Speakers
Deepdive Session
Associations are under pressure to demonstrate clear member value. Events and networking alone are no longer sufficient. Members expect business opportunities, professional development, and structured collaboration. This session explores how associations can move from informal interaction to systems that generate measurable outcomes, strengthen retention, and support board-level decision-making. The focus is on practical approaches and tools that can be implemented without increasing operational complexity.
Ana Sousa with her role of strategy, governance coordination, membership development, and international conferences organization for a multi-jurisdictional association, gives a deep perspective on what drives engagement among independent, commercially focused members and how collaboration can be turned into real outcomes rather than remaining a networking concept.
The session will examine the challenges, with discussion and sharing, of :
Followed by:
An in-depth case study drawing on the experience of the Alliance of Business Lawyers, a global association of independent business law firms across more than 25 jurisdictions. How it strengthened cross-border referral processes, launched a structured secondment program, reinforced curated relationship building around conferences, and improved coordination within a volunteer-led international board. Ana will outline how these initiatives were developed, the challenges encountered, and the measurable results achieved, offering a concrete example that delegates can adapt to their own associations.
Ana Sousa Amorim is Executive Administrator of the Alliance of Business Lawyers, a global association of independent business law firms across more than 25 jurisdictions. She leads operations, membership growth, governance coordination, and international conferences, working closely with a volunteer-led board across multiple countries. She supports member firms in developing cross-border collaboration, structured referrals, and secondment initiatives, helping translate networking into measurable outcomes and strengthening the association’s global positioning. A former lawyer, Ana holds a Law Degree, a Master’s in International Law, and a Master’s in Legal Translation, and has experience in marketing and communications. She is currently an MBA candidate. Based in Coimbra, Portugal, she serves as the primary contact for the alliance’s global activities.