Leadership Update: Getting to Know Your Interim President & CEO

It has been a great and informative first week for me at Association Forum onboarding with Michelle Mason, FASAE, CAE who is now on her way to Washington DC and ASAE as its President and CEO. You can learn all about me and my experience below.

My first week included attending the Annual Honors Gala. What a great way to meet so many Association Forum members…thank you for making me feel so welcome. This week, I will be meeting with the Association Forum staff and board members. I also will be reaching out to members, suppliers, partners, and sponsors as part of my “Listening Tour.”

I am thrilled to be working at Association Forum and truly look forward to working with the membership in the months ahead. My primary goal will be to assure a smooth executive transition to the new executive leadership. My email is berry@associationforum.org, and my phone is 312.924.7070.

Thank you for your support of Association Forum!

Suzanne C. Berry, MBA, CAE Interim President and CEO Association Forum

About Suzanne Berry

Suzanne Berry is the Interim President and CEO of Association Forum. Association Forum is the “association of associations” in Chicago. Founded in 1916, it has nearly 4,000 members. These members represent more than 44,000 association professionals from nearly 1,600 Chicago associations. These organizations serve 27 million individual members, have 9 million donors, and generate $10.3 billion annually in economic impact. She provides strategic leadership, fiscal responsibility, and successful delivery of member value.

Berry comes to Association Forum with over 30 years in the nonprofit sector. She has been serving in Interim C-Suite roles since 2013. Berry’s association clients have included: Society of Environmental Journalists; PA Society of Association Excellence; Association of Women’s Health, Obstetrics and Neonatal Nurses; International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP); Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (CFP Board); American Society of Interior Designers (ASID); and American Diabetes Association.

Berry founded Association Resources in 1983 along with Peter J. Berry, CAE. Prior to selling AR in 2007, she developed and led a broad portfolio of health care clients. She served as Executive Director of the American Epilepsy Society (AES), the American Society for Experimental Neurotherapeutics (ASENT), and the International Society for Clinical Densitometry (ISCD). She was a strategic advisor to many of AR’s clients, including the International Society for Autism Research (INSAR), and consulted with organizations to develop and design certification programs. She has facilitated strategic planning sessions for many nonprofit organizations. She has also worked with associations to develop governance and board training programs.

Berry is currently a Strategic Advisor with BlochReed Association Advisors. BR collaborates with leaders to navigate change and strengthen their organizations. In addition to leadership development and matching associations with management company partners, BR has developed a robust interim executive practice.

Berry holds a master’s in business administration from Northeastern University, Boston, MA. She is an active member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), is a Certified Association Executive, and serves on the ASAE CAE Ethics Committee, ASAE Women’s Leadership Forum, and is a member of ASAE’s Key Association Professionals Committee (KPAC). She is a Governance Fellow with the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD).