by being an association member.

And then long term, obviously that's gonna create a membership journey. [00:06:00] So if you can engage those young professionals, meet them where they are, be able to fulfill their needs, and that's gonna make for a better member as they progress in their careers, and then obviously things are gonna become more important to them going forward.

And it's the things that we talked about, the advocacy that the association does, the education that they provide, and well as being able to engage the different generations. When we talked about those five generations as well, and I'll just leave it with this. This is a perfect example of why associations need to look at not just a one fits all membership strategy, right?

You really need to understand those different segments that are represented within your membership and then create different value propositions along the way. So hopefully this will help engage them where they are, and then as they progress in their journey, the association's gonna provide additional value and more long-term value going forward.

[00:06:51] Lori Zoss Kraska: I love that you said that it's really the association's responsibility to empower themselves to realize that they need to meet [00:07:00] students and younger folks where they are. I think that's so important because maybe a different mentality in the past would've been, it's really up to the student or up to the young professional to research us.

For them to figure out what the value is and no, we have to turn this around. I love that really, that you've not only talked about that, but your research coincides with that. So I think that's excellent. Excellent. You know, Gilberto, I wanna throw it over to you. You're a former student at the University of Monterey and now a young professional and board member, so congratulations on all your achievements thus far.

What was your impression of associations before joining AIAS? And what prompted you to want to get involved and become a member? 

[00:07:45] Gilberto Lozada Baez: Thank you for saying that. And let me start with the second part of your question because I think you're gonna be a lot more insightful into what I was thinking about organizations.

I remember being in first semester of college, I was just joining to [00:08:00] starting at the study architecture school and they, it's very common for student groups to have these meetings where they try to get new people to recruit new members. And I remember sitting at the auditorium. Hearing to the AIAS group that was at my university, talking about the organization, about what the a IS does, its impact, its reach, the networking opportunities.

And it was a lot of an aspirational thing for me because I remember looking up at that leadership team and thinking I want to be in their place. I wanna be able to talk about me being part of a community that has such an impact, that has that reach globally, that I can say that I am part of that type of a community.

Interestingly enough, even though I was very inspired by that conversation, I didn't actually become a member of the organization until my third year in school. So it took me a while to actually become a member. To start getting involved with the a IS chapter at my school and [00:09:00] at large. And I think that the reason why that happened initially is because there were many little barriers, but what helped me go through them is that the leadership team at my school that was representing the organization at large really took the time to have a conversation with me.

Walk me through the details of what it meant to be involved with the organization, how to actually get my membership and how to join the team, and really just collaborate with everyone that was at my local level. The reason why I'm saying all this is because it really goes back to the first part of your question, which is what did I think about organizations?

And I think that my impression back then was that organizations were important and very impactful. They always felt somewhat alien or distant in a way. It was like really hard to access the organization and become a part of it. And even though I was really interested, there were so many barriers to it, little [00:10:00] barriers, but they all added up eventually and they made me unsure if my time, because I was in school, I didn't have a lot of time either.

My energy, the money that I would spend in my membership would be actually worth the investment because of course there were a lot of. More important or direct things that were a little less foreign and that felt like they guaranteed my success and my career or my education. And I think it's safe to say that once I got involved with the AIAS, it all became a lot clearer and I developed this sense of belonging, but it's also really important for students as well.

To the point that I'm now vice president of the organization. But yeah, I think it's really important to see how throughout my journey, a lot of those things that the report for Multiview talks about this gap between students and the awareness of the value that organizations offered. Definitely impacted my journey.

And it was because of that engagement with people and with the organization at the local level that I was able to overcome it and actually get involved. 

[00:10:59] Lori Zoss Kraska: So [00:11:00] Gilberto, I have a follow up here. I know if I have an association leader and I'm listening to you, I'm listening to you very carefully. You said something about barriers and I think that's something that associations would wanna hear more about.

Would you be open to talking about one or two of the barriers that you referenced earlier? 

[00:11:17] Gilberto Lozada Baez: Of course. I think one of the most important ones, especially for students and younger professionals, is cost barriers. Yeah. I think that is one of the more important ones, and we're all aware of it. The other one that I would reference is time availability, especially with my experience being an architecture.

Sport is a very demanding profession. And so anytime that I would have available, I would cherish it very much and try to use it to whatever would bring me the most value and success in my future. And probably another one is familiarity. Or this idea of perhaps Tism that I would mention, because a lot of the times it feels like organizations are a closed off [00:12:00] group that is not really welcoming to other perspectives.

