Trade and Professional Associations play a critical role in establishing best practices, education, industry leadership and the technical standards for their industry. Membership to Professional Associations is crucial for companies who are seeking to be engaged and take a leadership position in their industry.

When choosing which Association to become a member of, you should firstly determine your company and individual objectives and then pick the Association/s whose issues most closely align with your goals and objectives. To fully benefit, you must take FULL advantage of your membership deliverables:

Education: From webinars to national/international conferences. Topics include trends, best practices, new techniques, training programs & materials, industry-specific services at discounted rates – cost savings delivered through education mean that Association membership can easily pay for itself by this feature alone.

Events: Association events educate, evangelize and teach members and non-members about the industry. They also provide a good venue to discuss developments within association initiatives and establish good networking affiliations. Association events are one of the best venues to gather impartial information about an industry or subject area.

Research: Many Associations conduct market research and analysis or have links to the key organisations who deliver them – white papers and research reports can offer great insights.

Advocacy: An Association is dedicated to protecting and advancing the needs of its industry. Having a dedicated team to lobby and advocate on your behalf is powerful – and a lot less expensive than trying to hire one yourself.

Networking: Associations offer the chance to connect with others in your industry. You can learn from others in your industry and could even create alliances or partnerships. The most successful organisations aren’t afraid to network with their competitors – Associations offer a bridge to communicate with competitors in a collaborative environment.

Professional Associations exist on Local, Regional, National, European and even Global levels. Whether you are looking for a general business association (your local Chamber of Commerce – http://www.britishchambers.org.uk/) or an industry specific association, it likely exists.

Useful Links Industry Associations:

UK:

http://www.taforum.org/Members

http://www.britishservices.co.uk/associations.htm

http://www.britishcompanies.co.uk/organisations.htm

Europe:

https://www.deutschland.de/en/topic/business/globalization-world-trade/chambers-and-associations

Worldwide:

http://www.eulerhermes.com/group/Pages/trade-associations.aspx