Managing change in your club – don’t leave your volunteers behind

By Kerry Johnson
Business Solution & Technology Specialist

Volunteers are the backbone of your club – whether they are on your board, running your bar and events, or keeping the building and grounds running. As your club changes and brings new technology on board, communicating with your volunteers to ensure they are comfortable with the changes and understand why they are happening will make the transition much smoother and easier.

Some things to consider for managing change and transition in your club:

1.      How fast does the change need to happen? Is this a crisis situation? If so, you will need good communication but may not be able to allow for input from staff and volunteers. If it is not a crisis you have time to communicate and gather feedback – which can make the transition much smoother.

2.      Who is impacted by this change? Is it a change they agree with? How might they disrupt the process if they do not agree? If key staff and volunteers who will be required to make the most changes to their workflow are not completely happy or comfortable with the change this can cause disruptions to the transition and within your club

So how can you manage a transition with your volunteers and staff to avoid disruptions and discontent?

Be clear about the message you want to communicate, and the message you want people to receive. Think through the words, timing, and approach.

Consider how the change will affect others. The planned change may look great on paper, and the board / committee might have agreed but if the change will have an impact on a process that is ingrained, or held dear, people will find reasons not to support the change.

Choose your moment – make sure the people you are communicating a change to are not busy and have the time and space to hear you

Choose your method – is the best way a phone call? An email? A general meeting?

Listen, check understanding and keep talking. Communication goes both ways. While a change might ultimately be up to the board or committee, your volunteers and staff might have a viewpoint or concern that you haven’t thought of. They might also be unsure or not understand why the change needs to happen. Being open to questions and concerns that your volunteers and staff bring to you will go a long way to making the transition a smooth one.

Change can be scary and challenging, especially if an organisation has operated the same way for a long time. Clarity, consideration, and communication can go a long way to making a change as smooth and trouble free as possible.

This is an article written by Kathleen Delaney for Business Blindspots Tasmania. To ensure you receive our regular updates from expert business advisers across a range of areas follow our  LinkedIn group.

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