Elective 311

Commissioner ServiceChampions of the

Units

KEYS TO GREAT COMMISSIONER

SERVICE

Having enough commissioners

Equip them for service

Service focused on Unit Retention

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COMMISSIONERS

Have a long history

Preceded professional Scouting

Were chosen for personal qualities and skills

Considered the local authority for Scouting

Were highly respected

That’s not always the case today!

And that makes it hard to recruit commissioners

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HOW CAN WE CHANGE THAT

NOTION?

Stand tall as an example

Recruit highly respected people

Make commissioners identifiable

Make them visible

Recognize them in front of their constituents

Present them as an authority in Scouting

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WHERE TO FIND THEM

Within units

Individuals with Scouting ties

Organizations or jobs that appeal to mentors

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DO YOUR HOMEWORK!

Things to think about:

o Why would they want to do this?

o What will they get out of it?

o What do they like best about Scouting?

o What do they want their legacy to be?

o Why do you want this person to do this?

o Are there any advantages to their job/life outside of Scouting?

o Make a note of how long you want them to serve.

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HOW TO ASK

When you ask them to consider being a commissioner Do it in person Tell them why you chose them Focus on them--their skills, what they will get

out of it, why they are right for the job, things you discovered in the homework phase

Be honest about the requirements/time commitments of the job

Promise to “go along” during the decision-making phase

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EQUIP THEM FOR SERVICE

Good Commissioner/Unit Match

Skills of UC vs Needs of Unit

Knowledge of Program

Tenure of Unit

Proper Training

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EQUIP THEM FOR SERVICE

Good Commissioner/Unit Match = Unit Retention

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BUT . . .

Did you know that only 1 out of 3 units established make it to the third re-charter?

What can we do about that?

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RE-THINK “NEW UNIT”

Traditionally a new unit is characterized as:

Chartered

Not reached its first re-charter

Additionally they can often be described as novice at the Scouting game

A unit that has been dropped and restarted can also be described as “new”

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WHAT IF . . . .

We define the term “new unit” to mean any unit with less than 36 months tenure

We assign specialized Unit Commissioners to those Unit (N-UC)

We give those units extra attention

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GIVE NEW UNITS EXTRA ATTENTION

OK. . . But for how long?

That’s not clear-- it’s different for each unit

But if given extra attention for 2 re-charter cycles or up to 36 months, they’ll have a better chance of success

So how do we accomplish this?

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TO BE SUCCESSFUL

District Committee, the District Executive and the Commissioner Staff work together to:

Establish units positioned to succeed

Nurture new units for 36 months

Support all units of the district

Let’s consider the process from the beginning. . .

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BEST APPROACH

“No Unit Before Its Time”

Use specialized “New-Unit” Unit Commissioners (N-UC)

New Unit Organizer and N-UC together

Enroll unit in current Quality program

Additional monitoring

District committee should develop a follow-up plan to support for 36 months

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NO UNIT BEFORE ITS TIME

Suggestion: hold initial charter until: Adequate adult leadership (suggest 5)

Adequate youth (suggest two den/patrols of five each or a crew of ten)

Specialized New-Unit Commissioner involved

New Unit Process is complete

Consider timing of charter

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SPECIALIZED NEW-UNIT UNIT

COMMISSIONERS

Special training and reduced unit load

36-month commitment

Visit more than once a month

Meet monthly as an advisor with key Unit Leaders (Chartered Organization Representative, Unit Leader, Committee Chair)

Use New-Unit Service Plan plus Annual Service Plan

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TRACKING NEW UNITS

To assist monitoring, the following ideas are currently under review:

UVTS could have a date of original charter field

On ScoutNet the “N” designation could last for 36 months

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OTHER OPTIONS

Many councils use a color code to describe Unit Health

Current color code is:

Green for strong units

Yellow for weak and unorganized units

Red for dysfunctional unit

Why not add orange for new units

Use orange meaning “needs constant attention”

Use orange regardless of strength for up to 36 months to focus attention on new units

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DISTRICT FOLLOW-UP

New-Unit Status Report at each Key 3 District Committee members assist with

New-Unit support District Committee participates in

supplemental New-Unit Leader training (see next slide)

District Committee creates recognition plan to celebrate New Unit success

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NEW-UNIT LEADER SUPPLEMENTAL

TRAINING

Sessions should be topic-based Delivered primarily at District level Delivered by members of District

Committee and Commissioner Staff Topics delivered individually (30 minute

sections) Presented on a rotating basis with unit

program cycle in mind Or all sections could be delivered at a

District/Council training event

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RECOGNITION PLAN COULD

INCLUDE Founder’s Bar given at charter filing W. D. Boyce New Unit Organizer Award

given at first re-charter At 36 months recognize:

Unit leaders and members New Unit Organizer and N-UC District Key 3

District recognition for zero dropped units

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THOUGHTS?

Already doing something like this?

NCAC has been working this

Interested in trying?

Talk to your Key 3

Get back to us

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BUT IN THE END. . .

It’s not really about the units we have. . .

It’s about the youth they impact!

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IT’S ABOUT THIS ONE

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AND THIS ONE. . . 26

AND ALL THE “ONES” IN OUR

CARE.27

THANK YOU!

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