It happens to every association eventually — a member takes a grievance to a forum, a Facebook group, or the AGM floor, in front of everyone. The instinct is to defend, correct the record, or go quiet and hope it passes.
None of those work as well as a fourth option: acknowledge the concern is being heard, commit to a proper process, and actually follow through on it — visibly.
Members rarely expect a board to be perfect. They do expect it to take them seriously. The associations that handle public criticism well aren't the ones who avoid it — they're the ones with a genuine process ready before they need it.
If you don't have that process yet, build it before the next complaint, not during it.
Explore Association Management
Free first step: the the complaints-handling framework.
With respect,
Annie