By Carolyn Shomali, PAR 

At its core, foresight is about looking ahead to anticipate a range of possible futures. Strategic foresight takes that one step further: it’s about preparing for those futures by making smarter and more informed decisions today. For associations, this means challenging the status quo and being willing to adjust – or even completely dismantle – traditional ways of working when they no longer serve the organization’s future.

Tara Puckey, MBA, FASAE, CAE, CMP is the Executive Director of the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) and frames the reality facing associations in this way:

“While you should still remain relevant to your current base, your primary focus is your future base. That's very different than how associations approach things. It likely means you will lose some folks,” she says. “There is a cost to being future focused, and it is a cost that all of us have to pay to continue to remain relevant.”

And, perhaps the most critical agent of your association’s future success is your board.

For associations committed to sustainability, relevance, and durable revenue, a board versed in strategic foresight is an invaluable asset – especially when it comes to reshaping legacy structures, as Neal Couture, FASAE, CAE, CEO of the American Society of Nondestructive Testing (ASNT), emphasizes:

“Have a good, close collaborative relationship with your board of directors. When you make a C-level kind of change in your structure or your programs, it really does require that partnership between staff and board members.”

ASNT put this into practice in 2025 by reimagining membership and ASNT’s role in the field of nondestructive testing (NDT). Their vision for the future? To be the global connector of NDT professionals. The reality? A plateauing membership base, a challenge familiar to many associations and one that would make it difficult to achieve the vision.

“It all started with us having to essentially reimagine what a member is – the old understandings just weren't serving our association well,” Couture says.

Couture points to the robust and high-quality of ASNT programs and products. Data showed high satisfaction among members, but membership growth overall was stalling in the aftermath of the pandemic, changes to NDT education and economic uncertainties. The story of those two data points unlocked a new strategy.

“Usually, membership growth is tied to value, and we were providing great value. Well, why weren't we growing then? It was primarily because we found with our members, there was a barrier to entry,” Couture says. “So what we said is, get everyone in the community to be members of ASNT, and we will be there when they need us.”

This foresight-driven insight led to a strategic decision: ASNT simplified its membership tiers from 11 to four, introducing a freemium option for early-career professionals that granted access to resources, community, and learning. The results? In under a year, membership climbed from 10,500 to 13,000 – averaging 100 new members weekly. The new members are engaging, generating over $100,000 in non-dues revenue in just the first year.

The ASNT board was a part of this strategic shift, helping to position ASNT to meet future challenges with a broader, more engaged membership community – all while aligning with the vision to connect NDT professionals worldwide.

Effective Boards Actively Shape the Future

Lindsay Currie, CAE is the Executive Officer of the Council of Undergraduate Research (CUR) and has focused on strategic foresight within her association for the previous six years. She defines it as “the intentional practice of scanning for signals of change, interpreting their potential impacts, and using those insights to guide today’s strategic choices so organizations can thrive in multiple possible futures.”

Currie’s perspective reinforces a critical truth from Couture’s story: effective boards don’t just govern the present; they actively anticipate and shape the future.

“The board’s job isn't to build things for themselves. Their job is to build things for the people that are coming well behind them,” she says.

The urgency of this shift is clear, and it’s not unique to associations. A 2023 World Economic Forum report found that 75% of organizations are unprepared for the pace of change in their industries. Yet those that embed strategic foresight aligned with uncertainty report 33% higher profitability and 200% greater market capitalization.

For associations, the stakes go beyond financial performance. Strategic foresight underpins long-term sustainability and the ability to continuously deliver value to evolving audiences and economic realities.

“The most successful boards are not just governance bodies,” Currie says. “They are antennas tuned to the voices, signals, and systems shaping our opportunities.”

But that antenna can’t capture complete signals without broadening whose voices are heard.

Puckey points to often overlooked sources of strategic intelligence: peer organizations, competitors, philanthropic leaders, corporate executives, policy analysts, storytellers, influencers, and especially critics, former members, and lapsed partners.

“You really want to see the transition between what initially excited them about your organization and then where that went wrong, how that went wrong, and how you lost them in that space,” she says.

Implementing Strategic Foresight Into Board Activities

How can associations ensure boards hear these diverse perspectives? Currie suggests reshaping board meeting preparation to surface external viewpoints. This might include a 15‑minute podcast from a leader in your industry or a recognized foresight expert. And if that content challenges assumptions or critiques the sector, all the better.

“[It shows] how the outside world is perceiving [your industry], and how we might as an organization, change our approach, our language and our engagement,” Currie says. “Thinking about different ways, other than a survey, to get these voices to be heard by your board members and your staff is really important.”

When the board convenes, ensure the agenda doesn’t dwell solely on immediate issues. Make foresight the centerpiece. CUR opens every meeting with an hour devoted to a forward-looking theme for the association and the industry. Equally important, Currie says, is giving board members the language to champion this work.

“Remind board members to finish a sentence like, When this organization is fully funded, we will be able to do 'X'. When they can start dreaming about what the possibilities are with those funds, that's when they get excited. That's when they get behind the work.”

Just as businesses continuously tweak and adjust to evolving markets and emerging needs, associations must make strategic foresight a core priority if they want to not only participate in the future, but actively shape it.