I can honestly say now being a lot more acquainted with organizations and having been on the board of other organizations as well, that is rarely the goal because we all as organizations, want to get as much members and as much involvement as we can. But there is definitely that barrier of not being acquainted with something and being slightly intimidating that is present for students and potential prospect, new members.

[00:12:27] Lori Zoss Kraska: Thank you so much for sharing that. I think that, again, that's gonna be really eye-opening to a lot of associations that are listening, especially from the point of view of a  young professional like yourself. Kimberly, I want to move over to you for a moment. Many students are graduating with limited real world experience and unclear next steps. It's a crazy world out there. We just don't know what's gonna happen. But how are associations, especially those with student branches or in your case, an entire student-based organization, uniquely positioned [00:13:00] to support that transition for young people? 

[00:13:03] Kimberly Tuttle: Yeah, that's a great question.

So the AIAS. We were founded in the fifties and we branched out and became our own organization and nonprofit in the early eighties. So we're hitting our 70th anniversary. And the sole purpose, our mission is advancing leadership, design and service among architecture students. But. I think a lot of the work that we've done, and I just stepped into this role about a year ago, but I did work for the organization for four or five years, several years ago, really focusing on partnerships and so.

AIAS, I think, is uniquely positioned to bridge that gap between education and practice. And so we honestly, a lot of our programs are built on mentorship, internships, and building leadership skills to help transition them into practice. Because we're student [00:14:00] led, our program is. Deeply relevant because we're not guessing what the students need when we know what they need because they tell us.

Our board is 70% made up of students who are actively in school and are the ones who are guiding our efforts, talking about what they need. And so we look at things like portfolio reviews, design competitions, career preparation workshops, and we ensure that our students don't face that. What's next moment by themselves, right?

They have this community that is a strength of our organization. And then when we engage with partners, because we're associations, we're nonprofits. Most of us rely on partnerships. We talk with our partners about how. Our members are not actively buying, they're not currently consumers in our profession.

So we have a different pitch to our partners, and that's really let's build brand awareness while we develop content and career content career programs, leveraging your [00:15:00] brand. And for example, several years ago we had this one. Elevator company that was one of our bigger partners. And we use that to put together an elevator pitch competition.

And so we leverage our partners by building these career preparation programs to help build that relationship and build the gap and bridge the gap between education practice. So when they graduate and they're ready to set foot in the workforce, they have a lot of the softer skills that professionals are looking for when they hire young career.

[00:15:34] Lori Zoss Kraska: Kimberly, let me just say, as someone who works in the corporate sponsorship and corporate partnership arena that you found an elevator company to sponsor the elevator pitch competition makes me so excited and so happy. That's wonderful. Brian, I want to send it back to you here. We've talked about young professionals and what they need and what they want, and they expect from associations.

Did your research reveal the best channels to connect with them? [00:16:00] 

[00:16:00] Brian Miller: Yeah. I think it's no surprise that to the best channel is social media.  

[00:16:04] Lori Zoss Kraska: Yeah. 

[00:16:04] Brian Miller: And this kind of goes back to thinking about the associations and their identity. When the associations think about their identity and who their competition is.

It's very interesting 'cause most associations will think, okay, my competition is this other association that is in my space or in my industry or profession. It's really changing. Competition now is really evolving for associations. Their competitors now are the social platforms. I think LinkedIn is one of the largest competitors to associations, particularly when it comes to young professionals and they're looking at.

These resources through these social channels, LinkedIn's a given, right? It's one of the best places for career guidance. Career resources, helping you further your career. It obviously changes with different industries. Obviously the engagement is different with LinkedIn, but it is still a very important and viable channel and with some of the new add-ons that LinkedIn offers particularly.

Perhaps the [00:17:00] LinkedIn newsletters is a good example to, it's fairly recent edition. Associations can really utilize that, where they can say, okay, let's create a LinkedIn newsletter channel that's specific for young professionals, students for graduate students, and then maybe a different newsletter that's attacking a different segment of their membership as well with different content and so forth.

But LinkedIn, of course, as we said, is a given. The other big channel, of course, for young professionals is by far Instagram. That was what we. Saw in our results. And that really is understandable. When you look at Instagram, it's more of this edutainment, right? So it's education mixed with entertainment and being able to create short form content that's really impactful and really hitting those key topics that we found through the research that are important for young professionals.

