elsevier society member survey

Attitudes to the role of the professional society |

© 2016 Elsevier. All rights reserved.

Survey on attitudes to the role, performance and value of the professional society

July 2016

Attitudes to the role of the professional society | 2

Section

Objectives, Methodology and Sample

1. Relevance of professional societies in today’s market

2. Performance in advocacy, information and interaction activities

3. Value Proposition

Table of Contents


Understand the relevance of societies in today’s market

Evaluate societies role and performance in 1) advocacy, 2) information & education and 3) interaction & visibility activities

Appraise societies value proposition and their ability to communicate that proposition

Objectives

1

2

3

N.B: the intention of this survey is to provide an aggregated view of societies. It is acknowledged that the performance of individual societies will vary and may not reflect the aggregated view.


Methodology

Methodology Online survey

Targets Researchers and Practitioners (including physicians and engineers)

Sample

89,896 researchers and practitioners were randomly selected for this study(Researchers and practitioners were randomly selected from several sources including: authors who had published across 20,000 journals in 2014 and 2015, and users of health journals/ tools including PracticeUpdate)

Responses

2,143 surveys in total. 2.4% response rate(quotas were used to ensure responses were representative of the market). Error margin is 1.8% at 90% confidence levels


Section Summary: Relevance of Professional Societies in Today’s Market

Societies continue to be viewed as relevant, though need to do more if they want to appeal to all members of their communities, esp. younger members.

Societies are relevant and the vast majority of respondents intend to renew their membership.1

Nearly half see societies as more relevant today than previously; however, there is a large minority, over a third, who believe relevancy has decreased. 2

The joining process for becoming a member of a professional society is straightforward. 3

The perception that societies are not ‘inclusive’ to all will impact the ability to recruit new members.5

1 out of 3 feel societies are not accessible/available to all levels of their community, more of those under 36 believe this to be the case.4


Professional Societies Membership

We can expect societies to continue to thrive (at least) in the near future. Societies are very effective at retaining current members (willingness to renew).

84%of respondents are members of

a professional society

On average each society member has

2.9professional society

memberships(80% are members of 2 or more

societies)

of the current society members

will definitely/ probably renew their

membership

Sample: All respondents (n=2,143) Q. Are you currently a member of a society linked to your work or research? Q: How many societies are you a member of? Q: How likely are you to continue being a member of your society next year?

92%

Members Willingness to Renew Membership

Attitudes to the role of the professional society |

Sample: All respondents, excluding “don’t know/unsure” (n=2,110)

Q. How relevant are societies to you in your profession?

7

Professional Societies Relevance

The vast majority believe professional societies are relevant today...

89%

5%consider societies

somewhat irrelevant or not relevant at all

…are Professional Societies Relevant?

6%consider that societies are

neither relevant nor irrelevant

consider societies

very/somewhat relevant

…has the relevance changed over time?

Societies are more

relevant today than

they used to be

No change in the

relevance of

societies over time

Societies are less

relevant today than

they used to be

46% 19% 35%


Professional Societies Relevance Over Time

…and nearly half see societies as more relevant today; however, a third believe they are less relevant - this is higher in Europe and North America.

Sample: All respondents, excluding “don’t know/unsure” (n=1,910)

Q. Do you feel that the relevance of societies has changed over time?

…has the relevance changed over time?

Societies are more

relevant today than

they used to be

No change in the

relevance of

societies over time

Societies are less

relevant today than

they used to be

46% 19% 35%89%

5%consider societies

somewhat irrelevant or not relevant at all

…are Professional Societies Relevant?

6%consider that societies are

neither relevant nor irrelevant

consider societies

very/somewhat relevant


Professional Societies Joining Process

Few believe there are barriers to joining, most believe the joining process is straightforward.

Sample: All society members, excluding “don’t know/unsure” (n=1,734)

Q. Do you feel that your society has a simple joining process?

83%

6%strongly disagree or

disagree that the joining process is simple

11%neither agree nor

disagree that the joiningprocess is simple

strongly agree or agree that joining a

society is simple

…your Society has a simple joining process? …is your Society Accessible/ Available to All ?

32% 68%

NO. I don’t feel

my society is

accessible/

available to all

levels of my

community

YES. I feel my

society is

accessible/

available to all

levels of my

community


Professional Societies Accessibility/Availability

However, 1 out of 3 feel societies are not accessible/available to all levels of their community, more of those aged under 36 believe this to be the case (41%).


