Increasing collaboration and connection between think tanks
Smart Thinking’s Membership Network offers its member think tanks the opportunity to collaborate, be part of a community, access training and share knowledge across the sector. We host multiple training sessions, webinars and networking events throughout the year, building the think tank community and enabling knowledge sharing, pooling of resources and peer-to-peer support throughout the sector.
Our membership also enables think tanks to provide regular professional development for their staff. With over three years experience of providing training to UK think tanks we have now developed a comprehensive, think tank-centric, series of courses. These are specifically designed to improve your professional skills in the core competencies you will need as you progress through your think tank career.
Both our training and events programmes have been designed so that there is something for you whether you work in research, communications or operations and whether you are a junior researcher or a think tank Chief Executive.
Pricing is based on the number of full time employees. To find out more about becoming a member, visit our ST Member website or email Emily on emily@smartthinking.org.uk
Benefits
- Monthly expert webinars on topics across research, comms and operations
- In-person intensive training sessions
- Member website and knowledge bank
- Salary benchmarking
- Networking events for all staff including heads of research meeting, operations network, events network, senior comms network and early careers network
- 15% off all job adverts on Smart Thinking Jobs
- Buddy system to informally build your professional network
MEMBER ONLY
Upcoming training
The in-person training sessions are the only part of the membership available to both members and non-members however, members have priority booking, receive complimentary tickets to training in their annual subscription and are entitled to a heavily discounted member-only ticket price after that. Our core training topics are media training, public speaking, writing for impact, fundraising fundamentals, people management and research project management. Find more details on our training programme here.
Fundraising fundamentals
23 October 2025
9.30am – 4.30pm
This training takes you through the fundamentals of fundraising in a UK think tank from why and how donors like to fund and where to find them, to how to plan your approach and make the ask, to how to maintain the donor relationship.
Members £295 (+VAT) Non-members £495 (+VAT)
Media training for think tankers
27 November 2025
9.30am – 4.30pm
Effective media skills are one of the most important skills for think tankers to develop. We don’t just tell you what you need to know but we give you the opportunity to practise in real time, so you are ready to go for the real thing!
Members £295 (+VAT) Non-members £495 (+VAT)
MEMBER ONLY
Upcoming webinars
Cyber security: what you need to understand and what you need to prioritise
14 October 2025 2pm – 3pm
Patrick Burgess will provide valuable insights into why we must all be security-focused, how to assess real risks, and what foundational elements should be in place to protect your think tank.
Member only (FREE)
How to rebrand a think tank
18 November 2025 10.30am – 11.30am
In every think tank’s life, there will come a point when it needs to update its identity. This webinar looks at the benefits, pitfalls and practical advice anyone considering a rebrand should know, from someone who has recently done it.
Member only (FREE)
ST membership curates interesting opportunities to connect, share experiences and learn
“We are very pleased to have joined Smart Thinking. This year it has definitely proved to be the best
value of all our memberships. Think tanks are different to other organisations in many ways and Smart Thinking understands that and curates interesting opportunities to connect, share experiences and learn. All the events we’ve attended have been useful and sharply run. A major plus is the variety. People across the organisation at different levels, from our senior management team to researchers to comms, are benefiting.”
Karen Crane, Head of Communications, Green Alliance
Join our current members and access all the latest think tank training and events
