Leadership Retreat 2010The President’s Club

Dana Martin

A Great Place To Aspire To!

My Objectives

Have some fun…. Maybe a few laughsTalk about “really serious” President stuffTo have you go away feeling like you

learned one new thing

How many of you are currently a club President?

How many of you are first time Presidents?

Past Presidents? How many of you want to be a President

of your club?

What is the Role of the Club President?

Turn to the handout – Club President Guidelines.

http://www.soroptimist.org/members/membership/MembershipDocs/ClubAdmin/ClubPresidentGuidelines.doc

Some Key words I found Support SIA’s mission Motivate Manage Move forward Facilitator Team player Encouraging members to grow, to learn & to take on as

much as they want to, at a pace they can handle.

Implement Innovator Ideas Flexibility Adaptable Finding your BLISS

Leadership Styles

Worries & Fears When we are new to leadership we often

feel under pressure to lead in a certain way (perhaps to be like the past President ).

We worry about being inadequateWe worry about not knowing enough

about Soroptimist (i.e. what is someone asks me a question about Soroptimist and I don’t know the answer?)

Leading or Serving? My Key Learning Points

Members (whether individual, the board etc) tend not to resist or push against something in which they have a strong involvement/ownership/sense of control.

Members respond well to thanks, encouragement, recognition, inclusiveness, etc. As President you need to say this openly, sincerely, & often.

Key Learning Points If you have a tough, overly dominant leadership style it

will give your members a lot to push against & resist. It also prevents a sense of ownership & self-control among the members. It also inhibits the positive rewards & incentives (thanks, recognition, encouragement, etc) that is vital for the club to cope with change, & to enjoy themselves.

As President you will need to be able to make tough decisions when required, so try & concentrate on enabling the team to thrive, which is actually a 'serving' role, not the dominant 'leading' role commonly associated with leadership.

For leadership to work well, members (& non-members) must be able to connect their expectations, aims & activities to a basic purpose or philosophy of the organization.

Key Learning PointsFor us the foundation philosophy of Best

for Women provides vital reference points for members decisions & actions.

Seeing a clear philosophy & purpose is also essential for others we meet & talk to about Soroptimist in assessing crucial organizational characteristics such as our integrity, ethics, fairness, quality & performance.

Some Challenges to Leadership

# 1. But we’ve always done it this way!# 2. Fear of that 6 letter word C#*#*#*!#3. Conflict#4. Recruiting potential/future leaders#5. No one signs up for committee’s it’s the

same people all the time

# 1. BUT – We’ve Always Done it This Way!

# 2. 9 reasons why we Resist CHANGE

The risk of change is seen as greater than the risk of standing still

We feel connected to other people who are identified with the old way.

There are no role models for the new activity

9 reasons why we Resist CHANGE

We fear we lack the competence to change

We feel overloaded & overwhelmedPeople have a healthy skepticism & want

to be sure new ideas are sound People worry about a hidden agenda

9 reasons why we Resist CHANGE

The proposed change threatens our notion of ourselves

We genuinely believe that the proposed change is a bad idea

#3. CONFLICT

When conflict arises here is a simple way to illustrate how we can see things:

Close your eyes & imagine the days of the week

What colour is each day?Write down the colour of each day on the

handout.

ConflictEmotions are always present where issues

& relationships are at stake. The idea that we can “leave them outside” the meeting, is false.

It is the emotional dimension of conflict that is the most difficult factor for most of us to deal with.

A Strategy for Confronting Conflict

When the board or the club as a whole is disabled by a conflict it needs to face it head on.

Conflicts should not be left to simmer in the hope they will go away.

Leadership by the President in pushing for a resolution process is required.

You can also get assistance from outside sources to mediate (Governor Colleen for example; or maybe the Governor-Elect?).

Confronting a conflict situation almost always benefits from face-to-face communication involving all of the parties.

The bottom line – this is NOT the time for EMAIL!

Good Practices In Managing Conflict

Pay attention to good interpersonal communications

Operate with a strategic plan Clarify roles & responsibilities Establish a code of conduct for all

members Celebrate agreements & new

understandings

#4. Recruiting Leaders Pick capable people. Select someone who is

ready & able to handle the position Personally ask the potential candidate to run for

office. Give this moment the importance it deserves. Ask in person. Using the telephone diminishes your invitation.

Cite the reasons for selecting the individual & recognize past accomplishments.

Give a clear description of the job & put it in writing.

Recruiting Leaders If the candidate seems unsure of her capability, calm her worried

imagination, carefully review the duties, & suggest acceptable limits of responsibility. If the duties are extensive, consider dividing the job between two or more people. For best results, you must be flexible & imaginative.

If the candidate is “not interested,” try to find out why. Don’t immediately give up. Vagueness often suggests shyness, misconceptions, lack of self-confidence, or indifference to the assignment. Proceed gently. Point out the benefits & satisfactions of holding office. Refer to your own experience & growth. Encourage & challenge the candidate. Let her know that the nomination was made because you & others had confidence in her

Consider mentorship for an up & coming member

Recruiting Leaders Encourage questions. Give the individual time (about a week) to

consider the nomination. Encourage, but don’t pressure, the person.

Reassure the wavering candidate. Some highly capable people can be maddeningly unsure of themselves!

If the candidate is truly over-committed, don’t ask. Otherwise, you’ll be set up for failure.

#5. No one signs up for committee’s it’s the

same people all the time…

1. Ask the person directly. Do not stand up at a meeting and say, “Would someone like to be chair of the finance committee?”

2. Look over your member roster. Think about who consistently shows up at meetings, but has not yet volunteered. This person is just waiting to be asked. So ask.

3. Keep biographies of your members: what jobs they’ve done, what assignments they’ve liked, and what motivates them.

4. Hook a member with a small, clearly defined, short-term task.

5. Divide big jobs, to make them manageable (e.g., the newsletter, programs, and publicity). Don’t throw a fledgling member to the wolves for expedience’s sake. Break up the job and spread the tasks around to create more teamwork and less burnout.

6. Build new committees or rebuild old committees. Give many people small assignments.

7. Use the personal touch—this is the best tool you have—to recruit new volunteers.

8. Call your club members… Greet them at meetings. Stay in touch with your members.

9. Encouragement and sincere praise are powerful techniques for keeping current members active and recruiting new members. In fact, happy members are your best recruiters.

10. Be generous with thanks, regardless of the size of the task.

11. Ask someone to perform a seemingly insignificant task and turn yesterday’s passive member into today’s committed and enthusiastic member and tomorrow’s leader.

12. Never forget the following principles: A) we are ALL volunteers working with volunteers,

and B) you are supposed to be having fun.

Putting it all TogetherRole of the PresidentLeadership StylesChange – 9 reasons we resist changeConflict – confronting conflict and

managing it Recruiting LeadersRecruiting others

The Key to Success There is a theme that runs through this

whole presentation…..

Communicate

Communicate, communicate, communicate, communicate, Communicate, communicate, communicate, communicate, communicate, Communicate, communicate, communicate, communicate, communicate, Communicate, communicate, communicate,

…….I can’t stress this enough

& when the going gets tough…

Remember why we’re here, why we chose Soroptimist… here are some of mine

The Joy of Achievement Personal growth Giving something back Bringing about social change Friendship of Fabulous women like you,

support, bonding & a feeling of belonging

Now Just for Fun

The Presidential Tool Box