Scholarly publishing is at an inflection point. 

For decades, STEM society publishers have depended on journals, conferences, and membership as their economic backbone. Today, generative AI and large language models (LLMs) are accelerating a structural shift in how knowledge is created, discovered, and monetized. The central question is no longer if AI belongs in the publishing value chain, but rather how we responsibly deploy it to advance our missions and diversify revenue. 

STEM Society CEOs and Executive Directors Gather in Baltimore for the Annual CESSE CEO Meeting 

This year’s CESSE CEO Meeting in Baltimore, MD brought together CEOs and Executive Directors from across the STEM society landscape for three days of knowledge sharing, candid dialogue, and strategic learning. 

Despite a significant winter storm impacting travel across the Baltimore and DMV region, the quick shift to a hybrid meeting model was successful thanks to the joint efforts of the CESSE staff, CESSE partners, Results Direct | RD Mobile (meeting app) and Projection (audio/visual) who kept in-person and virtual attendees connected and engaged. 

In today’s association landscape, the ground is shifting beneath our feet. Funding models are evolving, member expectations are rising, and the pace of change demands faster, more cohesive decisions. Amid this uncertainty, one lever consistently determines whether organizations merely cope or lead: shared financial stewardship.  

When every staff member understands how daily choices roll up into financial health, associations unlock strategic agility and long‑term resilience. This isn’t about turning everyone into an accountant; it’s about equipping the whole organization to steward mission and margin. 

In STEM societies, engagement has become the strategic variable that explains everything including recruitment, retention, revenue, and reputation. Yet leaders tell an all too familiar story: member touchpoints are scattered across websites, emails, apps, and event platforms; inboxes are saturated; and board expectations for measurable outcomes keep rising.  

The opportunity isn’t just to modernize tools. It is to re-architect the member experience so that it feels connected, personal, and trustworthy end‑to‑end. Recent conversations at ACCESSE25 underscored this shift: engagement now happens where members live, which is on mobile, across communities, and increasingly with AI as a co-pilot for discovery and service.  

In today’s attention economy, social media is no longer a side channel. It’s the public square where authority is earned, alliances are formed, and missions are advanced. Associations that treat social platforms as broadcast megaphones are leaving value on the table. The opportunity is bigger: use social to convert everyday engagement into measurable impact. 

Inspired by the ACCESSE25 session “Amplifying STEM Societies Through Social Media,” presented by Kelly Florian, PCM, CDMP, Digital Marketing Manager at The American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT), this piece provides an overview of how social media can serve as a strategic lever for executives and teams who are ready to lead in the open. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Council of Engineering and Scientific Society Executives