A podcast by RallyBoard on the business of associations.
Each episode, you will hear from a leader who is working to reinvent their business model with human connection at the center.
Ep. 6 | Brittany Carter: Inside the Minds of Association Leaders
Ask association CEOs what would make them better leaders, and you’ll hear the same answer again and again: each other. Brittany Carter, CEO of CBIS (the company behind CEO Update, Association TRENDS and NonProfit PRO), shares her front-row view into the minds of association executives, how she’s thinking about peer connection and developing the next generation of leaders, and what she’s learned over 20 years with CBIS. Her advice for anyone stepping into the CEO seat is to start with th...
3 Jun 2026
Ep. 5 | David Gammel: Why Associations Are More Resilient Than You Think - Even in an AI World
What makes an association irreplaceable — and what's putting real pressure on the model right now? In this episode of Built to Connect, Jackson meets with David Gammel, Executive Director of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine, two-time association CEO, and former Chief Practice Officer at McKinley Advisors, to explore what decades of moving between the consulting world and the corner office actually teaches you about leading associations through change. David argues that the a...
14 May 2026
Ep. 4 | Christie Tarantino-Dean: When Healthy Board Culture Makes Innovation Possible
What does it take to lead a complex scientific association through rapid change and actually come out ahead? In this episode of Built to Connect, Jackson speaks with Christie Tarantino-Dean, CEO of the Institute of Food Technologists and former head of Association Forum, to explore what great association leadership looks like when the stakes are high and the pace of change is relentless. Christie shares how decades of watching associations grow — and struggle — shaped the board culture she bu...
6 May 2026
Ep. 3 | James Young: Rethinking Member Engagement from the Ground Up
What if the association business model is fundamentally broken — and has been for decades? In this episode of Built to Connect, Jackson sits down with Dr. James Young, founder of Product Community and two-time chief learning officer, to challenge the way associations think about revenue, member engagement, and the value they deliver to their communities. James introduces concepts like the "forever member journey," compound value, and micro-community design as a path toward a more engaged, fin...
6 Apr 2026
Ep. 2 | Thad Lurie: Why the Association Model Needs to Change
Is the traditional association model still fit for purpose in 2026? In this second episode, Jackson is joined by Thad Lurie, SVP of Digital and Technology at American Geophysical Union and recipient of the Association Trends Trailblazer Award, to explore what it really means to lead innovation inside an industry that has traditionally favored stability over speed. Thad shares the communication-first philosophy behind some of the most ambitious AI pilots in the association space, why increment...
18 Feb 2026
Ep. 1 | Debra BenAvram: What New CEOs Get Wrong in Their First 90 Days
Episode 1: Built to Connect | Debra BenAvram, CEO of AABB What does it take to transform a global association from the inside out? In our inaugural episode, Jackson sits down with Debra BenAvram, CEO of AABB (Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies), to explore how she's redefining what it means to lead a $20M nonprofit in a rapidly evolving industry. Debra shares the leadership philosophy behind dropping staff turnover from 45% to 6%, why she spent her first 90 days doing o...
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