Q: Do you feel that your society is accessible/available to all levels of your

community?

…is your Society Accessible/ Available to All ?

32% 68%

NO. I don’t feel

my society is

accessible/

available to all

levels of my

community

YES. I feel my

society is

accessible/

available to all

levels of my

community

83%


disagree that the joining process is simple

11%neither agree nor

disagree that the joiningprocess is simple

strongly agree or

agree that joining a

society is simple

…your Society has a simple joining process?


Societies must create an atmosphere of inclusion. Right now Societies seem to be focused on prestige, and "points

of excellence". This is often due to lack of funds, but the

result is wide-spread exclusion.North America, Physical Sciences, 36 to 55 years old

“A society journal publication process might become an

expression of scientific power of leading individualities in

the field. Societies functioning is no more directed toward

its members, but for the promotion and protection of some

leading individuals point of view.Europe, Social Sciences, under 36 years old

“

Voice of Society Members

Inclusion


Section Summary: Performance in Advocacy, Information and Interaction Activities

Providing good online communities for networking/collaboration and actively helping members to increase their visibility are important areas for improvement.

Societies perform below expectation for advocacy activities. Advice for shaping government policy is the most important area for improvement within this topic.

1

Information & education activities are considered important and performance is good, specifically for keeping members updated and providing access to journals.

2

Enabling access to online networking platforms and helping members increase their visibility in the community is one of the most critical areas to address.

3

Societies need to fulfil the unmet needs of the youngest generation in order to continue to be successful. Key is providing tools/platforms that enable virtual interaction for society members.

4


Top line Results

Societies performance was evaluated in 3 major topics.

Imp

ort

an

ce

of th

e S

oc

iety

Ac

tiv

itie

s

Low

High

HighSatisfaction with the Society Activities

WINNING(High Importance and Low Satisfaction)

UNDER SUPPORTED

(Low Importance and High Satisfaction)

OVER ACHIEVING(Low Importance and Low Satisfaction)

AT RISK

Information & Education Activities

Interaction & Visibility Activities

Advocacy

(High Importance and High Satisfaction)


Section Summary: Value Proposition

Societies need to improve their value proposition using digital forms of communication.

Society members consider the value for money of their membership to be fairly low, and view society communications at demonstrating their value as needing improvement.

1

The future of society communication with the public, society members and between society members is expected to be largely digital. 2

Emails/alerts and online publications are considered the most suitable form of electronic communication. A large minority also consider ‘society websites’ as a suitable means of communication across most activities.

3


Societies Members’ Perception of Value for Money

Societies are relatively low scoring for ‘value for money’, particularly amongst mid-career professionals and those in Europe.


Q. To what extend do you agree that your society provides good value for

money?

55%


disagree societies provide good value for money

29%neither agree nor disagreethat societies provide good

value for money

Agree/strongly agree that societies provide good value

for money

…is your ‘Society Good Value for Money’? …how effective are societies at communicating their value?

57%

10%consider the value

communication to be poor


communication to be average

consider the value

communication to be

Good or Excellent


Societies Effectiveness in Communicating their Value

…improving the value proposition is key, as is developing communications that focus on demonstrating the value that societies provide for fees charged.

Sample: All society members, excluding “don’t know/unsure”(n=1,754)

Q. How effective have the societies in your field been at communicating their

value (e.g. demonstrating the benefits of being a member)?

…how effective are societies at communicating their value?

57%


communication to be poor


communication to be average

consider the value

communication to be

Good or Excellent

55%


disagree societies provide good value for money

29%neither agree nor disagreethat societies provide good

value for money

Agree/strongly agree that societies provide good value

for money

…is your ‘Society Good Value for Money’?


Most Suitable Electronic Communications

Sample: All respondents who selected electronic communications in each activity.

Q. Please could you specify which method(s) of delivery you believe are most suitable for each activity?

Emails/Alerts

Online Publications

Social Media

Society Website

No preference

n=1,198 n=1,146 n=1,131 n=1,559 n=1,155

53%

60%

47%

39%

3%

68%

54%

22%

36%

3%

59%

68%

13%

37%

4%

75%

61%

15%

29%

2%

35%

83%

11%

33%

3%

Across key activities, emails/alerts and online publications are considered the most suitable means of electronic communication. A large minority also consider ‘society websites’ suitable across all activities.

Increasing

public

awareness

Enabling

collaboration

Conducting

CPD

Informing me of

the latest

advances

Presenting my

research

findings