How we manage your association

An association exists for its members and its mission. We keep the cost of running the office low so the budget goes to education, events, advocacy and the services members pay for.

• One flat monthly fee for the office, agreed in advance and set in the budget.
• One membership system for renewals, events, education credits and the member database, built and run by us, in place of several separate software subscriptions.
• Renewals, reminders and receipts run on a schedule, so staff time goes to members and the board.
• Each year we review with the board what every program costs and what members get back from it.

Everything in the scope above is done by our own team. Tax returns and accounting opinions belong with the association's accountant, legal questions and contract review with its attorney, and any audit or financial review with an independent auditor.

We work with those professionals and provide the records they ask for.

The details are set in each association's management agreement and bylaws. Our standard practice:

• Bank and payment accounts are in the association's name. Its money is never mixed with ours.
• Checks and transfers are signed or released by the officers the board names, usually the treasurer. We prepare payments; we do not sign for the association unless the board gives limited authority in writing.
• Every payment we prepare is approved by an officer, and payments above a limit the board sets need two officers.
• Spending follows the budget the board adopts. Contracts are signed by an officer.
• We keep the books, or work with the association's own bookkeeper if it has one, and reconcile the accounts every month. The treasurer gets the reconciliation and the financial statements each month.
• The accountant, attorney and auditor are hired by the board, report to the board and are paid by the association. We coordinate with them.
• We recommend the association carry directors and officers coverage and crime coverage, and we help the board review it each year.
• Dues, event tickets and sponsorships are paid by card through the payment processor, so card numbers never touch our servers. Receipts go out automatically, and each payment leaves a clear record.

• Sign-in to the membership system uses one-time codes sent by email, with no passwords to steal or reuse.
• Members see only their own records. Staff and officers see what their role needs, and settings that affect money or access take a second step.
• When an officer, volunteer or staff member changes, their access changes the same week, and the board reviews the access list at each officer change.
• Data is backed up nightly to encrypted storage kept separate from the live system.
• We review the code for security before each release.

Coming in

We start with a look at how the association runs today: the calendar, the member records, the systems in use and the work the board and volunteers carry now. Then we quote one flat monthly fee. Once the board agrees, we move the member and contact records onto the membership system and take over the office work.

Going out

The domain, the data and the records stay with the association. Term and notice are set in the agreement; we suggest a one-year term that renews, with 90 days' notice from either side. At the end we export everything in standard formats and help with the move.

The topics on this page follow the ANSI/AMC Institute Standard for association management companies, which we use as a yardstick for describing our practices. Old Plank Group does not hold AMC Institute accreditation.