Next month, members of the Association of Professional Researchers for Advancement (APRA) will gather in Baltimore, MD for the association’s annual conference. If you know someone who is thinking about a career in prospect research or are a supervisor with a staff member who needs training, this really is the conference for them to attend. Topics will range from basics training for new researchers to in-depth training on fundraising analytics and everything in between.
Throughout the rest of the year, many APRA chapters offer excellent continuing education, including networking events, brown bags, and conferences. Both APRA and many of its chapters also have monthly or quarterly newsletters as well.
BUT…in addition to APRA, there are a variety of allied professional associations that are highly relevant to prospect research, and reading their newsletters and blogs, and following the associations or members on social media can be a great way to enhance a researcher’s knowledge. They include:
- the Association of Advancement Service Professionals (AASP)
- the Association of Independent Information Professionals (AIIP)
- Strategic and Competitive Intelligence Professionals (SCIP)
- Special Libraries Association (SLA) – Information Outlook, their association’s bi-monthly newsletter is available free at their website.
Finally, besides the newspapers and magazines that we may subscribe to keep up on business and industries there are also several journals, websites and blogs that provide insight about the craft of information discovery and searching. They include:
What resources do you follow to stay up on the craft of research? Share!!
