Why belong to a professional organization? In an age of massive open online courses (think Coursera and Khan Academy), abundant web seminars, and hundreds of free meetup groups in every major city, it’s a fair question. Why pay an annual membership fee to belong to a group of communications professionals when you can pick and choose learning opportunities? As a member of the International Association of Business Communicators’ San Francisco chapter (SF IABC), I know many people who would answer that question with one word: Networking.And yes, networking with other professionals in your field is singularly useful for career development. Estimates of how many jobs are found through network referrals vary, but the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has the number at 70%—and given that by age 32, Americans will now have held on average nine jobs, that’s a compelling reason to be actively involved with your professional community.But I’d argue there’s a second, just as important reason: Idea-sharing. As communicators, we face tectonic technology-driven shifts in communications across industries and skill sets. Earned and owned media now outperform paid media, turning organizations into storytellers and content publishers. Audiences want to co-create brands, and when all media is social, lines between internal and external communications blur. To quote Diane Gage Lofgren, Kaiser Permanente’s chief communications officer, in a recent interview for the SF IABC blog:“The biggest challenge of late is keeping up with changing technology and big data. There’s a lot of talk about the intersection of IT and Chief Marketing Officers and, I’d like to include, Chief Communication Officers. Communication is changing because of technology. That connects with the challenge of inspiring team members to grow and evolve and not become complacent in their knowledge and skills. In my career, I don’t ever want to sit still. I want to learn and be interested and, hopefully, be interesting; and continue to contribute to the profession and to my employer.”What better way to ensure you don’t “sit still” in your career than to meet and share ideas with other communicators? People who bring to the table inspiration from many places but who share common challenges. More and more, that’s how I see professional organizations: as platforms for collaborative problem solving.Rikke Jorgensen is the VP of Programs at SF IABC, whose May 22 event is Driving Employee Engagement, a presentation of findings from Brilliant Ink’s Gold Quill-winning research, The Employee Experience Survey, followed by a Q&A with four communications leaders. To learn more or register, visit SF IABC.