AC Forum2023-11-28T16:19:57+00:00

BY ASSOCIATIONS FOR ASSOCIATIONS

Advancing Association Leadership &
Congress Management

BY ASSOCIATIONS FOR ASSOCIATIONS

Advancing Association Leadership &
Congress Management

  • AC Forum is the only association established exclusively for and by associations

  • Our members are international and regional self-managed, not-for-profit associations

  • Through peer to peer sharing of good practice and expanding thinking, in a confidential environment, free of commercial influences, members are engaged to exchange knowledge to advance association leadership and congress management

  • We aim to be the recognised global leader for associations driving innovation and excellence in leadership for impact and AC Forum is highly sought-after for thought leadership and good practice

Upcoming Events

AC Forum is a cohesive, engaged community, which facilitates connections. We recognise and support the needs of different segments and we arrange educational and networking events to support our members and to build alliances and partnerships with suitable organisations for research and knowledge generation.

Annual Meeting

11-13 January 2024

Location: Hamburg, Germany

Restricted to AC Forum members

General Assembly

11 January 2024

Location: Hamburg, Germany

Restricted to AC Forum members

Workshop on Association Management

22 & 23 February 2024

Location: Sophia Antipolis

Hosted by: ESC

Restricted to AC Forum members

Why Join AC Forum?

Members are the heart of AC Forum. AC Forum membership supports the highest level of association and congress management through an open exchange of knowledge, expertise and experiences. We provide our members with multiple forums to freely interact with peers facing comparable opportunities and challenges in the association and congress industry in an environment that is confidential, trusting and free from commercial influence.

AC Forum is exclusively for and by associations, and membership is for supranational, self-managed, non-profit associations.

Is your organisation interested in joining AC Forum?
Find out how to become a member now

AC Forum Members

Annual Meeting

The Annual Meeting and General Assembly 2024 will take place in Hamburg, Germany, 11-13 January.

If you are a convention bureau interested in showcasing your city to major associations, apply to host the AC Forum Annual Meeting. Hosting our Annual Meeting gives an unrivalled opportunity to (re-)introduce your city to our members.

Annual Meeting

The AC Forum Annual Meeting and General Assembly 2024 will take place in Hamburg, Germany, 11-13 January.

If you are a convention bureau interested in showcasing your city to major associations, apply to host the AC Forum Annual Meeting. Hosting our Annual Meeting gives an unrivalled opportunity to (re-)introduce your city to our members.

Education

Education is a cornerstone of AC Forum and is at the core of what we do. In addition to the Annual Meeting, workshops, webinars and campfire meetings provide education on specific topics for association staff and allow member associations to connect with each other.

We are dedicated to delivering valuable, meaningful education and strive to continually improve our educational offerings and knowledge curation for our members. Educational events are often member-led, and offer an unrivalled opportunity for peer exchange and expert education on focused topics.

Annual Meeting

The educational programme of the Annual Meeting is tailored to our members’ needs. Much of the programme is built from case studies submitted by members and rounded out by keynote lectures, masterclasses and expert-led sessions.

Workshops

Face-to-face workshops are targeted, small-scale meetings over 1½ days, providing a deep dive on specific topics for association staff dealing with those areas. They also allow member associations to connect with each other.

Webinars

We run regular webinars on topics of high relevance to members. Their virtual nature facilitates participation by more staff, since there is no need to travel, and as most of the webinars are recorded they are available to all AC Forum member staff.

Campfires

In response to discussions trending among our members, we arrange Campfire meetings. Campfires are meet-ups for members for discussions on particular topics and are member-driven, informal forums for peer exchange.

President’s Message

I am honoured and privileged to assume the role of President of AC Forum. I have been on the Board for the past six years and have found AC Forum to be a great association to be involved in. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has presented unique challenges for AC Forum and its members. This year, we continue with uncertainties and we will have to find ways to deal with them.

Therefore, it is important for our associations to work together and continue to deliver quality, cost-effective, needs-led educational offerings that support association and congress leadership, management and innovation. We can do and achieve more when we work in partnership with others who share our values and objectives, and I feel confident in saying that AC Forum is the global leader for associations driving innovation and excellence for impact.

Carola van der Hoeff - AC Forum President

Our focus for the coming years will be on four objectives:

  • Delivering valuable, meaningful education;
  • Advancing excellence in association leadership;

  • Demonstrating thought leadership and influence on impact; and

  • Building a sustainable, inclusive organization.

The detailed strategic plan of the AC Forum can be found here.

I very much look forward to engaging with you all and will do my best to move AC Forum ahead, and I thank our past Presidents for the good position that we are in today.

CAROLA VAN DER HOEFF

Latest News

Meet our exhibitors!

November 8th, 2023|

The AC Forum Annual Meeting 2024 is hosted by the city of Hamburg and will be held at the CCH - Congress Center Hamburg. We are very excited for

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