We are all aware that membership retention is collectively one of the biggest challenges facing Rotary clubs. This has been a constant message over recent years. Despite all the effort and resources being thrown at it, our membership loss outstrips our growth. Club Visioning may be the catalyst your club needs.
Club Visioning is a process your club can take to meet the challenge of member engagement.
Club Visioning is a collaborative process where all club members come together to discuss the current status of the club and how they want it to be in the future. They spend time workshopping ideas and come up with an agreed plan for the future direction of their club.
It’s a three-step process:
- Look at where the club is now - structure, perception, reality etc.
- Work collaboratively to agree on a picture of how the club wants to be, say, three years on.
- Agree on plans and actions the whole club will take together to get to there within that time.
In the process all things may be considered and discussed – like traditions, club style, club membership target, meeting types and frequency, avenues of service the club wishes to operate in and the type of service activities it wishes to undertake, ways it may choose to fund service activities, how the club can best align with Rotary International and District strategic plans, etc.
The key is this:
- ALL members have an equal voice in the process
- ALL input is welcome, respected and valued
- In the end there is an agreed plan that ALL members can ‘own’.
Each club is unique and does some things in its own way. That’s OK, as the plan your club chooses to build through Club Visioning should cater for the flexibility it requires.
A well-considered, agreed and documented plan goes a long way to enhancing member engagement and participation, both keys to success in any club.
Club Visioning works best when run by a trained Club Visioning Facilitator. It does require preparation and is most effective when run separately from a normal club meeting. Setting aside a few hours on a weekend tends to be the most effective way.
Get some spring back into your club by having ALL members actively engaged in driving your club forward.
Article by PDG C. Ross Carlyle