Inside the AMCI Learning Center and What’s Next in Career Development for AMC Professionals

Wondering what's next in your career? Looking for ways to develop your team? This conversation is for you, whether you've explored the new AMCI Learning Center or haven't logged in yet.

Ask people how they found their way into association management, and you'll hear some interesting stories. For many, a career at an AMC wasn't something they originally planned. Yet working at an AMC offers a wide range of experiences, responsibilities and ways to advance. Understanding where a career can lead, and what it takes to get there, hasn't always been clear.

Industry Partners: Partners Who Invest in the AMC Model's Success

AI Readiness in Associations: Where AMCs Can Help

By Trent Gillespie, CEO of Stellis AI

AMCI Official AI Partner Stellis AI has released its Fall 2026 State of AI in Associations report, measuring AI readiness and implementation across the field.

Registration Is Open: 2027 AMCI Annual Meeting in Miami

Registration Is Open for the 2027 AMCI Annual Meeting
Trade Snow Boots for Sunshine

Introducing the 2027 AMCI Board of Directors

AMCI is pleased to announce the 2027 Board of Directors. These leaders will guide the Institute's strategy and champion the AMC model in the year ahead.

Welcome to our new Board members

• Steve Smith,CAE, Association Management Center, joins as Board Director.
• Megan Miller, CMP, DES, SBI Association Management, joins as Emerging AMC Executives Advisory Director 

Congratulations to our officers

Association Acumen Chosen to Manage the International Association of Special Investigation Units

Menomonee Falls, WI – Association Acumen, LLC, a full-service accredited association management company based in Menomonee Falls, has been selected to manage the International Association of Special Investigation Units (IASIU). Founded in 1984 by a group of insurance industry fraud investigators, IASIU is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting a coordinated effort within the industry to combat insurance fraud. It also provides education and training for insurance investigators, works to develop greater awareness of the insurance fraud problem, encourages high professional standards of conduct among insurance investigators, and supports legislation that acts as a deterrent to the crime of insurance fraud. Since 1984, the organization has expanded internationally, with more than 4,100 members representing more than 600 different companies.

“We are excited to welcome another strong and vibrant organization to Association Acumen and are looking forward to guiding its organizational evolution,” Betsy Smith, CPA, MST, Acumen’s President, said. “Our staff will forge an effective partnership with leaders to enhance IASIU’s mission. Through its online education, annual conference, and certification program, IASIU addresses the major issues facing the industry and assures excellence in the profession.”

Your Career, Mapped: Introducing AMCI's Learning Center

Tina Wehmeir, CMP-Fellow, CAE, President & CEO, AMC Institute

There's a question I hear from members at almost every meeting, usually over coffee and usually from someone a few years into their AMC career: "Where do I go from here?"

California Ambulance Association Names Impact Association Management as AMC

Impact Association Management (Impact) announced a new partnership with the California Ambulance Association (CAA), a nonprofit association serving as the unified voice for public and private ambulance service providers across the state of California. This partnership will support CAA in achieving its mission to advance the delivery of high-quality, pre-hospital care through education, best practices, and supporting sound legislative policy.

Through this partnership, Impact will work alongside CAA's staff and leadership to provide specialized support in areas including comprehensive headquarters operations, governance support, membership services, event and conference management, financial administration, and communications support. The partnership is designed to strengthen operational capacity, enhance member value, and position the association for continued growth.

“What’s Your Pitch?” What Our Vetted Research Is Teaching Us About CEO Transitions

Sarah Timm, CAE, CMP-HC, Parthenon Management Group, AMCI Board Chair 

When Joy Davis, CAE, began searching for an AMC to manage the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS), she didn’t hand firms a checklist. She told them what AAPS needed: control over its science, and as much administration as possible moved to the AMC to strengthen its financial position. Then she asked, “What’s your pitch?” That question sits at the center of the work AMCI has been doing this year with Vetted Solutions, and it is one every one of our firms should be ready to answer.

Register Now: Listen, Act, Share: Using AI to Turn Member Insights Into Action Across Your AMC

Registration is now open for AMCI’s next EduSeries session, Listen, Act, Share: Using AI to Turn Member Insights Into Action Across Your AMC. Join us on Wednesday, October 28, at 2:00 PM ET for a one-hour session led by Layla Masri of Higher Logic. 

