LERN ended its fiscal year this summer on several high notes, including larger membership, healthy financial condition, and San Diego conference registrations well ahead of previous years.
Here’s the Top Ten highlights for LERN this year.
1.Member Satisfaction.
Renewal rates jumped up to 85%, our best in history. The renewal rate is really good for any association. Most importantly, members renewing means you are satisfied. LERN grew by another 60 Organizational Member programs.
2.New Era of Data Collection for the Field.
You got the results of the first-ever Integrated Marketing survey. LERN’s new software system will now be able to store your data for ever better data. Next up: results from our survey on email promotion best practices, based on 100 responses.
3.Member Portal and Services.
You can now access your own account in the new LERN software system. The new Member Portal system allows you to update your records, order more quickly, and input your program’s key data.
4.Small Teams information.
With 49% of you having staffs of 5 or fewer FTE (full time equivalent), LERN leaders worked with staff to launch a new info service with information customized to programs with small teams.
5.Remote/Virtual Program Reviews.
The biggest ROI consulting for your program, our Program Review, is now available virtually in real time. Offering another option to our on-site Program Review and visit, four member programs took advantage of the new service in its first month to kick off this exciting option.
6.Savannah conference.
Another pioneering conference, with so many good things happening. If we were another association, the Savannah conference would probably be the top highlight of the year. Tons of the most advanced, practical how-to information premiered in the sessions.
7.Newsletters specific to constituency/institutional setting.
Your newsletter, and our information, is now customized to be specific to you and other programs in the same constituency/institutional setting.
8.UGotClass Set Record Income in 2018.
Your dues remained low, and your benefits increased, because of UGotClass. Our online courses to the general public, offered through 200 LERN member programs, is now our largest source of revenue. While those 200 UGotClass Partners get a whopping 50% of the revenue, the largest of any online provider, we hold our costs down and use the surplus to support your membership benefits.
9.Some 120 Member Organizations submit data, get certification.
When we analyze the data and get more of you to submit your 5 facts, this will probably be the top story of 2020.
10.Finances healthy.
Reserves hit its highest point in our history, coming in at 50% of our annual revenue. Income is stable but not growing. Yet our cost control and increased productivity produced one of the strongest years ever financially.