The career skills training, job placements, interview and resume building, things like that. So it's. Important to know how to utilize those channels, creating the right kind of [00:18:00] content for that channel. When you think about associations, their competition, are any organizations out there that are competing for their members' attention?

And when you look at young members. You're looking at Instagram, right? Instagram is a huge platform that they're engaging with their peers as well as getting information and content in that kind of a format. And what is Instagram like? It likes reels. It likes carousel type of content. Very short, impactful type things.

So when you're looking at your education strategy for your different member segments, really understand that. To use the different platforms in the right format and in the right context. If you think yourself like a media company instead of an association, it's almost very similar. You look at the Netflix model, for example, so Netflix has an audience or any other.

A company out there, media organizations, we'll just use Netflix as an example. So they've got an audience and they get that audience because they're creating content specific to that audience. And that audience wants that. They have the distribution channels, right? [00:19:00] They have the distribution channels through their streaming services, through other pay services that they might offer.

And then they have the revenue side. There's two forms of revenue. They have the free model. Which is, we'll give you the content for free, but then it's subsidized by advertising, or it's more of the membership model where you pay to subscribe as a member, and then you get that content after that through your subscription.

If you look at your association, very similar. You've got. The audience. That's your membership. You've got the content. It's all the education that you provide, and all various ways that you disseminate that. You have the channels, your website, your LMS, all of the various forms, all your social media, all those channels for distribution of that content.

And then you have the monetization through your membership dues, as well as through the corporate sponsorships and the ways that you can engage your corporate sponsors. Lori, Kimberly, you both hit on this. So corporate sponsors are really evolving to where they're becoming more thought leaders now too.

That's a huge thing because now they're not just selling products or services. They're engaging with your [00:20:00] members, and if you utilize your sponsors to really engage them with your membership as thought leaders, then they can become even more important in the whole strategy of the association going forward.

It'll give them more opportunities to spend money with you. And be able to utilize those in all those different channels. So to sum it up, you know, it's the right content in the right format, through the right channels and in the right time and context. So from a young professional standpoint, being able to meet them where they are, like we talked about before, is really important.

So utilizing your social media and understanding that this is where they're engaging. A third area outside of LinkedIn and an Instagram that we found really interesting is. Young professionals are also utilizing Reddit because Reddit's an anonymous channel that they can go in, look up a topic, and be able to engage with other anonymous members to really talk about things and be very specific.

[00:21:00] So when you think about what's the competition. With Reddit are your community pages. Every association has community pages that they utilize for their members, so their members can engage and so forth. So there's a gap there as well. The young professionals are probably using Reddit more than they are using the association's community pages, so it's important to understand that channel as well, because Reddit is a source of information that they're going to also.

So look at. All the various topics within your industry or profession that are happening out there through those various subreddits. See what's important, see what they're engaging with there, and then be able to incorporate that into your strategy when you're looking at your different membership strategies and how you're getting your content out there.

But again, everything in its right place. 

[00:21:45] Lori Zoss Kraska: Brian, I think this information is so valuable because, I gotta be honest, I know associations that don't even have an Instagram account. And basically your research shows that young professionals are utilizing Instagram for finding career [00:22:00] information, for getting to connect with mentors, potentially.

There's a whole world out there of how young folks are utilizing Instagram. In ways that maybe other generations don't realize. So a call to action today. If anything, if you're an association and you don't even have an Instagram account, get online and create your Instagram account and get started. And I can imagine too that there are associations out there that.

Don't even know what Reddit is. It's a new concept to them. So I just think this information and what you have in your research is so valuable, and I really appreciate you, again, you bringing this to the forefront. But Kimberly, I wanna come back to you because this idea of digital fluency comes up a lot in this report.

What does it mean for associations to really adapt to social platforms and how is AIAS specifically addressing this as well? 

[00:22:50] Kimberly Tuttle: That's a great question, and as Brian alluded to, it's not just being on social media. So first off, if you don't have a Instagram, definitely got one, [00:23:00] but it's understanding where your members are and being good at creating content that works for them.

So it means understanding the language of each platform and using it to tell your story in a way that invites participation. For us, it looks like. Very interactive content telling, student stories, student spotlights. We have a chapter Leader of the Month feature. We have a chapter of the month feature. I think last fall we highlighted a lot of our global chapters to share more about the work that they're doing.

