Rising Leaders on the Benefits of Association Membership

Tre Wilke IV, National Sales Manager, Evans Hotels, Rising Sales Leader Council Alumni

This article comes from Rising Sales Leaders Council members comparing notes on association involvement and career momentum. The consensus was that being engaged attracts attention, and this attraction brings opportunities within reach.

For me personally, two years of HSMAI involvement have brought consistent, meaningful benefits. Community showed up first, and in a very real way, access to peers. Rising Leader Council Members spoke often about the value of understanding how other commercial teams think, price, forecast, and advocate internally. That kind of exposure sharpens your judgment, especially when decisions are needed to balance sales urgency with revenue logic. Mentorship that rising leader council members received truly mattered, because it was structured, timebound, action‑oriented, and authentic. Leadership exposure followed naturally once people grew in their confidence and comfortability.

What surprised many participants was how quickly credibility can compound. For most, joining HSMAI often started with a recommendation from a colleague or mentor, followed by uncertainty about what the experience would actually be like. That uncertainty faded fast as in-person meetings and working sessions accelerated trust, making idea sharing easier and outcomes stronger. Several members described discovering their voice by speaking up, asking better questions, and translating shared ideas back to property-level realities.

For many members, growth showed up in tangible ways. There was a stronger sense of self-advocacy, reinforced simply by being around peers doing the same. Commercial thinking expanded beyond job titles, helping people rethink not just their roles, but their long-term paths. It also challenged the idea that growth always means more travel or bigger teams. Sometimes it just means thinking differently and applying that thinking back into your day-to-day.

Looking back, there were a few things members wished they had known earlier.

Orientation matters. Knowing how chapters work, where to plug in locally, and how to find mentors earlier would shorten the learning curve.
Mentorship sprints stood out as underutilized, despite being consistently described as high-impact.
The strongest advice for new members was direct: jump in early, ask questions, and treat participation like a responsibility, not a perk.

Looking ahead, the group focused on how to raise the floor for incoming members. Pairing newer members with experienced ones came up repeatedly, especially around technology changes and evolving commercial practices. Once again, mentorship emerged as the key element that brought everything together. Members encouraged each other to share their experiences openly, at local events and beyond, to widen the pipeline and normalize early engagement.

One line captured the tone of the entire discussion: “You get out what you put in.”

It’s simple, but it’s true. When you take these communities seriously, they have a way of accelerating growth—not just in skill, but in confidence, perspective, and the relationships you carry forward.

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Recommended Questions for Teams

What motivated you to join HSMAI and the Rising Leaders Council, and how does that compare to the value you have received so far?
In what ways has association involvement helped you grow personally or professionally?
What do you wish you had known at the beginning that could help new members maximize their experience?
How can Rising Leaders better support each other in 2026 and elevate council impact?