Since it is time for clubs to be working on the coming year’s budget, I thought I would share how the budget may impact retention.
New members can be a re-energizing force in our clubs. They bring new talents, fresh ideas, and new community connections. But most importantly, they can bring new service opportunities to the attention of the club. Many new members join a club because they want to make a difference in a specific area of interest. If they do not initially come with service ideas, some potential projects may soon develop after they join. How the club responds to these can make or break the new member and may determine if they stay.
A new member may bring a superb service idea to the club in the middle of the administrative year. They are deflated by the words too often heard, “Sorry- It’s not in the Budget”.
Kiwanis clubs who encourage new ideas, new thinking, and new ways of doing things may very well help keep their back door closed. The sooner people feel that they can contribute to the mission and success of the club, the greater their commitment will likely be. This applied to new and old members.
One solution I have often seen is that the finance committee or the board will set aside a service contingency fund as a line item of the budget. When new, unbudgeted, opportunities come to the club, at least it can be evaluated. Even if the projects are not approved, the new members will feel their voices were heard. But, the most important thing a club leader can do is thank all members for their ideas and encourage even more. Your response should not have to be – “It’s not in the budget”.