We have live takeovers when we're at our conferences and we use our platforms to celebrate. Not just architecture, but really the people behind it. Gilberto is our social media guru at the moment, and we're constantly looking at how our posts perform. Are there good times? What is the most engaging and how can we continue to skill up our social media channels?

But it's also not just where but how. So one of the really unique [00:24:00] advantages we have is that we. Have the next generation. These are our members, and so we get to experiment. They're using, as Brian mentioned, they're using the social platforms in ways that are very different from previous generations in both Good and.

Potentially negative ways. We also have a lot of conversations about data and, and I'm not talking about data in this terms of analytics, but where are you getting your information? Is it accurate? Is it right? We have a lot of conversations like, where did you learn that? And it's, oh, I saw it on TikTok, are we.

Having conversations about misinformation, those are pieces that we have to talk about is because where is this next generation digesting and receiving their important kind of news and data like that. So we regularly check in with our board about what platforms are actually relevant. Another conversation, I keep bringing this up, and Gilberto, we keep having this conversation, but for example, I [00:25:00] keep asking.

Should we be on TikTok? Is that where we need to be? TikTok is huge, but when we've had those conversations, Gilberto and the rest of the board is, that's not really where students are looking for that professional or academic inspiration. That's not the type of engagement that happens over on TikTok. So instead of chasing.

Trends like that, we really try and stay in intentional focusing on the platforms and the content that match the message and meet our members where they are. We're also doing a lot of work in exploring what other similar organizations are doing. So for example, NSLC, which is the National Student Leadership Conference.

Their Instagram channels are a great place for us to find inspiration because they are very member centric, and so that's something that we continue to aspire to be, and so we use. That research to help us continue to dig in because NSLC is actually the generation [00:26:00] before us, right? Or maybe not generation, but they're high school members, right?

And so as we're looking at how they engage with high school students, we start to think about, okay, how can we leverage some of the things that they're doing to continue to bring impactful member-focused engagement to our channels? 

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Kimberly. As I think about some of the association executives that might be listening, they might be thinking, this all sounds really good.

The research is there. This is amazing, but I need tips on internal buy-in. I'm working with a chief marketing officer that just isn't a hundred percent sure I should be spending all this time on Instagram or on Reddit. Do you have any tips that you might be able to provide to bridge the gap between maybe a person or a thought?

Internally that isn't completely bought in to spending time on these socials. 

[00:27:35] Kimberly Tuttle: As I, I often tease my officers that if they leave me alone with the social channels, we might get something that they don't want. Oh, I 

[00:27:43] Lori Zoss Kraska: Love it. 

[00:27:44] Kimberly Tuttle: I'm not even going to talk about the platforms that we shouldn't be on, but I am very well aware of my abilities and understanding of where social is and.

I guess for me it's just I'm going to struggle when [00:28:00] Gilberto saves us because we don't actually have a social media team. We are a very thin lean team, and so for us, we all do all of the work so. I would say for anyone looking to get upper buy-in, I would show the data, talk about how maybe do a test run.

So I used to work for a large architecture firm and they had a very robust social media team, and I learned a lot from her too. Whereas if you are looking to. Try and test things out. Stories and reels are much easier to do that because they don't live on your feed, right? They don't live on that landing page.

And so those are more opportunities to explore what works and what doesn't. And so what I would say is. Make sure you're staying by your brand guidelines. Make sure you're meeting the needs of the organization. But feel free to try and experiment in stories and reels, especially in Instagram because they disappear after 24 hours and you can gather the data [00:29:00] and then take that data to go have conversations.

 

[00:29:03] Brian Miller: I completely agree with everything you're saying Kimberly, we found the same thing. First of all, TikTok was not very impactful in the data results at all, but Instagram was. And when you look at the algorithms of Instagram and what it likes, stories, it likes those reels, and that's how it measures the engagement and that's really how things get promoted.

So everything you said was spot on. I will add one other thing too that is interesting that we've just seen in the B2B media side at Multiview. We've been working B2B media as a company for 25 years and one of the things that we're finding that's an interesting new trend is that the influencers usually are a B2C type of content.

We're now finding that influencer content is really creeping over into the B2B segment as well. So something to think about as an association executive as you're developing your social media strategies, and particularly with Instagram and those type of platforms where it's very edutainment type of content.[00:30:00] 

It might be a perfect opportunity to look within your community, your profession, and find influencers that you think could be very impactful and that can really help you reach these young professionals because they're already seeing that influencer marketing in all of their other contexts as a consumer and as a.