Members tell you what they need through the questions they ask, the conversations they join, and the feedback they share. For association management companies serving multiple clients, those insights can be easy to miss, and valuable lessons can stay with just one account team.

Northeast Greek Leadership Association Selects Barcami Lane as New Association Management Partner to Power Strategic Growth

Boxborough, Mass. — The Northeast Greek Leadership Association (NGLA) has selected Barcami Lane, Inc., an AMC Institute-accredited association management company, as its new management partner effective immediately. The engagement positions Barcami Lane to lead core operational, governance, and financial infrastructure in direct support of NGLA’s new strategic plan, ensuring long-term sustainability and elevated programmatic impact across the fraternal community.

The partnership represents a key win under Barcami Lane’s refreshed business acquisition and client engagement framework, spearheaded by Vice President of Client Management Tracy Schorle. Schorle, who joined Barcami Lane’s executive leadership team in June 2026.

Growing the AMC industry starts with making sure the right people know what an AMC can do for them. In this feature, Jeanne Sheehy, AMCI’s Strategic Plan Market Development domain lead, shares how AMCI is telling the AMC story to association executives and volunteer boards in support of the 50 by 2050 goal. Learn how audience research and an always-on marketing ecosystem are helping AMCI reach more association leaders every year, and how new resources like the Digital Marketing Toolkit and ACE, AMCI’s AI agent, put that work directly in the hands of AMC firms. 

AMPED’s Chris Caple Honored with WSAE Association Leadership Award 

MADISON, WI. – AMPED Association Management is proud to announce that Chris Caple, Director of Sourcing and Meetings, has been named the recipient of the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives (WSAE) 2026 Association Leadership Award. 

The Association Leadership Award recognizes an individual who demonstrates exceptional leadership within their association, profession or the broader association community while exemplifying WSAE’s values of inclusion, integrity, passion and innovation. 

Stephanie Lowney Named WSAE Young Professional Award Recipient

Menomonee Falls, WI – Stephanie Lowney, Membership, Marketing and Programs Manager at Association Acumen, has been named as the 2026 recipient of the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives (WSAE) Young Professional Award.

“I’m honored to receive the WSAE Young Professional of the Year Award. I’m grateful for the mentors, colleagues, and opportunities that have helped shape my career and growth in the association community," Stephanie said.

Connections, Communication, and Purpose at the AMCI Regional Meeting

Carolyn Lagermasini, CAE, President, Association & Conference Group, AMCI Board Director

Attending the recent AMC Institute Regional Meeting in Atlanta, GA, was a valuable and energizing experience for the Association & Conference Group team. The intimacy of the regional setting provided an exceptional environment for deeper engagement, thoughtful reflection, and meaningful connection with peers across the association management industry. Throughout the event, two key themes surfaced across sessions: the power of self-aware communication and the fundamental truth that association management is, above all, a people business.

Alone We Can Do So Little: Why Your AMCI Membership Is Worth Renewing

"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." – Helen Keller

Sarah Timm, Board Chair, AMC Institute, and Parthenon Management Group

Last Call: Share Your Expertise at AMCI Annual 2027

The next AMCI Annual Meeting is taking shape, and we want your expertise on the program. This is your final chance to get involved. Submissions close tomorrow, October 2, 2026, so there is still time to share your ideas. Whether you are a seasoned expert or an emerging executive, there is a place for your voice here, and we want you to be part of it.

What We're Looking For:

Sessions that are interactive, collaborative, and focused on real-world solutions. Topics may include, but are not limited to:

To every firm that has already registered for the November 2 Sector Outlook Session: thank you. You've secured your place at the table for a conversation that will shape where our sector goes next, and we're looking forward to seeing you in the room.

If your firm hasn't registered yet, don't be left out.

John R. Waxman, Former President of The Sherwood Group and Lifelong Association Professional, Dies at 75

John R. Waxman, a lifelong association professional and former president of The Sherwood Group, passed away peacefully on September 27, 2026. He was 75.

John joined Organization Management Systems Inc. (OMSI) in 1986 as an account executive, bringing substantial association management experience to the company. He advanced to general manager and vice president before becoming its second president in 1990. Over the next quarter century, he helped guide dozens of nonprofit organizations and supported the professional growth of hundreds of staff members and volunteer leaders.