MEMBERSHIP MASTERCLASS

 
 
MEMBERSHIP MASTERCLASS
 
Harvey Lane and Ian Evans had recently participated in a MEMBERSHIP MASTERCLASS
and presented us with an overview of the presentation.
 
The program comprised of 4 X 1 hour zoom sessions and expanded on:
•Enhancing Participation and Engagement
• Increasing your ability to Adapt
•Increasing your Impact
•Expanding your Reach
 
Technical problems prevented him from playing a video as part of his presentation.
However, you can watch that video at
 
In the video, Mark Huddleston, a Rotarian from SA and author of ‘Creatures of Habit’ , discusses the steady decline in Rotary membership since the late 90’s and outlines some strategies for membership recruitment and retention.
 
A few members have purchased copies of the latest edition of ‘Creatures of Habit’ which addresses the additional challenges to membership recruitment and retention raised by COVID.
 Ian had carried out an extensive analysis of this book and presented us with an overview of his observations
An excerpt from his precis:
 
We usually struggle to find a mechanism to engage people into Rotary life if our schedule is incompatible with their lifestyle.
 
We must understand that we have created these barriers ourselves.
 If we want to fix our membership problem, our obsession with meetings is the single biggest issue we need to address.
 The concept of the “make up” hasn’t quite left our rule books, but it is slowly disappearing from our vernacular, at least from the author’s location. If we really want to fix our membership problem, our obsession with meetings is the single biggest issue we need to address.
 Young people are incredibly happy to volunteer and make a difference, but what they don’t want to do is to attend meetings and listen to speakers.
Their free time is scarce, and they don’t want to waste time they do not have and spend money they can’t afford on meals they do not want.
Rotary’s meeting centric, operating system is not structured around productivity but entertainment and camaraderie.
 If we are trying to attract busy people to join our ranks, and part of the deal is an expectation to attend meetings, it is incumbent upon us to make sure meetings are an effective use of everyone’s time.
 We are promising impact with meaningful contribution to society, but a lot of members are experiencing little more than meeting, meeting, meeting.
 
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