About
Kris Hilburn Williams, CAE
Nearly 30 years inside association work — not advising from the outside, but doing the job at every level.
What she does
Kris founded Hilburn Williams & Co to give associations, nonprofits, and management companies access to senior membership and communications expertise without the cost of a full-time specialist. The work is membership communications, retention and onboarding campaigns, editorial strategy, fundraising and donor engagement, and member experience.
She has done everything in association work: advocacy and governance, public relations, membership acquisition and retention, and financial statements. That experience includes managing multi-million-dollar budgets, leading financial restructuring and operational turnaround, growing membership, and developing diverse revenue streams. She has served as an executive advisor to volunteer boards throughout her career.
Association work is one of the great adventures in organizational life. There is an association for everything — and Kris is enthusiastic about what that world produces: communities of professionals who care deeply about their field and the people in it.
Approach
Hilburn Williams & Co is a practice, not a vendor relationship. Kris works as an embedded partner — close enough to the organization to understand how decisions actually get made, direct enough to say what is not working, and steady enough to hold the thread of a strategy through implementation.
The vision is simple: associations and nonprofits should have access to quality membership expertise and communications strategy without sacrificing financial sustainability.
Values
Constancy
Unwavering commitment to the mission, the team, and the truth, regardless of circumstance or pressure.
Authenticity
No performance, no politics. The same person in the boardroom, the hard conversation, and the celebration.
Grace
Leading with generosity of spirit, patience, and genuine care for the people and organizations served.
Honesty
Honest feedback over comfortable silence. Organizations grow when people tell the truth well.
Feedback over punishment
Performance is developed, not penalized. People do better work when they know what better looks like.
Mission matters
Membership organizations and nonprofits are the infrastructure of civil society. There is an association for everything, and that is a feature, not a flaw.
These are not marketing language. They are the standard by which every engagement is measured.
Credentials & Affiliations
CAE — Certified Association Executive
The gold standard in association management, held by fewer than 5,000 professionals nationally.
Certificate in Membership Marketing
Formal credentialing in the discipline at the center of the practice.
Association AI Certification (in progress)
Preparing to help boards and staff think clearly about what AI means for their organization.
Past President, DFWAE
Dallas Fort Worth Association Executives — the professional community at the center of this market.
Board of Directors, Congo Restoration
An organization dedicated to educating girls and women in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Let’s talk about your members.
If your renewals are slipping, your communications have gone quiet, or your member experience needs an honest look — start with a conversation.
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