The International Reading Association

IDEC European Leadership SeminarLjubljana, Slovenia

January 24-25, 2014

More than 53,000 members Operating budget of more than $12m (US) Staff of 71 Network of more than 1500 organized

chapters worldwide (councils, affiliates, provincials, regionals)

IRA: Literacy Educator’s Worldwide Professional Home

Professional Development Events Publications Website resources Member expertise Network support

What IRA Provides

Individual Membership by Month

7/1/

1996

7/1/

1997

7/1/

1998

7/1/

1999

7/1/

2000

7/1/

2001

7/1/

2002

7/1/

2003

7/1/

2004

7/1/

2005

7/1/

2006

7/1/

2007

7/1/

2008

7/1/

2009

7/1/

2010

7/1/

2011

7/1/

2012

7/1/

2013

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

80,000

90,000

100,000

1987Last five years=(27,626)

Prior five years=(781)

ALL MONTHS TO DATE

Annual Conference Attendance

Orland

o 20

03

Reno

200

4

San

Anto

nio

2005

Chicag

o 20

06

Toro

nto

2007

Atlant

a 20

08

Min

neap

olis

& Pho

enix 2

009

Chicag

o 20

10

Orland

o 20

11

Chicag

o 20

12

San

Anto

nio

2013

-

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

Annual Conference Surplus/Losslast 10 years

San

Anton

io 2

005

Chica

go 2

006

Toro

nto

2007

Atlant

a 20

08

Minne

apol

is & P

hoen

ix 2

009

Chica

go 2

010

Orland

o 20

11

Chica

go 2

012

San

Anton

io 2

013

-1

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Revenue Expense Profit/(Loss)

In M

illio

ns

Jul-01 Jul-02 Jul-03 Jul-04 Jul-05 Jul-06 Jul-07 Jul-08 Jul-09 Jul-10 Jul-11 Jul-12 Jul-130

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

RT

JAAL

RRQ

Individual & Institutional Journal Subscriptions

In the last five years journal subscriptions dropped 37-41%

In the prior five years journal subscriptions dropped 9-17%

Book Sales by Units per MonthIRA Books Only—does not include E-books

JUL

AUG

SEP

OCT

NOV

DEC

JAN

FEB

MAR

APR

MAY

JUN

-

20,000

40,000

FY06-07FY07-08FY08-09FY09-10FY10-11FY11-12FY12-13FY13-14

Last Five Years

E-book Sales by Units per Month

JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN0

100

200

300

400

500

600

FY12-13 FY13-14 FY14-15

Membership is dropping Conference attendance is dropping Difficulty attracting younger members Scarcity of members interested in

leadership positions

Troubling Trends

Limited pathways to leadership Recycled leaders Poor financial management Little or no strategic planning

What We Observe

Generations of Members

Generational Impact on IRA

X (1965-1980):

independent, want a voice,

informal, individual, tech savvy, balanced,

self-sufficient

Y (1981-2001): networking,

informal, small group, tech

savvy, always “on”, civic-

minded, want a voice

Boom (1946-1964): time-

sensitive, team, always “young”, willing to learn, loyal, focused,

make a difference

Silent (1925-1945) : traditional,

conservative, disciplined,

structured, loyal, faith in

institutions, value structure

Time Value expectations Market structure Competition Technology

* Race to Relevance: 5 Radical Changes for Associations, Harrison Coerver & Mary Byers, CAE

What About Trends?

Cut 48% of the budgetCut 43% of staffNo change to IRA programs, services and resources

Impact on IRA

Charting A New Strategic Direction

Gathered and analyzed data◦ Membership ◦ Financial◦ Global trends

Shared the data◦ Board, Staff, Membership

Convened Board/staff strategic planning event◦ Assessed strengths, opportunities and challenges, and

established goals and objectives Assessed all areas for streamlining – governance,

operations, network – and commenced restructuring

The Planning Process

IRA must revitalize and renew its membership proposition to attract

and retain members.

Conclusion?

What would cease to happen if IRA (or your regional or local) fell of the face of the Earth

tomorrow?

Ask yourself this…

Professional Development Public Engagement

Community Engagement

Building A New Membership Proposition

Assess and modify IRA structurally (governance and operations) to maximize opportunities

Develop a strategic plan with goals that are bold, but realistic, achievable, measureable

Align and drive all resources to achieve goals

Utilize this professional network – IRA and all its chartered organizations to achieve the goals

Toward a New, Strong, Sustainable Network

Establish IRA as worldwide authority and #1 resource provider in literacy education

Attain and maintain financial stability Increase membership value

IRA’s Goals

• Increase media requests for IRA public comment by 50% each year for the next three years

• Increase IRA website traffic to 5m annual visits by 2016

• Become the #1 produced result in search engine rankings worldwide for literacy education keywords by 2018

Goal #1: Worldwide Authority in Literacy Education

• Eliminate operating deficit by 2017

• Reduce draw from quasi-endowment to no more than 5% annually by 2017

• Increase revenue by 2% annually over the next three years

• Rebuild cash reserve funds to $20m by 2017

Goal #2: Attain & Maintain Financial Stability

Goal #3: Increase Membership Value

•Develop 4 new member benefits by 2016

•Develop native language member resources for two countries by 2014

•Increase member retention from 2.5 to 5 years by 2018

•Develop customized membership experience (“My IRA”) by 2015-16

IRA (ILA) is committed to investing in the required resources, IT and Human Capital, to position itself to effectively disseminate research and evidence-based knowledge and information, in a customized way, to school-based literacy educators of students ages 4-18.

Focused Strategic Direction

New Membership Proposition

IRA (ILA) is committed to serving its membership by developing and offering outstanding professional services that can be customized to reflect the individual needs of its members.

Governance, Org Structure & Culture

Membership ProfessionalLearning

IT

Strong governance and operations Smart, conservative financial management Investment in IT and human capital Bold strategic plan with specific,

measureable, achievable goals. Development of a personal, individualized

membership experience Re-position IRA as a strong leader in literacy

and establish our role as a world thought leader

IRA’s Framework for Success

International Literacy Association?

Stronger Sustainable Network

Effective Operating Boards

Mission Aligned to IRA

Solid Financial Planning and Management

Strong Membership Proposition

Specific Plans for Future Growth

Building a Strong Network

Website Portal

Email System

Data Management

Financial Services

Building Network Capacity

Stabilize the organization financially and operationally

Use data to inform decision-making Members Matter

Guiding Mantra

Marcie Craig PostExecutive Director

mpost@reading.org