Interesting comments from Euro. Many years ago - 20 years or so - I looked at what the Guild did and the way it presented itself. Particularly on technical topics it appeared to be anything but professional and seemed to be a mouthpiece for a small number of self-opinionated and self-appointed individuals.
Rather than just complaining as some of my colleagues did, I got in touch with the local committee and offered to get involved. I was 'interviewed' by a couple of the regular names that I saw in the magazine who were pleased to welcome me into the fold. They told me about all the events that were on the calendar and the drinking and golfing plans they had...and the international gatherings where they had to go to keep up-to-date . And because 'we' would be committee members, the vast majority of it all would be paid by the Guild. A few questions about other work done by the Guild were met with an almost total lack of interest.
My mind may be playing a few tricks with my memory of our meeting, and I'm sure that there were some good bits, but my overriding recollection is of a couple of people who were primarily using the Guild as means of low-cost partying. I've really no idea if they were representative of those involved in the organisation at the time but I was disappointed enough to cancel my membership after this experience.