As just that people of that generation. So that's another interesting trend. I didn't even realize that until I was talking to some of our other agency folks that we work with, and they very much brought up the fact that influencer marketing is becoming a key thing in B2B as well. So something for associations to think about, but that's great stuff, Kim.

[00:30:35] Lori Zoss Kraska: Gilberto, I actually want to give you the last word on this because I would love to get your perspective. If you were speaking to an association executive that might be a little hesitant about utilizing new platforms like Instagram or Reddit, what would your advice to them be? 

[00:30:51] Gilberto Lozada Baez: That is a good question. I think it's important to understand that culture plays a significant role in how we're marketing [00:31:00] to our potential members as well.

Yeah, and it's also about culture. There's this element of. What the professional sphere is. But when you're talking about younger professionals and students, there's an added element to it of that student or young professional experience that also plays into how you're marketing towards, and then how you're.

Getting that message to them. So I guess that would be my advice. Understanding that there are different components to that and that really that is something that you can use to understand how to better engage with them and how to get that feedback from potential new members, especially with younger audiences.

[00:31:36] Lori Zoss Kraska: That's perfect. And Gilberto, why I still have you on the mic. Let's talk a little about events. The report also talks about the need for in-person, especially smaller scale events. What is the role for in-person events, do you think, and do you have any recommendations for associations? 

[00:31:53] Gilberto Lozada Baez: Yes, with the AIAS, it's interesting because we have an international presence.

We're in over [00:32:00] 24 countries, and that makes it really hard for us to get in-person engagement with our members, even though we would love to, but it's a little bit tricky. So I think something that helps us is that within the structure of our organization, we have baked in layers of engagement, and that includes in-person engagement.

That sort of ties into the whole way we operate as. Organization, and when I'm talking about that structure, just for a little bit of exposition, I guess it's that the app is composed of chapters at universities and so that is the first tier beyond the individual students can engage with the teams at their school, and that is a great way to get in person and a little bit more casual engagement with the organization as well.

Beyond that, we also have sometimes several chapters in a same city or within hours of each other. And so that creates opportunities for a bit of a larger scope engagement where [00:33:00] students travel to, I don't know, nearby firms to do a firm tour or local architectural landmarks that they want to visit and explore.

That is another great opportunity to get that. And then we can start moving up the ranks. And we have our quad and regional engagements. Our chapters are grouped in regions within the US and internationally, and they get the opportunity to engage with our directors and with other people within their larger regional location to get that experience as well.

And finally, we have the national and international component where we have our. Conferences and other types of programming. So what I'm trying to say here is that yes, we have in-person options for our students starting from the chapter level to the national, international level, and it's a peer structure.

But what that allows us to do is to have this bottom up structure that informs what we do as an organization at large. [00:34:00] And the way that I try to think about it is that it helps to create this sense of belonging. Which is very important for students and emerging professionals as they explore their future really and beyond that sense of belonging.

It also gives them this agency and it empowers them to engage with a larger community in a different approach, like thinking about how we're marketing towards them. I would also say that this tiered structure helps it so that out of sight is not out of mind necessarily because they always have someone in their near.

Vicinity that they can talk to or approach if they have any questions about the organization. And so this is how the AIAS operates in general. What I would say as aps of advice is that sort of what you were saying earlier, Brian, it's very important to meet students where they are and young career professionals as well.

But you that engagement and that opportunity to meet them where they are, to empower the approach [00:35:00] that the organization takes. To engage or to operate at a larger scale and really using these small scale efforts to empower the large scale operation of the organization as well. 

[00:35:11] Lori Zoss Kraska: Kimberly, did you want to add on to that?

[00:35:14] Kimberly Tuttle: In 22 and 23 as we were coming out of COVID too, especially, we had surveyed our members and top importance in AIAS member benefits was that networking, but a quarter rated in-person events as like their second choice, the second reason most impactful member benefits. So, and I don't know if that's because we were coming outta COVID, but that definitely is something that we have not seen.

Ticked down in the past couple years, it's only ticked up. And so as we get back into play in our in-person events, we're definitely seeing an uptick in our numbers, slowly getting back to where our pre COVID numbers were. But the students had identified that in both years as like the top two priorities of why they wanted to be a [00:36:00] member of the organization.

[00:36:01] Lori Zoss Kraska: That's great. And I think it goes back to Gilberto's point about creating that sense of belonging and community in these events. And Brian, I want to talk to you about that. In terms of larger scale events, how can associations include young professionals and larger scale events in things like annual meetings and conferences?

