Rotary Programs are awesome, so are our alumni

Article by PP Damian Leach, Membership Champion Youth Programs, Alumni, & Younger Membership

The past week we have enjoyed Alumni Reconnect Week which runs from 8 October to 14 October. This period provides an opportune time to reflect on our actions as clubs and districts to engage with our programs, be they Foundation, Community-based, Vocational, and Youth programs.

Significant time is invested by Rotarians each year in facilitating and running programs in these portfolios for (generally) community members. Our engagement through these programs is outstanding, however, our engagement afterward can be a little lack-lustre.

The first step though, is to acknowledge we can do better.

Clubs and districts regularly approach me asking where they should start. My thoughts in relation to a starting point are that the first step is to consider where you are, and then where do you want to be.

One of the challenges I have come across is the collection of information about alumni. Sometimes we expect perfection (all current email addresses, phone numbers, etc.) and are disappointed when what we have/receive is not. I encourage clubs to remember that at times that the perfect is the enemy of the good.

Initially, work with what you have. Make contact with your alumni, however minor. It is important to commence the conversation and build a relationship. In my opinion, when we make it about Rotary initially, it can seem self-serving, and don’t talk about joining a club.

Make sure they know you are interested in them, let them talk 😊

I encourage all districts and clubs to engage with their alumni community. Supporting materials will be coming out over the next month with resources of how we can have a deeper engagement with our alumni, with a survey to be released to alumni over the coming months.

If you do have alumni which you would like to be included in this survey, please send their details to me, with the subject line of Alumni – Listing – (then your district or club name), in a xls or csv file.