The Club Planning Assistant survey was recently sent to clubs worldwide. Find out what clubs said their greatest membership challenge was both in our region and further afield.

Article by Barbara Mifsud, Regional Membership Officer

Rotarian Jorge Francisco Viau of Guatemala (right) reviews a supply list with Raul, a local electrician, at Rancho Alegre school. Rancho Alegre is one of nine schools in the Sumpango area of Guatemala that are scheduled to have their water and sanitation facilities improved through Rotary global grant 25643. The schools will have classroom water filters, hand washing stations, toilets, septic tanks, and drainage systems. Rotarians are extensively involved in the project, consulting with local residents, community advocates, employees, and the students' parents to assess the priorities of each school and community. After examining Rancho Alegre's needs, Rotarians decided to use the grant to install an emergency exit from the second floor and build a new kitchen there, also.

Recently, the Rotary International Membership Development team sent the Club Planning Assistant survey to all club presidents and club membership chairs worldwide and asked them to share their greatest membership challenges. After identifying their top three issues, club leaders were then asked which of the four options listed in the table below was their biggest challenge.

Of the 4,316 clubs that responded worldwide, 41% identified attracting new members as their biggest challenge, 42% said engaging members and delivering value, 15% said making a meaningful difference in our community, and 4% said that they have no issues and their club is thriving.

Based on their responses, club leaders received a customised report that recommended specific resources and ideas to help them address their membership challenges. Look at the chart below to view the responses from our zone.

What can you do with this data?

• Assess plans: Discuss the results with your district or club membership team. Do they confirm what you already knew or was something surprising? How do the overall results align with membership strategies and goals for your district?
• Update information: Modify upcoming or future membership presentations to reflect the challenges that clubs in your area identified.
• Reach out to leaders: Reach out to club or district leaders to determine how you to get or offer support in utilising the resources, tools or online courses available on My Rotary: https://my.rotary.org/en/learning-reference/learn-topic/membership

Want to be connected to more customised resources? Take the Club Planning Assistant survey.