[00:36:21] Brian Miller: Yeah. And boy, that was just great insight from Gilberto and Kimberly. It really ties into the data that we're seeing in the report and one of the other key takeaways outside of this awareness value gap that we talked about. And then the second big takeaway was. The digital fluency that associations need to have to engage with the younger professionals.

The third thing that we found was exactly what the both the Gilberto and Kimberly were talking about. It's the revival and the return of in real life. I don't know if it's because of post COVID, but I think a lot of it's just younger professionals want to engage with their peers. They want to engage in these small [00:37:00] scale opportunities, right?

If happened, Gilberto mentions so many of them, but it, these. Local meetups, that's where they're networking. All these different like-minded peer related discussions and how those are taking place. They can happen online as we see. Obviously it's happening as we talked about with Reddit and all the various subreddit sub communities that are out there.

But again, it's also happening. In real life, locally from the bottom up, starting in their chapters, in their organizations, in their schools, in their universities, in their young, professional career, networking that they're doing in the various ways. So I think if associations can replicate those small scale events in their large scale events, that's gonna be a really key thing going forward from that engagement.

One of the things that we found out in the research as well is that the students. And young professionals, when they go to these annual conferences or these larger scale events, they get lost and they get scared. They [00:38:00] internalize, and they don't network. They don't engage because it's just too much, and a lot of the content that's even happening in there is maybe content that they're not even interested.

Again, when we go back and think about what we talked about earlier and what their needs are. Maybe those large scale events aren't really hitting those topics for those young professionals, but I think the biggest thing is that they just feel like it's lost. So there's different things that associations can do to bring that small scale structure to their large events where they can replicate those meetups, right?

Where you engage the peers within their community together in these small scale type opportunities within the large scale events. I think another thing too is obviously mentorship and coaching is a huge thing that they want as well. What better way to engage your corporate sponsors to be those thought leaders like we talked about?

Get them engaged in these small scale events that are happening within the larger events so that they can not only have their peer discussions, but they can also have some coaching and [00:39:00] mentorship type opportunities with other businesses that are out there in the profession that can offer guidance to them.

And obviously that creates networking for them and when they're looking for possible career placement as well. The other thing I think would be interesting to do is when you think about all the cities that you go to for your large scale events, for your annual conferences, maybe connect with local universities, colleges, trade schools, whatever that may be, depending on your profession or your trade.

And try to recruit volunteers, students from those universities to actually work with you as a volunteer at your annual conference, for example. 'cause now. They're not scared. They actually have a role within the entire scheme of things. They can actually be very involved from a volunteer standpoint, which is gonna create those connections for them.

They're gonna meet people, they're gonna have those networking opportunities, they're gonna have the ability to work with their peers, and they're also getting that sense of belonging. That Hill Albert so talked about [00:40:00] where they're feeling important. They're not just attending, they're actually participating in the event as a volunteer.

And it's a great thing for associations because the more. Staff that you can have that you're not paying, for lack of a better word phrase. It offers more resources for the association to be able to do some of these additional things. But I think that would be a great. Opportunity for associations to look at different things like that for the cities that they're in and how they can utilize the resources within that city, through the local colleges and universities to be able to recruit students to volunteer, introduce them to the association, and then they can start seeing some of the benefits early on before they even join.

So that's one of the insights that I think we gained from the data. But again, this really ties in with everything Kimberly and Gilberto's been talking about in real life from their organizational perspective. So it's great. 

[00:40:51] Lori Zoss Kraska: I love this. "The return to in real life," Brian. I think Multiview should brand that, trademark it, copyright it, because [00:41:00] I think there could be something there.

But to bridge off of that, Brian, I thought about, I have to brag in my hometown a bit here. I'm from Cleveland, Ohio, where the A SAE annual was last year. Destination Cleveland, which is a local nonprofit organization, was highly involved in the A SAE 2024 conference and. I was speaking to a representative from Destination Cleveland and she was telling me about the number of young people, basically those under 30 years old who have volunteered to come out for this event to direct people where they need to go or recommend places to eat, or what's a great place just to go kick back and relax.

And so what you're saying makes complete sense connecting to the that sense of. Philanthropy and community engagement is so important. And my gosh, associations are built to do that. Absolutely. It's just perfect. So Kimberly, how do you work with the American Institute of Architects to help young professionals transition from student [00:42:00] to professional membership as we move to membership conversation now?

