Learn@Lunch
Expand your knowledge and expertise over your lunch hour! Join TSAE for engaging lunchtime sessions filled with valuable insights and best practices from experienced professionals in the association industry.
Whether you're a seasoned veteran or just starting out, our Learn@Lunch series offers a wide range of topics designed to help you stay ahead of the curve and achieve success in your career.
This event is FULL and at capacity. Registration is closed.
January 13, 2026
11:30 AM - 1:00 PM
1825 McBee St.
Austin, TX 78723
About the Program
Nonprofits and associations are experiencing rapid transformation–from shifting member expectations and economic uncertainty to evolving workforce dynamics and organizational restructuring. In times like these, the way leaders support and guide their teams becomes the critical determinant of whether an organization moves forward with resilience or gets stuck in disruption.
In this engaging session, seasoned association leaders Michelle Smith and JJ Colburn explore how leaders can create the clarity, stability, and motivation their teams need during periods of significant change. Drawing on lived experiences and established frameworks, they’ll offer practical strategies for anticipating how people respond to uncertainty and helping staff feel grounded and equipped to thrive.
Learning Objectives
- Explore a framework for understanding how your team, peers, and even friends/family experience uncertainty, change, and shifting expectations.
- Learn techniques for reducing fear and defensiveness while increasing clarity, autonomy, and motivation within teams.
- Gain communication approaches that foster psychological safety and trust during transitions.
About the Speakers
Michelle Smith, PhD, Interim CEO at Every Texan, brings deep experience in nonprofit leadership, advocacy, and public policy and has spent her career championing policies that improve education and economic opportunity across Texas. She currently specializes in stabilizing nonprofits during transitions, uncertainty, or rapid change. Prior to her focus on interim leadership, Michelle served as the executive director of Raise Your Hand Texas and the Fast Growth School Coalition.
JJ Colburn, CAE, Co-CEO of Strategic Association Management, provides executive leadership and strategic counsel, mentors and develops staff, and helps identify and grow business opportunities. Over his 20-year career in association management, he has served as the executive director of the Science Teachers Association of Texas and the Texas Association for the Gifted & Talented, and as the director of the Texas Association of Student Councils. JJ is an active member of the Texas Society of Association Executives, where he served as the 2016-2017 TSAE Board Chair and was honored in 2019 with the TSAE Distinguished Executive Award.
Thank You to Our Sponsor
About Learn@Lunch
Learn@Lunch is a quick and easy way to get education and networking with little interruption to your workweek. Enjoy a delicious lunch, meet with your peers and learn about some of today's hottest association topics from a speaker or in an idea-sharing setting while you eat. (Includes 1 CAE hour)
Cancellation Policy
The cancellation deadline is 14 days prior to the event. No refunds will be issued after the cancellation deadline. Cancellations received in writing to the TSAE office at info@tsae.org before 14 days in advance, will receive a refund, minus a 20% processing fee. Registration transfers are available from TSAE member to member at no charge. Transfers from a TSAE member to non-member will pay the difference in registration fees. Member account credit to use for future events is not available.
TSAE is a CAE Registered Provider. This program meets the requirements for fulfilling the professional development requirements to earn or maintain the Certified Association Executive credential. Every program that we offer that has been approved for CAE credit will clearly identify the number of CAE credits granted for full participation. We will maintain records of your participation in accordance with CAE policies. For more information about the CAE credential or Registered Provider program, please visit www.asaecenter.org/cae.