We’re about to embark on the pinnacle of spring chapter meetings season. Many of our members are looking forward to reconnecting face to face and networking with new members and vendors. There will likely be a lot of conversation around the challenges members have faced and continue to face as the pandemic has become part of our daily lives. No matter the challenges, our members have persevered and leaned on each other for support and understanding during this time. We have learned a lot about ourselves and learned from our mistakes, which is one silver lining we can take away from the last two years. It has also presented us an opportunity to share those experiences which hopefully helps others learn and grow as well. One of those opportunities has been our monthly Leadership Happy Hour call. Though the call has only been taking place for a few months, we’ve learned a great deal from each other, while providing support to our peers and sharing ideas including:
Meeting Topics/Agendas – We’ve heard from chapter leaders about some very interesting topics that will be presented at spring meetings, including automation (as it relates to labor), how to cope with stress, becoming a better listener and of course, sessions related to ethics and sanitation.
Challenges & Solutions – Chapter leaders have had the opportunity to share their challenges with their peers as well as offer solutions. Hearing from those that are in a similar situation helps us from feeling isolated and reminds us that ‘were in this together’.
Volunteer Recruitment & Retention – We’ve also discussed volunteer recruitment and retention. It is no secret that nonprofit organizations throughout the country are struggling to recruit and retain volunteers, but through our conversations we’ve learned of some creative ways we can start to approach our members and get them engaged.
Self-Advocacy as CDM, CFPP – CDM, CFPP’s are humble individuals, and ‘tooting your own horn’ does not come easy to many of our members. Chapter leaders shared ideas on how we can help our members understand the value they bring to their positions and more importantly how they can show others the value they bring to the table.
We encourage our chapter leaders to join in the discussion at our next Leadership Happy Hour call on Monday, April 11th at 5:00 PM CT. To register for the call please click here.