Professional associations need the support of professional “headquarters” staff in order to help promote and advance their nonprofit missions.

From administrative assistants to executive directors, association staff play a critical role in the success of an organization fulfilling its vision.

What’s a “Professional Association”?

A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, professional association or professional society) is a non-profit organization seeking to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals engaged in that profession, and the public interest. [wikipedia]

Reason #1: Missions That Make a Difference.
If you are looking to support a cause, field, or profession that you are passionate about, then working at a professional association that aligns with your interests, is a great way to affect change. An example would be if a parent of yours has Alzheimer’s Disease, you could seek employment in the Education Department of an Alzheimer’s related organization. You would have an immediate and vested interest in supporting education programs for professionals, patients, and caregivers – making for an extremely rewarding job, both personally and professionally.

Reason #2: The Volunteers.
Most professional association staff interact with “volunteers” at some level. Volunteers are often members of the association who offer their own time, energy, and expertise in support of the organization’s activities. They take time-out from their busy schedules to serve on boards and committees, as well helping with journal and meeting related tasks, for example. Staff often serve as liaisons to committees. In this role you will find yourself working closely with distinguished professionals at the peak of their careers (e.g., CEOs, University Department Chairs, and occasionally a Noble Laureate), as well as eager student and post-doctoral members in the early stages of their careers. Your interaction with this diverse, yet highly focused group of intelligent individuals, will challenge your thinking (in a positive way), and help you grow in your career.

Reason #3: That’s Not My Job!
Want to get involved in the many different facets of a non-profit association? Then you may want to consider working at one of the many smaller professional associations (e.g., up to 25 staff, supporting ~10,000 members). While you will be hired to perform a specific job function, such as Director of Information Technology or Meetings Manager, you will often have the opportunity to work with just about everybody on everything! For instance as the “IT guy/gal”, you may be tasked with setting up an online abstract submission system for the association’s Annual Meeting. This requires organization wide staff interactions and understanding of multiple internal systems. You would need to work with the Membership Department on how to best verify an abstract submitter’s membership status, with the Publications Department on online copyright verbiage and publication output specifications, with the Accounting Department on electronic payment processing reconciliation… well you get the idea. Associations can provide great opportunities for broadening your skill sets, which ultimately will increase your value to the organization.

Reason #4: Annual Meeting Time. It’s All Worth It.
Working at a professional association is very cyclical. The Annual Meeting is the best example of this. It takes a full year to organize and pull off a successful meeting (initial planning starts many years out) and involves almost all staff. The smaller the association the greater the likelihood that you will be “working” the meeting. Seeing thousands of meeting attendees, passionate about their work and energized from networking with their colleagues, is what the Annual Meeting is all about. As staff, it adds meaning to your day-to-day job, reminding you that what you are doing, does make a difference. It may also be the first time you have the opportunity to meet volunteers that you had previously interacted with only over the phone or by email. Working the Annual Meeting also allows you to do something completely different for a week… such as working at the association’s booth selling t-shirts, gathering tickets at an evening social event, or helping an international attendee with onsite registration.

Reason #5: The Benefits.
Ok, time to get practical. The benefits at associations can be pretty enticing. It is not unusual for associations to have a 37.5 hour workweek, although expect to work more hours around Annual Meeting time. Employer retirement contributions (403b) can be very generous, some offering as high as a 10% contribution. A full array of benefits including health, dental, life, disability, etc, is common. Salaries vary by geographic location and by association size. While salaries are generally a little lower than the for-profit sector, they are still very competitive when you take a look at the whole package associations have to offer.

ProAssociationCareers.org, your gateway to professional association jobs!