August is Membership Month in the Rotary calendar

Posted by Neil Berg
 

And there is no more important issue in Rotary today, at least in North America, than membership.  Rotary International has developed a North American Regional Membership Plan, which includes:
1. Engagement & retention, and
2. Attraction. 

Seems simple enough, right?

Rotary International convenes a meeting of representatives from each District in the world every three years to review our constitution and bylaws.  This latest Council on Legislation this spring enacted some of the most sweeping changes ever, allowing for innovation that allows Clubs to vary their meeting times, define what even constitutes a meeting, and to expand their pool of prospective members. 
 
Because of these changes, membership just became a lot more flexible – clubs now have greater flexibility in when, where and how they meet and the types of membership they can offer.  A Club can now:
  • Structure meetings however they like, as long as it meets twice a month.  Socials and service projects can count for attendance as meetings. Meetings can be online or in-person.
  • Set their own attendance expectations – either relaxed or tighter.  The Club is still expected to report attendance to District.
  • Offer different types of membership: corporate, family, associate or younger people.  And surely there are others.
  • Can offer membership to a Rotaractor perhaps at a lower financial or time commitment.  A Rotaractor can now join a Rotary Club without giving up their Rotaractor membership.
Retention and engagement are the two sides of the same membership coin.  We do a pretty good job of attracting new members; where we could be better is in retaining those members. We would suggest that retention is a measure of the level of engagement of members and the expectations that are set when a new member is inducted.
One great new idea: the start-up of regular meetings of Club Membership Chairs in specific geographic areas to exchange ideas and take action, is being contemplated by Membership Development Chair Tony Knight and his team.  If you‘re interested in this concept, let him know.
 
Our Zone Coordinator led a webinar late last month which outlined these COL changes, some mandatory and most optional.  Some of you were able to listen; if you missed it, the webinar was recorded and is available at Great Ideas to Share.  We would really encourage every Club President and every Club Membership Chair to invest the one hour to give it a listen.
 
Our communities can only benefit from more Rotary and more of you the Rotarian; and to do that we will continue to need more willing hands, more inquisitive minds and more caring hearts as we serve humanity.
 
We were touched by the heartfelt letter from a Rotaractor in last month’s District Bulletin (eBulletin-July2016) about experiencing a polio victim first hand.  They are among us!  It is certainly not too early to start thinking about what you and your Club are going to do to publicise World Polio Day on October 24 in your local community.
 
One thought: last year, the major junior Western Hockey League’s Red Deer Rebels provided discounted game tickets to Rotarians and others and the Club contributed a portion of the sales proceeds to PolioPlus.
 
And of course, it is never the wrong time to say: thank you for all you do for Rotary and for being a Rotarian who Serves Humanity.
 
Talk soon,
Neil