 

[00:42:04] Kimberly Tuttle: Yeah, sure. So we've had a long history and partnership with the AIA, and it's both collaborative and strategic. So we work together to build a strong pipeline from students professional. By starting early, we introduce our students to the broader architecture ecosystem. Through a lot of regular exposure to not only a i a, but what we call the alliance organizations, which are the six organizations that really lead and direct the profession as a whole.

And the six organizations are regular attendees and partners at our events. So they don't just show up, they actively engage the students through volunteer opportunities, mentorship and insights into future roles in the profession. But when we think about partnering with our. Professional associations, we like to partner in meaningful initiative.

We will connect our students with practitioners in real ways with the AIA. They [00:43:00] Ask sponsor a program called Crit Scholar. We have Crit Journal, which is our student architectural journal. That students write the articles, they do the research, and we put that out once a year. But we also have a program called Crit Scholar, which is really about research.

So for architecture students specifically, we usually end our education with a one or two year thesis. Portfolio. And so the students will get paired with a mentor in the profession, someone who is interested in that type of research, and will pair them and they will have that mentor to help provide perspective, create connection for them throughout their research project.

They also get a little stipend, which. Is helpful for any student, but what that's really helpful is that they are really getting paired and introduced with someone actively in the profession who is interested in the type of research that they're doing. So they're making those connections early, which may lead to that job opportunity later down the road.

Through our Freedom by [00:44:00] Design program, which is a program where students tackle real world challenges in their local communities. So it's not necessarily a national program, but it is a local chapter program. The students we've partnered with ncarb, which is our licensure. They facilitate licensure and the students gain hands-on experience working with clients, working alongside licensed professionals and seeing the tangible impact of their design work.

So it's a really great opportunity for students to going back to our mission leadership design and that service component where students get to give back to their communities, partner with local architects, and also continue to build that network for them. We often remind students, and like I said, I worked in a large firm.

It's not just what you know, but it is who you know, and our job is really to help open the doors, to make those introductions, to connect them with leaders, and to give them a seat at the table. We are very clear with the students that they have to do the [00:45:00] work to get in and earn that interview. But as we partner with our professional associations as they move into a contributing member of the profession, we see that transition from student to professional as more of a continuum.

It's not necessarily a handoff, it's really ensuring the profession stays connected. To the, what the students are doing, but that they're aware, they know what is important and impactful to students because they are important. And I think going back to what Brian was saying, it's really great to engage with students in those manners.

But I think, I've been in this space for about 10 years now, and early on I was on some panels for some conferences, and I would have a student on the panel with me, right? We're in a presentation, we're in a session, and the student would be. So nervous, and I looked at this one individual and I looked at her and I was like.

You are here for a reason. Your voice is extremely important. Employers and [00:46:00] practitioners want to know what you think and why you think that. So dig into that, lean into that, and don't be afraid to be your authentic self, because that is going to be more impactful than saying things that you think people wanna hear.

We actually, you were there for a reason and we are that voice of the students and so that's why we try and make sure we are where not everyone else can be, so that we are advocating for our members. 

[00:46:29] Lori Zoss Kraska: Kimberly, I can imagine maybe some that are listening to us today or watching are thinking, wow, Kimberly's really got her act together and they've got a really good system.

Wow. I'm a little overwhelmed. So what advice would you give to somebody that just is even just starting to have a conversation about how do we help young professionals go from the student mindset of membership into more professional membership? Where do we even begin? What's your advice on that? 

[00:46:57] Kimberly Tuttle: Yeah, so it's funny, we were actually on a call this [00:47:00] morning with our counterparts in the UK to share lessons that we've learned.

Oh good. Because they have a free student membership. So there are more of the professional association, but they have a free student membership, and they wanted to know some of the things that we were doing to help give greater meaning to that student membership that they have. And so I think the first thing is, if you already have that student base.

Maybe you have a free student membership. Start talking with them, start reaching out. Focus groups are a really great opportunity to hear what they are saying, what they are wanting to know, and understanding where they're digesting and getting their content. So I think first off, start there. Second of all, I think if you don't have that student membership, I think.

Start with your local university, right? Reach out to that program. If they have a program with your professional degree in it. Reach out, see if you can go in and just talk to the students. I still go back and talk with my high [00:48:00] school about the technical education. I do that probably. Once every other year and learn what the students are looking for.

Why are you thinking, why do you wanna go in this career path? What do you think the profession looks like? I think that is also like myth busting 1 0 1 right there, right? When you ask students what they think, oh, what do you wanna do with your career? And they say, for architecture, I'm getting into the nitty gritty, but I wanna do residential or commercial, and it's okay.

But commercial architecture, there's so many things you can do. And so I think for us it's also about awareness and exposure, and just that exposure can help students understand better where they fit in that profession. And that's something that we are really trying to be more intentional around is the educational exposure.

Of students, if they have a better understanding of how they fit into your profession, they might hit the ground running much faster than someone who's still floundering. So I would say. [00:49:00] Go back to your universities if they have a program that is related to your discipline, and just go talk to them. Ask them, what do you guys wanna know about?

What do you think the profession looks like? How can I help you? I think those are great opportunities to start to dig in, and then maybe eventually the membership or the engagement will grow from there. But I think that's a great first step, is to just go talk to the students, go right to the universities and offer up your services.

I will go and give a career portfolio 101 section where people reach out and say, Hey, can you come talk to our students about what the profession and practitioners like to see when they're reviewing portfolios? And I'll go, and I will be very blunt. I'm like, don't do this, don't do this, don't do this.

This I would love. This is a great example. And so I think just by engaging and showing you are there as a resource is a great first step. 

[00:49:54] Lori Zoss Kraska: I just wanna say that this type of engagement with universities and other type of [00:50:00] educational partners, corporate sponsors love this because they are actually in the same boat as associations.

They are trying to engage young people and young professionals to get excited about their specific industry or their workforce. So when I have associations asking me, Lori, what are corporations sponsoring right now? What are they interested in? The number one thing still is anything around engaging young professionals to get excited about what we're doing as a career path, and that's something you share.

So really you can take some of this work that Kimberly's talking about with outreach. You could even potentially put some sort of formalized program around it and find a sponsor for it. The opportunities are, unless I just had to go down that road, 'cause you're playing the sponsorship. Place sandbox here.

All right, so Gilberto, let's go back to you as a student based member organization. You talked a little about this earlier, but can you talk more about the A IAS unique leadership structure that's comprised of both [00:51:00] students and recent graduates? 

[00:51:02] Gilberto Lozada Baez: Of course, I think Kimberly just gave a pretty detailed and accurate spot on description of what our organization does to engage this young leaders and to really empower them to go about their journey in architecture and just their leadership journey in general.

But basically, we are a student led organization, so not only do we have our student members, we also have our local chapter leaders. Our regional directors, our committee chairs and members, and our board of directors that are all comprised of students. So that is a great way to have that untapped, unfiltered feedback from the younger generations about the profession and what they want to see in the future, and to use it to have these conversations with other industry partners and allied organizations as well.

Like you were mentioning, we also have alumni that sort of tie into this entire piece because [00:52:00] it helps us see what's happening, not just while they're in school, but also once they have graduated and they're joining the profession and what really their education and their interests pan out to be in the future.

And so what we do as an organization, in a way, is to, the way I see it, compliment their education to find those resources and those opportunities that sometimes are not being. Offered by their global school programs or that they could find elsewhere and bring in it a little bit closer to them so that they can explore what they want their future career to look like, what the opportunities are for them, and to empower them to make an impact and to shape the profession into what they want to see.

The way that I see it is that students and young professionals are really an equal part of this collaborative ecosystem. That shapes our profession, right? We have an architecture, what is globally allied organizations, and they are [00:53:00] basically every realm of architecture that could be involved. They're talking about the professionals themselves, about researchers.

We're talking about accreditation, and everyone wants to hear from students. And so in a way, what we do through this structure is empower them to understand that, like Kim was saying, their voices are important. Everyone in this profession that wants to make a change, wants to hear from them, and so giving them those platforms so that they can speak up and be heard.

I think that's what is in the DNA of the AI S that empowers student leaders and young professionals as well. 

[00:53:35] Lori Zoss Kraska: And I think that is the perfect place for us to end today. I wanna thank everyone for listening to this episode of Associations Now Presents. Join us each month as we explore key topics relevant to association professionals, discuss the challenges and opportunities in the field today, and highlight the significant impact associations have on the economy, the US and the world.

Again, we'd like to thank our episode sponsor Multiview. For [00:54:00] more information about our sponsor, check out their link in our show notes. Be sure to subscribe to our podcast on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. And for more information on this topic, visit associations now online at associationsnow.com.